Heartland of the arts
The opportunities to take in the arts in Nebraska are as vast as the wide-open prairie itself. Museums and commercial galleries, performing arts venues, exciting live music and artists who explore the rich history of Nebraska are just a taste of what the state has to offer.
Visual art
Eastern Nebraska has a vibrant gallery scene and a wealth of museums for all kinds of art lovers. Travelers who find themselves in Lincoln during the first Friday of any month can get a great gallery treat, as approximately 20 art spaces in the city’s downtown and Historic Haymarket District open their doors to enthusiastic, large crowds. A rotating schedule of shows means there’s new art each month in each space, and a full list of shows is available through the Lincoln Arts Council’s Web site. The galleries in Lincoln are good across the board, but a few can’t-miss spots, such as the Tugboat Gallery, are concentrated on 14th Street between O and P Streets as part of the larger Parrish block, a second-floor space full of artist studios, stores, galleries and performance spaces. The University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s Sheldon Museum of Art, has a top-notch collection of American work and regularly presents challenging, avant-garde exhibits during first Friday events.
In Omaha, find venues like the Hot Shops Art Center, and the Bemis Center for Contemporary Arts; both offer studio spaces, the Hot Shops to locals and the Bemis to artists-in-residence who convene in Omaha from around the world. Catch regular exhibitions—many cutting-edge—at both venues. The Crystal Forge glass-blowing studio at the Hot Shops is a great place to pick up a souvenir; its hand-blown Christmas ornaments are one of the most popular.
Omaha’s Joslyn Art Museum, and Durham Museum, are two more must-sees. Joslyn’s vast collection of art includes lots of European masters, Karl Bodmer botanical prints and Native American artifacts, sculpture and painting, among other things. A contemporary wing includes modern art, and a newly opened, multimillion-dollar sculpture garden changed the public face of Joslyn. The Durham Museum, formerly a rail depot, regularly brings in Smithsonian-organized shows and is a great venue for rail enthusiasts and families alike; many exhibits are especially kid-friendly.
Kaneko, is one of Omaha’s newer spaces and has numerous functions: a studio and gallery space for Omaha-based sculptor Jun Kaneko, a performance space for speakers, a library of artistic reference items and a concert hall.
The rest of Nebraska can’t be left out. The Museum of Nebraska Art, in downtown Kearney includes nearly 200 years of art made in Nebraska, beginning in the 19th century and spanning to a number of contemporary artists working in the state today. Be sure to check out the skylight gallery on the top floor, where contemporary artists often do creative installation work.
Nebraska also has its fair share of one-of-a-kind artsy spots. Cozad’s Robert Henri Museum, explores the life and work of this artist, all within the walls of his boyhood home. Exhibits include a Pony Express station, church, schoolhouse, hotel and a historical walkway. Ogallala’s Petrified Wood Gallery features Native American artifacts and thousands of examples of petrified woods and fossils—the wood, in every color of the rainbow, is art in and of itself. The gallery also features a selection of music boxes. Lincoln’s International Quilt Study Center, features one of the world’s best collections of quilts and is a must-stop for any crafty types. A few small-town galleries are worth a stop, and travelers can find respites in Lewellen, Thedford, David City, Gordon and Alliance. The Woodland Trails Art Gallery, in Winnebago, is a wonderful example of Native American art and craft and features local artisans making traditional and modern artwork in a handful of gallery spaces and a gift shop. For more information on Nebraska galleries, go to http://www.VisitNebraska.gov and search by region.
Live music
Omaha’s music scene has become well known throughout the nation, and it’s no wonder. With local powerhouse Saddle Creek Records, spawning new acts and sustaining known ones, concerts are a regular occurrence. Shows are scheduled somewhere in town nearly every night; check out venues like Benson’s Waiting Room, North Downtown’s Slowdown and South Omaha’s Sokol Auditorium for the hottest acts. Lincoln isn’t far behind its big sister when it comes to live music. A number of venues play host to local and national acts, and the yearly Lincoln Calling festival, which happens each fall, draws thousands of music-philes to Nebraska’s capital city. Shows in Lincoln are detailed at the Star City Scene Web site. The site also features venue listings, reviews of local shows and an exhaustive list of local bands.
Outside of indie rock, Nebraska has lots of other options. Omaha’s Qwest Center, brings in the likes of Keith Urban, U2 and Elton John, among other popular acts. Lincoln’s Pershing Auditorium, brings in bands in its own right. The Nebraska State Fair, and county fairs like the Hall County Fair, the Buffalo County Fair and the Adams County FairFest are some of the best places to hear big-name country and rock acts: 2009 performers included Lee Ann Womack, Hall and Oates, Randy Travis, Montgomery Gentry, Gary Allan and the Locash Cowboys. North Platte’s NebraskaLand Days, is another hot spot for country and rock, and in 2009 Rodney Atkins and Puddle of Mudd headlined.
Symphony orchestras, chamber music groups and live jazz performances—especially outdoor summer concerts—are widely accessible throughout the state. Joslyn Art Museum’s Jazz on the Green and Sheldon’s Jazz in June are two of the most popular outdoor jazz events in the state.
Performing arts
Live theater enjoys widespread popularity in Omaha. From Omaha’s Holland Center for Performing Arts, and its historic Orpheum Theater to its smaller independent theaters like the Blue Barn Theater, and the Shelterbelt/ Snap Productions venue, there’s something for everyone. Seasonal traveling productions of Broadway shows visit the city’s Orpheum, and current offerings can be found at the Omaha Performing Arts Web site. The Omaha Community Playhouse is the largest community theater in the nation and regularly premieres musicals, plays and special events. Its annual production of “A Christmas Carol” has been running to sold-out audiences for nearly 40 years. Find a full schedule and ticket information at http://www.omahaplayhouse.com. Community theaters span the state, and both the Lincoln Community Playhouse and Grand Island Little Theatre are worth noting.
In 2009, the Omaha Modern Dance Collective started its first annual DanceFest, which included performers from Omaha, Lincoln and many other Nebraska-based modern and cultural dance groups. Find out more about DanceFest at http://www.dancefest.info. Lincoln’s Lied Center for Performing Arts, is top-notch and brings in musicals, plays and speakers. It also works with the Nebraska Repertory Theatre in both a studio theater space and its Johnny Carson Theater. Find out more about these intimate productions at http://www.unl.edu/rep. Dance, too, is always on the docket at the Lied Center, and performers like the Paul Taylor Dance Company (on the schedule for 2010) and the Merce Cunningham Dance Company can be seen.
Lincoln is also home each year to the International Thespian Festival, part of the Educational Theater Association’s activities, which takes place in June on the University of Nebraska-Lincoln campus. High school student actors converge in the city and put on a number of productions during the event. Visit http:// www.edta.org for more information.
Many of Nebraska’s historic opera houses and theaters have been lovingly restored and now bring the performing arts to communities around the state. The Minden Opera House, and the Red Cloud Opera House, are great examples. Both have regularly scheduled programming including concerts, plays, speakers, children’s theater and musicals. The concert hall in Brownville has one of the most notable schedules of cabaret and Broadway-caliber performances in the state. The full schedule of classical singers and performers, as well as opera and cabaret singers, is available at http://www.brownvilleconcertseries.com.
For more information on the arts in Nebraska, go to http://www.VisitNebraska.gov and search for museums, galleries and other performance spaces by name, location, date or event. Downloading a free 2009 “Nebraska Travel Guide” will put all the information in hand, with full listings of art-related attractions and venues across the state.
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