Tempe Center for the Arts

Tempe Center for the Arts
Tempe Center for the Arts  (Photo courtesy of the center)

The Tempe Center for the Arts is located on the southwest end of Tempe Town Lake and is part of a 17-acre lakeside art park developed by Design Workshop, a Tempe landscape architecture firm.

The center was designed by Tempe-based Architekton and Barton Myers Associates of Los Angeles. It houses a 600-seat proscenium theater, a 200-seat studio theater and a 3,500 square-foot gallery.

A lakeside view of the center at night. (Photo courtesy of the Tempe Center for the Arts)
A lakeside view of the center at night. (Photo courtesy of the Tempe Center for the Arts)

The 600-seat theater at the Tempe Center for the Arts. (Photo courtesy of the center)

The 600 seat main theater (top); the 200 seat studio theater. (Photos courtesy of the center)
The 600 seat main theater (top); the 200 seat studio theater. (Photos courtesy of the center)
A view of the lobby at night. (Photo courtesy of the center)
A view of the lobby at night. (Photo courtesy of the center)

BRIEF HISTORY

A citizens group, formed in 1998, spearheaded a ballot initiative to create an arts center. The resulting increase in the sales tax of .1% was used to fund seed money for the management, design, and construction of the facility.

A management firm (Kitchell CEM) was selected by the Tempe city government to oversee a three-phase design competition, leading to the selection of the design team in 2000. Following public input, the design was completed in 2003. Construction began in April 2004 and took 40 months.

The Center was completed in August, 2007, with a grand opening on September 9, 2007.

The Center features a roof made of complex geometric folded plates. The roof is highly visible from the surrounding freeways and the man-made Tempe Town Lake, which occupies the natural watercourse of the Salt River, immediately adjacent to the site. It is also visible by many airplanes landing at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport, two miles west of the building.

FACILITY HOURS AND OTHER INFORMATION
Closed Mondays
10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Tuesday and Thursday
10 a.m. to 7 p.m., Wednesday and Friday
11 a.m. to 6 p.m., Saturday
Open Sundays based on performance schedule

Administrative Office hours
8 a.m.-5 p.m., Monday-Friday
except on city-observed holidays

Location
700 W. Rio Salado Parkway
Tempe, AZ 85281

Contact
Box Office: 480-350-2822 (2TCA)
Administration: 480-350-2829

RESIDENT COMPANIES

  • A Ludwig Dance Theatre
    480/966-3391
  • Arizona Academy of the Performing Arts
    480/838-4203
  • Arizona Wind Symphony
    480/838-4203
  • ASU Public Events
    480/965-5062
  • Childsplay 480/921-5700
  • CONDER/dance
    480/570-3263
  • Desert Dance Theatre
    480/962-4584
  • Lakeshore Jazz Series
    480/345-2392
  • Tempe Community Chorus
    480/706-5263
  • Tempe Symphonic Wind Ensemble
    480/831-7655