Ballet Arizona and the Phoenix Classical Performing Arts Scene

Phoenix's classical performing arts organizations — Ballet Arizona, Phoenix Symphony, Arizona Opera, and their institutional peers — operate at a level of professional quality that the city's reputation doesn't always convey. Ballet Arizona, which celebrated its fortieth anniversary in 2023, produces a full season of classical and contemporary ballet from September through May at Symphony Hall. The company's technical level has risen significantly over the past decade. The Nutcracker production each December is worth attending for its production value alone. The Phoenix Symphony, one of the fifty largest professional orchestras in the United States, performs at Symphony Hall throughout the season and supplements classical programming with pops concerts and chamber series. The acoustic quality of Symphony Hall is among the best in the West. Arizona Opera produces four or five fully staged productions annually at Phoenix Symphony Hall and the Tucson Music Hall. Timing for all of these organizations: subscribe to their email lists for last-minute discounted tickets that appear when sales underperform expectations. Discounts of fifty percent or more are available for most productions within two weeks of curtain.