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| " The opera? In Seattle? This city at the Northwest corner of the nation, best known for Boeing 747’s, sourdough, and sockeye salmon, has casually mounted one of the most ambitious operatic projects ever taken in the United States.” — New York Times, July 1975, upon the occasion of Seattle Opera’s first Ring cycle |
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The Seattle Center
On a site where Native Americans and pioneers once gathered, the Seattle Center celebrates diverse music and cultural events year-round. This 74-acre park, built for the 1962 World’s Fair, includes indoor theaters, outdoor stages, an outdoor stadium, and a variety of exhibition buildings.
1. Marion Oliver McCaw Hall – Seattle Opera, Pacific Northwest Ballet: 321 Mercer St. Built in 1927 as Seattle’s Civic Auditorium and transformed into the Seattle Opera House for the 1962 World’s Fair, this concert hall reopened in 2003 as a new state-of-the-art 2,890-seat marvel that serves as home to both the Seattle Opera and Pacific Northwest Ballet. Stravinsky once conducted here!
2. Seattle Center International Fountain: 305 Harrison St. This placid site brought distraught fans together to mark the passing of Nirvana singer Kurt Cobain (April 10, 1994) and later Alice in Chains’ Layne Staley (April 20, 2002). At his memorial, Cobain’s wife Courtney Love read – and cursed her way through – Cobain’s suicide note.
3. Experience Music Project:
325 5th Ave. N. Housed in a
unique flowing pavilion designed by Frank O. Gehry, EMP features many exhibits, including Northwest Passage, Jimi Hendrix, and Soundlab, where you can learn to play the regional
rock classic “Louie Louie”!