Thanks to the annual Spoleto Festival USA, Charleston has long been on the radar for tourists interested in taking in world-class performances. But in the last decade, Charleston has experienced a surge in its arts community, making it a yearround arts destination.
“There’s no excuse why if someone visits Charleston they can’t do something artsy while they’re here,” said Maggie Hendricks, executive director of the Charleston Regional Alliance for the Arts, a network of 61 nonprofit visual, literary and performing arts organizations in the greater Charleston area. The alliance is a resource for its member organizations while also promoting arts in Charleston. In the fall it hosts the OPEN Arts Expo showcasing a number of local artists and kicking off the fall arts season.
Hendricks, who grew up in Charleston, said there have always been arts opportunities but now there are so many it’s hard to keep up. The alliance recently conducted an internal study to gauge the artistic vitality of the region and discovered about half of all the organizations that exist now started in the last decade. “It has just grown tremendously,” she said.
And much of that growth has been in the way of smaller theaters and galleries, giving visitors plenty of great “off the beaten path options.”
Emily Wilhoit, executive director of League of Charleston Theatres, said about half of her organization’s 14 theater members started in the last few years. The growth has been diverse and each theater tends to have a specialty area whether it’s comedy, drama or musicals as well as children’s theater and murder mysteries. “We pretty much have everything,” Wilhoit said.
Lese Corrigan, owner of Corrigan Gallery, has been running galleries in Charleston for more than 25 years. She’s approached almost weekly by someone wanting to open a gallery in Charleston or by artists who want to show their work here.
She credits the Charleston Fine Art Dealers’ Association with bringing more attention to Charleston’s artistic community. Founded 15 years ago, gallery owners founded the organization as a way to promote Charleston as a fine art destination. It hosts large events in the summer and fall while also raising money for school art programs.
Explore Charleston’s art scene — this is just a sampling of some of the great places to visit while in town:
Charleston Artist Guild
160 East Bay St., Charleston
843-722-2454
About 600 different artists rotate through this gallery. They also take turns working in the gallery so it’s a great opportunity to interact with artists and talk about their work.
City Gallery at Waterfront Park
34 Prioleau St., Unit A, Charleston
843-958-6484
A collection of contemporary art from local, regional, national and international artists; free admission.
The Halsey Institute of Contemporary Art at the College of Charleston
(free admission)
161 Calhoun St., Charleston
843-953-4422
Hosts between five and seven exhibitions per year, highlighting adventurous contemporary art by emerging and mid-career artists of national stature.
Gibbes Museum of Art
135 Meeting St., Charleston
843-722-2706
Changing exhibits, special events and tours.
The Black Fedora
161 Church St., Charleston
843-937-6453
Comedy mystery theater and family friendly shows.
Charleston Symphony Orchestra
843-723-7528
Charleston Stage
135 Church St. | 843-577-7183
Charleston Stage produces more than 120 performances each season and plays to more than 40,000 patrons annually. Performances are in the historic Dock Street Theatre.
Flowertown Players
133 South Main St., Summerville
843-875-9251
Community theater performed in the heart of downtown Summerville.
Footlight Players
20 Queen St., Charleston
843-722-4487
Community theater performed in an old cotton warehouse.
Midtown Productions
915 Folly Road, Suite F, Charleston
843-795-2223
Live theater plus classes for adults and children. Opening in February, the new Midtown Cabaret Theatre, Charleston’s first “green theatre,” on Azalea Drive in North Charleston.
PURE Theatre
477 King St., Charleston
843-723-4444
Contemporary theater featuring professional actors.
South of Broadway Theatre Co.
1080 E. Montague Ave.,
North Charleston | 843-745-0317
Broadway-quality theater in North Charleston’s Park Circle area.
The Village Repertory Co.
34 Woolfe St, Charleston | 843-856-1579
Nonprofit professional theatre company, producing drama, comedy and musicals with a special emphasis on the finest plays of the 20th century.
Resources for shows, exhibitions and more:
■ Charleston Regional Alliance for the Arts
■ City of Charleston Office of Cultural Affairs
■ League of Charleston Theatres
■ S.C. Arts Commission