46. LSU MUSEUM OF ART
City: Baton Rouge, LA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (225) 389-7200
Address: 100 Lafayette St.
Description: The LSU Museum of Art is located downtown in the Shaw Center for the Arts. The museum’s permanent collection includes English and American 17th- to 20th-century portraiture, including works by William Hogarth, Joshua Reynolds, and Rembrandt Peale. Recent acquisitions include portraits by Diego Rivera, Yousuf Karsh, and Paul Jenkins. The museum also features New Orleans silver, Newcomb pottery and crafts, art by current and former LSU faculty and students, and modern and contemporary Southern paintings, drawings, and sculpture. The museum is open Tuesday through Saturday, 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., and Sunday, 1 to 5 p.m.
City: Baton Rouge, LA
Category: Tours & Attractions
48. TAYLOR CLARK GALLERY
City: Baton Rouge, LA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (225) 383-4929
Address: 2623 Government St.
Description: Taylor Clark is a premier fine art gallery featuring paintings, prints, and handmade custom framing. Owned and run by three generations of the Clark family, the gallery remains focused on personal customer service and fine art. It is based in Baton Rouge but serves clients around the world. The gallery showcases works by local and regional artists. It is recognized as a dealer in the printed works of John James Audubon. Open Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Saturday, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
49. WEST BATON ROUGE MUSEUM
City: Baton Rouge, LA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (225) 336-2422
Address: 845 North Jefferson Ave.
Description: Situated in Port Allen on the west side of the Mississippi River, the West Baton Rouge Museum is a delightful small museum with enough space to present exhibits by local and regional painters, sculptors, and photographers. Much of the focus is on the cultural heritage of sugar plantation life. View the 22-foot working sugar mill model, the 1850 Allendale Slave Cabin and 1830 Aillet House, and a French plantation “big house.” Guided tours are given of historic sugar plantation buildings. Free samples of locally produced Louisiana raw sugar are available for every visitor.
50. BATON ROUGE CONCERT BAND
City: Baton Rouge, LA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Description: Baton Rouge Concert Band is a nonprofit community organization under the direction of Sheily Bell and assistant director Wesley McCoy. Formed in June 1977 by Vernon Taranto, the band has been providing entertainment for 31 years. Musical selections range from military marches of John Philip Sousa to Broadway show tunes to symphonic band transcriptions, such as Tchaikovsky’s 1812 Overture. The band plays at various locations throughout the city, and annual concerts are presented on Memorial Day, the Fourth of July, and Labor Day, and during the Christmas season. People especially enjoy attending concerts given on the steps of the Louisiana State Capitol.
51. BATON ROUGE SINFONIETTA
City: Baton Rouge, LA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (225) 766-3487
Description: The Baton Rouge Sinfonietta is a nonprofit professional chamber orchestra composed of musicians led by internationally known composer and conductor Dinos Constantinides. The orchestra plays a wide variety of music from the Baroque through the Classical, Romantic, and 20th-century eras. Regional and international artists are featured as soloists. Sunday afternoon subscription series take place in the striking First Baptist Church downtown. Programs also are given at libraries and retirement communities.
52. BATON ROUGE SYMPHONY
City: Baton Rouge, LA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (225) 383-0500
Address: 7330 Highland Rd.
Description: The premiere musical organization in the city, the Baton Rouge Symphony Orchestra was formed in 1947. Led by acclaimed conductor Timothy Muffitt, the orchestra presents a Master Works series in the RiverCenter Theatre for the Performing Arts. Performing with the orchestra is the Symphony Chorus conducted by Kenneth Fulton. Innovative concerts feature both classical and contemporary music. Guest artists have included Yo-Yo Ma, Itzhak Perlman, Van Cliburn, Joshua Bell, Renee Fleming, and Chris Botti. Other programs include Christmas Brass Concerts, Young People’s Discovery Concerts, and the Lamar Family Chamber Series. The Louisiana Youth Orchestras, directed by David Torns, perform in Magnolia Theatre at the Baton Rouge Community College.
53. OPERA LOUISIANE
City: Baton Rouge, LA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Description: Opera lovers will delight in the music of Opera Louisiane. This new organization was founded by local residents in 2006 with the help of Metropolitan Opera singer and LSU graduate Paul Groves and his former professor Robert Grayson. Serving as executive director, Grayson is a former lead tenor with the New York City Opera and noted teacher of international singers. Performances in the 2009–10 season included a “Bringing Out the Stars” gala featuring singers from Houston Opera, Dallas Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago, and others. Also staged was Hansel and Gretel, based on the Brothers Grimm fairy tale.
54. BATON ROUGE LITTLE THEATER
City: Baton Rouge, LA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (225) 924-6496
Address: 7155 Florida Blvd.
Description: Dramas, comedies, musicals, and one-act shows are presented by the Baton Rouge Little Theater. Founded in 1946, the BRLT is one of the oldest running regional theater companies in the U.S. In 1951 veteran actor/director Lee Edwards, who had studied under Lee Strasberg and Max Reinhardt, took over as director, and by 1959 the company began construction on its new theater building. Today, under the leadership of managing artistic director Keith Dixon, BRLT continues to offer outstanding productions such as Agnes of God, Arsenic and Old Lace, and Elephant Man. Summer musicals are always stellar. Performers include amateurs, drama students, and professional actors drawn from the community.
55. BATON ROUGE RIVERCENTER THEATRE for THE PERFORMING ARTS
City: Baton Rouge, LA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (225) 389-3030
Address: 275 South River Rd.
Description: Entering the Theatre for the Performing Arts, the visitor is met with a contemporary setting of glass and wood. The hall features continental seating for up to 1,900 patrons. Every seat has an excellent view of the stage, guaranteed by the proscenium opening of 57 feet by 28 feet. Productions here include Broadway shows, ballets, magic acts, operas, comic acts, dance competitions, and recitals. The theatre has held performances including Cats, Les Miserables, The Nutcracker, Miss Saigon, and Rent. It’s also the home stage for the Baton Rouge Symphony. There are no elevators to the balcony, but seating for disabled patrons is available on the first floor, with a wheelchair ramp located at the side entrance.
City: Baton Rouge, LA
Category: Tours & Attractions
57. MANSHIP THEATRE
City: Baton Rouge, LA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (225) 344-0334
Address: 100 Lafayette St.
Description: Modeled after the classic European opera houses, the Manship Theatre in the Shaw Center for the Arts is a beautiful intimate theater. There are 325 front-row seats. Every audience member is placed eye-to-eye with the performers on stage. Presentations include all forms of performance: theater, musical theater, dance, music, and family programs. Among the celebrities who have appeared here are Jerry Seinfeld, Lyle Lovett, Branford Marsalis, and Kenny Barron. The venue also plays a role in the city’s growing roster of art and film events, including a French film festival, a Jewish film festival, and the Red Stick Animation Festival.
58. PLAYMAKERS of BATON ROUGE
City: Baton Rouge, LA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (225) 389-7246
Address: 100 Lafayette St.
Description: Playmakers of Baton Rouge is a professional theater dedicated to bringing quality productions to young audiences. Founded in 1982, the company continues to provide educational and entertaining programs to children and adults through its Summer Neighborhood Tour, Spring Elementary School Tour, drama classes, and camps. Playmakers presents performances at various venues throughout Baton Rouge.
City: Baton Rouge, LA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Address: 10745 Linkwood Court
60. CANGELOSI DANCE PROJECT
City: Baton Rouge, LA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (225) 291-4587
Address: 3749 Perkins Rd.
Description: Cangelosi Dance Project is a nonprofit dance company that promotes, educates, and serves all groups in developing contemporary dance through performances, workshops, and master classes. Professional and student performances are presented in the Manship Theatre, the Baton Rouge Little Theatre Stage 2, and other venues.