Quality of Life - Arts and Culture
Burlington is home to an extraordinary range of artists, performing art venues, museums, galleries, and regional theater companies. Whether you are interested in theater, music, the visual arts or film, there is something for everyone in Vermont's Queen City.
The Flynn Center for the Performing Arts, Vermont's premier performing arts facility presents a broad range of internationally acclaimed activities including performance and workshops featuring dance, jazz, Broadway musicals, multi-media events, and popular and classical music. It recently completed a $4 million renovation and restoration. The UVM Lane Series also hosts a full season of performance art both on campus and in the community, focusing primarily on opera and classical music. The Vermont Symphony Orchestra, the oldest state orchestra in the country, calls Burlington home. Each year St. Michael's Playhouse presents a variety of stage performances from musicals to mysteries.
World-class museums are located throughout the Burlington area. The Shelburne Museum houses one of the largest collections of Americana in the country. More than 80,000 objects are displayed in thirty-seven period homes and structures. The Ethan Allen Homestead, located in the middle of a 284-acre public park, offers an orientation center, historical exhibits, heirloom gardens and landscaping, and a glimpse of what life was like during the Revolutionary War. The Robert Hull Fleming Museum, on the University of Vermont campus, has large permanent collections of Native American, oriental and pre-Columbian art in addition to special exhibits.
At the heart of most things artistic and creative in downtown is Burlington City Arts. It's mission is to sustain and enhance the cultural life of the community - whether through public art programs in neighborhoods and parks, art classes for pre-school children, special grants to local artists, or a special event celebrating the creative talents in our community. Through programs, services and advocacy endeavours, City Arts fosters economic development and helps all members of the community unlock their creative potential.
In addition to many existing programs, their newest adventure is a committment to the visual arts, embodied by the Firehouse Center for the Visual Arts. Located in the historic Ethan Allen Engine Company on Church Street, the Firehouse is being transformed (with over $2 million in renovations) into a five-story, multi-use visual arts center, brimming with classes, workshops, exhibitions, and more.
Under the stewardship of Burlington City Arts, Memorial Auditorium hosts a variety of activities throughout the year including family programming, a country concert series, and rock and pop concerts. City Arts, partnering with Frog Hollow Crafts Center, has established a print and clay studio at Memorial Auditorium. Memorial is also home to a dance studio and a small club named 242 Main. Several other clubs around the community host live jazz, blues, reggae, and rock throughout the year.
In all, the abundance of galleries, museums, and theaters adds to Burlington's "Big City" feel. They allow residents to enjoy the cultural benefits of a large urban setting, while avoiding the problems normally associated with these areas.
Burlington is home to one of Vermont's largest and most impressive public libraries. The Fletcher Free Library has been operating since 1873 on College Stereet. It is housed in a Carnegie library building that is included in the National Register of Historic Sites. In addition to its collection of more than 100,000 books and other library materials, the Fletcher boasts two art galleries and three public meeting rooms. The University of Vermont's Bailey Howe Library, which has more than one million books, is available to residents and business people doing research.