Smith Center for the Performing Arts

The Smith Center for the Performing Arts is located in Downtown Las Vegas's 61-acre Symphony Park and is a five-acre performing arts center consisting of three theaters in two buildings; groundbreaking for the $470 million project was May 26, 2009. The Neo Art Deco design style was chosen by David M. Schwarz to echo the design elements of the Hoover Dam, just 30 miles to the southeast. It also shares design features with the Will Rogers Memorial Center in Fort Worth, Texas. The center features a 17-story carillon tower containing 47 bells and is the first performing arts center in the nation to be Gold LEED certified. It opened on March 10, 2012.The Smith Center features international music, and dance companies and is the home of the Las Vegas Philharmonic and Nevada Ballet Theatre. The Center is under the leadership of President and CEO Myron Martin.HistoryPrior to The Smith Center opening, Las Vegas was one of the largest cities in the country without a performing arts center. Some highly customized production shows and venues have long existed at various resorts on the Las Vegas Strip but none were geared towards the variety of performances that a stand-alone center would provide, such as that required for touring Broadway productions or major symphony orchestras. A smaller performing arts venue at the University of Nevada Las Vegas was inadequate for these purposes.