The Denver Performing Arts Complex (DPAC) is the largest performing arts complex under one roof, and the second-largest center of its kind in terms of number of venues and seating capacity. Connected by an 80-foot-tall glass roof, DPAC houses ten performance spaces on its four-block, 12-acre site. The Denver Performing Arts Complex is home to a Tony Award-winning repertory theatre company, Broadway touring productions, contemporary dance and ballet, magnificent chorales, a major symphony orchestra, internationally-acclaimed opera and more.
History of the Denver Performing Arts Complex
In December 1974, construction began on a project that would forever change the quality of life for Denverites: a four-square-block area in downtown Denver was transformed into a comprehensive performing arts complex. The centerpiece of that facility was the much-anticipated Boettcher Concert Hall, which opened to the public in March 1978. The building was customized for Colorado and modeled after the exceptional Berlin Philharmonie in Germany.
Music, theatre and dance are a year-round, essential part of Denver’s culture, and the performing arts complex provides the climate to develop and attract outstanding performances and top-notch cultural institutions. The first-class facilities at the Denver Performing Arts Complex help to support and promote the constant evolution of, and growing demand for, the arts in the Mile High City.
The force behind creating the Denver Performing Arts Complex was driven by the desire to construct a home for the nationally recognized Denver Symphony Orchestra. Designed with the charge of serving a world-class symphony, Boettcher Concert Hall was the first 360-degree concert hall in-the-round in the United States. With the passage of the City of Denver’s 2007 “Better Denver” bond initiative, which provides public funding to support City assets and infrastructure, Boettcher Concert Hall – now home to the Colorado Symphony Orchestra - will receive a critical renovation in coming years. The creation of a new symphony center will revitalize the Speer Boulevard “face” of the performing arts complex, and continue the development of an essential component in Denver’s cultural landscape.
About Arts & Venues Denver
The Denver Performing Arts Complex is owned and operated by Arts & Venues Denver, a division of the City & County of Denver. Arts & Venues Denver's mission is to enhance Denver’s quality of life and economic vitality through premier public venues, artworks and entertainment opportunities. The department seeks to maximize synergies and will continue to oversee public arts, city film/event permitting, Create Denver Week, One Book One Denver, and staple programming including Five Points Jazz Festival. Additionally, Arts & Venues oversees many of Denver's most sophisticated, high-profile facilities including the Denver Performing Arts Complex, Red Rocks Park and Amphitheatre, the Denver Coliseum and Crossroads Theater.
Learn more about Arts & Venues Denver by watching our short introductory video.