For current show information at the Phoenix Theatre, visit its website.
The Phoenix Theatre in downtown Indianapolis is committed to producing newly published original art by cutting edge playwrights. Located in the Massachusetts Avenue cultural district, the Phoenix is a favorite among Indianapolis theatre and performing arts companies for the younger audiences. The Phoenix is an important part of the theater art district in that area surrounded by other theaters such as Theatre on the Square, Comedy Sportz, and the Old National Centre. The Phoenix is also one of the venues for the indyFringe Festival.
The theater’s mission statement makes a commitment to presenting contemporary art in an intimate setting. They challenge their audiences through issue oriented plays that raise awareness of social concerns; in addition, each play presented at the Phoenix Theatre asks the audience to consider its responsibility to the issue at hand, placing theater goers in the hot seat more often than not. Their purpose in doing this is to start a discussion in the community that may eventually enact change within our society. In this way, the theater contributes meaningfully to Indianapolis arts.
The Phoenix Theater’s home is a work of art unto itself, a turn-of-the-century church donated to them by J. Scott Keller in 1988. The innards of the original building have been gutted to make way for two performance spaces. The smaller stage in the basement of the building is referred to as Cabaret style. It has a lounge feel with chairs around small tables and a wine and beer bar at the back. Audiences enjoy a drink as they watch the show in an incredibly intimate setting. Their second larger stage is located on the building’s first floor. It is a standard proscenium arch theater that seats 130 people.
The Phoenix has been producing art for an amazing 24 consecutive seasons and is a part of the Actors Equity Association, one of only two theaters in Indianapolis with this status. The Indiana Repertory Theater is the other.
The Phoenix is a great place to take a date, with wonderful shows and fabulous restaurants in walking distance, such as Scholars Inn, Agio Italian Restaurant, Yats, and the Rathskeller Restaurant. The atmosphere at the Phoenix is relaxed yet artsy. As far as Indianapolis performing arts organizations go, the Phoenix definitely caters to a much younger crowd that is looking for an intellectually stimulating evening out that is relatively affordable.
Shows at the Phoenix run Thursday through Saturday each week and tickets range from $15 to $25, depending on your age. However, the theater does offer cheap seat nights every Thursday during the run of each of its shows. Everyone who attends on these nights pay the cheaper ticket price, a testament to the Phoenix’s attitude that art should be accessible to all. Free parking is readily available in the neighborhood surrounding the theater.
The Phoenix always welcomes volunteers to usher or to get involved behind the scenes by offering technical support or office help. Indianapolis culture truly benefits from having the Phoenix Theater in its own backyard. With a fresh point of view, an interesting set of ideas and a love for art, the Phoenix Theater in Indianapolis never fails to impress.
The Phoenix Theater
749 N Park Ave
Indianapolis, IN 46202
317.635.PLAY
Past Performances and Reviews, Related Articles:
- A Very Phoenix Xmas Rocks Indianapolis Xmas Theatre
- Review: A Very Phoenix Xmas at the Phoenix Theatre, A Must See Show
- Call Me BORICUA Opens at the Phoenix Theatre
- Review: Call Me Boricua! at the Phoenix Theatre
- Dos Fallopia: Deja Poo this Weekend Only at the Phoenix Theatre
- Phoenix Theater on Mass Ave Opens New Show
- Phoenix Theatre Opens Housewives of Mannheim This Weekend
- Review: Housewives of Mannheim at the Phoenix Theatre
- Phoenix Theatre Opens Shipwrecked! This Week
- Review: The Phoenix Theater Takes Audiences on Adventure with Shipwrecked! An Entertainment
- “Speech and Debate” at the Phoenix Theatre
- Review: Speech and Debate at the Phoenix Theatre
- Phoenix Theatre Opens Yankee Tavern Thursday, Mini Dietz Fest Continues
- Review: Yankee Tavern at the Phoenix Theatre
- The Most Damaging Wound: Now Playing @ The Phoenix Theatre
- Rolling Premiere of Sunlight at the Phoenix Theatre
- Review: Sunlight at the Phoenix Theatre
- The Phoenix Theatre Gives Us “Reasons To Be Pretty”
- Review: Reasons To Be Pretty at the Phoenix Theatre
- Brew-Ha-Ha: A Beer Lover’s Benefit for the Phoenix Theatre
- Phoenix Theatre Hosts An Evening For Tom Robertson, Wednesday, Oct. 7
- Phoenix Theatre Presents “Pure Prine: The Music of John Prine”
- The Phoenix Theatre: Rising from the Ashes of Mass Ave
Indianapolis Theatres and Performing Arts Venues
Athenaeum Theatre | Beef and Boards Dinner Theatre | Buck Creek Playhouse | Clowes Memorial Hall | Columbia Club | Hedback Theatre | Hilbert Circle Theatre | Indiana Repertory Theatre | Indianapolis Civic Theatre | IndyFringe Building | Irving Theater | Ruth Lilly Performance Hall | Madame Walker Theatre | Old National Centre (Murat) | The Palladium | Phoenix Theatre | Scottish Rite Cathedral | Theatre on the Square | Warren Performing Arts Center | Indianapolis Theatre Companies | More Greater Indianapolis Theatres
Central Indiana Theatres and Performing Arts Venues
Anderson’s Mainstage Theatre | Anderson’s Paramount Theatre and Ballroom | Boggstown Cabaret Supper Club in Shelby County | Carmel Center for the Performing Arts | Carmel Community Playhouse | Carmel’s Palladium | Fishers’ Artists’ Studio | Greencastle’s Putnam County Playhouse | Greenfield’s H.J. Ricks Centre for the Arts | Lebanon’s Theatre at the Milk Building | Muncie’s Ball State University Theatre | Nashville’s Coachlight Musical Theatre | Rushville’s Rush County Playhouse | Shelbyville’s Strand Theatre | Indianapolis Theatre Companies | More Central Indiana Theatres
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