ordway center for the performing arts

Such a lovely venue to make a production seem like "going to the theater." Being greeted by men in overcoats and top hats made me feel like it was a special occasion and the theater was so beautiful!

We have been going to the Ordway for years. They have recently completed a wonderful upgrade. I do not think there are any bad seats in the house. The acoustics are wonderful. My wife appreciates the availability of rest rooms and short lines for them. We have seen the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra and Christmas Story. In our view, they have become everything the old Guthrie was and more. We were afraid that after the remodel it would become a cold emotionless venue like the Guthrie became. But the Ordway stayed true to their course. A wonderful place to go. As a side note, we always enjoy dinner at Forepaughs before a performance.

Our most recent visit to the Ordway was to see "A Christmas Story," which was extremely well done. We had seats in the second row of the balcony, which provided an outstanding view - but really, past visits sitting in other parts of the Ordway also provided great views of the stage action. Sound quality of the orchestra is at a very high level. Staff (most I am guessing are volunteers) are all pleasant and helpful. Refreshment choices during the intermission are very nice (word to the wise - order before the production begins and your order will be waiting for you - everyone else ends up in a long line). The first floor entryway is a bit cramped, but we cannot have everything perfect. View of Rice Park and surrounding historic buildings is inspiring.

We weren't sure at first how A Christmas Story would be pulled off as a musical. It was fantastic. The theatre is beautiful, plenty of restrooms, but they need to have more drink stations. People were giving up waiting in very long lines. I would think they would want to add those as to not lose revenue.

We have season tickets to the SPCO at the Ordway. The Ordway is a lovely facility with incredible acoustics. We've been to broadway shows, Choral events, the chamber orchestra and the opera at the Ordway. All have been wonderful. THere really isn't a bad seat in the house with good sight lines from almost all the seats.

Just finished seeing the Minnesota Opera production of hansel & Gretel and thuroughly enjoyed the experieince.We sat in the last row of the uppermost balcony and still had great seats; the performers were clearly visable and the sound quality magnificent.I've been here many times to see everything from classical performers to touring Broadway showes and have never been disapppointed.

Great sight lines and interesting shows. We love this place. Helpful staff and easy parking close by. Lots of variety in their programs.

The programs are as good as any I've seen on Broadway. The theater itself is beautiful -- a fun place to arrive early for a production, and sip a drink in the lovely seating areas, many with views of St. Paul.

What a wonderful venue! We have been visiting the beautiful Ordway Theatre for years, enjoying season tickets to a number of performances. We most recently saw "Evita" and were mesmerized by this outstanding production. The "Broadway Songbook" series is another of our favorites -- with a spotlight on specific composers, viewers are treated to performances which are both informative and entertaining.The Ordway is currently undergoing extensive renovations. It's a little messy right now (although the main sections of the theatre are still impeccably beautiful,) but we can't wait to see the finished product.

Always enjoy any performance I attend at this theater. My last experience was the Broadway Show song review; and I was thoroughly entertained

I have been to the Ordway a number of times for various types of productions. The most recent was a fantastic concert. I felt the seats & acoustics were great & was not disappointed. Had no trouble finding parking close to the theater. Always enjoy the Ordway.

I have sat in many different parts of the Ordway, and the only section to which I would not return would be the box seat area set at a right angle to the stage. It's fun to be close to the action, but annoying to have to turn your head to see it. Sunday's matinee performance of "Evita," was a smooth and polished production, with a lot of history touched on during the short two-hour time span of the musical. The sets and costumes were evocative, the news reel footage added interest, the orchestra performed admirably, and I particularly enjoyed the tango-influenced choreography. Evita's sexual escapades were tastefully suggested, and Juan Peron's rise to power became an astonishing brief ballet.I did wish that diction could have been better. The male singers were OK, and I could hear every word Che sang, but much of what Evita sang was pretty hard to understand. If fact, I found myself wishing for the subtitles employed by the Minnesota Opera Company!But our seats front and center in the orchestra section were perfect, and both my daughter and I felt that our time and money had been well spent. We are lucky in the Twin Cities to have lively and varied theater readily available at all times of the year.

I recently attended Evita here and was disappointed we were not able to make out the faces of the cast. We also had a difficult time hearing some of the performance. I was in the back row of the mezzanine and while I didn't pay for the great seats I did expect to hear the performance if not be able to see them. There was a constant fog in the theatre. I don't know if it was the construction taking place or whether it was part of the performance, but it was really difficult to see. I am in my 30s so don't write this off as an age related issue. I read reviews that there are no bad seats, but am guessing they were submitted by people sitting in the front. I'll likely go back in the future but will learn from this and pay more for my seats.

I go to the Ordway a lot. In the last year, we have gone to the symphony, to the Wizard of Oz (AMAZING), to Bring It On, and to a Grease Sing a Long. I find the Ordway to be charming. And most of the seats are quite good. They have boosters for kids. My warning with regards to seats is that there is a pretty big chunk of seats on the main floor in the middle section that have almost no grading. Which means you cannot see over someone in front of you. I have not experienced this as much on the sides of the main floor or farther back.If you go to a Sing-a-Long (the Ordway does a fabulous job with these and I highly recommend them), do not rely on the "best seats available" algorithm. We did and were in the second row. The sing along is basically the show on a movie screen with audience participation. This means that we were seated as if in the second row of a movie theater - which is not good! We still had an excellent time but next time I will go for worst seats available :)I do wish that the Ordway would allow drinks in the theater. The intermission is pretty short (which is good when you are there with kids) but it is really not worth getting a glass of wine since you would have to chug it to drink it before you have to get back in the theater.

Took wifey to see Evita at the Ordway for her birthday and had a good time. The facility was superb for a musical and our seats were close to the stage and quite comfortable. The cast did a nice job of performing but probably a bit less than would be found on Broadway. Ushers were accommodating and vey helpful which made the experience even better. Will return again.