For the shortest month of the year, February can sure drag onnnnn. The cold temps and gray days are enough to make you want to pull the covers over your head.
But we have a better idea! We’d like to encourage you to fight the urge to nest and venture out to a live performance this winter – the roar of the crowd paired with soaring music (or laughter!) will uplift your spirits and reinvigorate you for many days after the show.
The region offers a wide variety of entertainment options. Let’s get started!
Performance Arts Venues and Organizations
Weis Center for the Performing Arts in Lewisburg. Located on the campus of Bucknell University, the Weis Center offers high quality, world-class performances during the school year (September through May). Parking is free and easily accessible directly behind the venue.
The Weis Center prides itself on Lincoln Center-quality programming, often capturing artists on their way to urban centers like New York City, Philadelphia, or Washington D.C.
A typical season includes classical music from quartets and symphony orchestras, world music artists from across the globe, contemporary dance ensembles, jazz musicians, Americana/bluegrass music, and even contemporary cirque!
This winter and early spring, the Weis Center will present innovative dance theater company Pilobolus, traditional Irish group Goitse just in time for St. Patrick’s Day, jazz supergroup Artemis, contemporary cirque from Australia (Circa) and world music from the Orchestra of Indigenous Instruments and New Technologies, just to name a few.
Ticket prices are affordable, typically about $25-30 for adults and $15-20 for youth, and there are steep discounts for groups of 10 or more, college students, seniors 62+, and youth 18 and under.
Keep an eye on their social media for up-to-date offerings, or check out their website.
Susquehanna University in Selinsgrove offers a professionally-programmed Artist Series that, despite bringing big names, remains a little “under the radar.” That has kept ticket prices reasonable and performances accessible for all.
While the season includes just three to four events each school year, they are always very high-quality and cost much less than if you would see the same groups in a major city.
In the recent past, they have brought groups such as the Czech National Symphony Orchestra, Branford Marsalis Quartet (yes, the older brother of famed trumpeter and composer Wynton Marsalis), Michelle Cann and Imani Winds, and Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company to name a few.
This season, in October, they presented Dion Parson and 21st Century Band, which blends the sounds of the Caribbean with New Orleans and African influences. This winter and spring they will welcome Theatre Nohgaku in February, a company that presents traditional Japanese noh style theatre complete with Hayashi musicians, masks, costumes, and stage sets. In April they present countertenor John Holiday who was named one of Broadway World’s “New York Opera gifts that keep on giving.”
Their performances are easy to access, with parking nearby, and fun and low-key, since Susquehanna students are a primary audience. Check out their website for pricing and more info.
Journey Bank Community Arts Center (CAC) in downtown Williamsport is a historic theatre (it’s nearly 100 years old!) that currently offers Broadway-style productions, comedy acts, dance, film and live music.
Read more about their amazing history, which dates to the 1920s, on their website. From tribute bands to touring productions, patrons can sit back and be transported to another time and place in this beautiful, historic venue in the heart of downtown. Parking is inexpensive at nearby parking garages and street parking is available.
This winter and early spring, the CAC will present Dancing with the Stars, jam band JJ Grey and Mofro, Riverdance, Hairspray, classic-rock band America, ballet classic Swan Lake, and several tribute bands. Check out their website for all the details.
They are also the venue for the talented young musicians in the Uptown Music Collective; they will present Women of Rock II this spring, and the Williamsport Symphony Orchestra (WSO) also performs.
For classical lovers, the Williamsport Symphony Orchestra (WSO) in Williamsport consistently presents high-quality and accessible music that stirs the soul, sparks the imagination, and brings 
people together. Whether you’re a lifelong classical fan or a first-time concertgoer, there’s something here for you: music that dazzles, delights, and connects. No need to dress up or be intimidated – come as you are to experience world-class classical music in a warm and intimate setting.
Their current winter and spring offerings are diverse: From New York to Bohemia, Video Games in Concert, and Orchestral Wonders (Brahms and Britten) to end the season. More info is available on their website.
The Susquehanna Valley Chorale, truly a hidden treasure in the SRV, performs four concerts annually in various locations throughout the region. The mission of the Susquehanna Valley Chorale has always been to inspire the love of great choral music and they have been successfully doing that for over 50 years!
The SVC was founded in 1969 by a small group of musically-oriented people who wished to sing, learn, and grow together in the performance of superb choral music. The first performance included 40 singers, and they boast well over 100 auditioned members today.
If you want to be moved sonically and emotionally, check out one of their performances in the grandiose yet intimate Zion Lutheran Church in downtown Sunbury. It will stay in your memory forever! Their performances are also a wonderful way to introduce the young people in your life to beautiful choral music, because youth under 18 can attend for free!
Perhaps best known for their impactful and moving Candlelight Christmas, this spring they will perform Verdi Requiem in March and their popular Pops Concert: The Best of 30 Years Part 2 in May. More info can be found on their website.
A smaller, more informal group, the Buffalo Valley Singers in Lewisburg offers another high-quality 
choral experience, right in our backyard. Buffalo Valley Singers is open to all – there are no auditions, which makes it a wonderful way for all members of the community to participate.
Their rehearsals and performances take place at St. John’s UCC on Buffalo Road in Lewisburg and they are currently rehearsing for their May Pops Concert.
Theatre Companies
Bloomsburg Theatre Ensemble (BTE) in downtown Bloomsburg has been a Central PA treasure since the 1970s. The ensemble of professional actors was founded in 1978 by recent graduates of Northwestern University, who relocated to Bloomsburg for two years of master classes with legendary acting teacher Alvina Krause (1893-1981).
In 2016 Bloomsburg Theatre Ensemble was presented the Outstanding Theatre Award by the National Theatre Conference.
The ensemble consistently produces and presents high-quality works of theatre that inspire, challenge, and spark conversations – for all ages. They even host a summer production – this year it’s Elephant & Piggie’s “We Are in a Play!” based on the popular Mo Willems books – made up largely of community youth who audition for a highly-coveted role on the stage.
This spring they are presenting Little Women in April. Their wonderful website allows you to choose the exact seat that you’d like – my daughter loves the front row! Light concessions are also available in the Lobby.
Since 2003, Riverstage Community Theatre in Lewisburg has produced high-quality, community-based theatre that is open to all. Recent past productions that include Into the Woods, 
A Wrinkle in Time, Agatha Christie’s The Mousetrap, “tick, tick…BOOM” and many others.
Their current offerings this winter and spring include two challenging productions: The Diary and Anne Frank and “for colored girls who have considered suicide / when the rainbow is enuf.” This summer they present 1776: The Musical. Riverstage calls the Greenspace Center their home, or what many locals call “the old Lewisburg high school.” Ample free parking is available at the venue.
Looking ahead to summer?
Make sure to check out the Millbrook Playhouse in Mill Hall. Millbrook is a historical professional summer stock theater that has served Clinton County and the surrounding region for over 60 years. Their venue offers two stages: a 235‐seat Main Stage theatre and a 100-seat Cabaret Theatre. 
The Main Stage season consists of three to four large‐scale musicals or plays and the Cabaret Theatre season consists of three to four smaller plays or smaller musicals.
Millbrook also produces a very successful Educational Theatre Program, which includes one spring play (mid-May) and one or two summer shows (June-August) as well as a summer camp for kids, teens, and adults in August. Learn more on their website.
For a small region, the Susquehanna River Valley overflows with entertainment options, even in the coldest months. Take some time to explore Arts & Culture opportunities at a new venue, a new musical genre, or a new theatrical production that you’ve never heard of. You won’t regret it – and your memory banks will be full for weeks and months to come!
