A Local Guide to Art, Music and Theater in St. Louis Monday January 13, 2025 Share AttractionsEntertainmentMusicOutdoors By Rachel Huffman For the 2025 Visitors Guide, Explore St. Louis spoke with four leaders at the helm of the St. Louis arts-and-culture scene. Here, Tom Ridgely, producing artistic director of the St. Louis Shakespeare Festival, shares his favorite ways to experience the arts in the Gateway City. See all the content in the official Visitors Guide here. Tom Ridgely of the St. Louis Shakespeare Festival | Photo by Kevin A. Roberts STAGES St. Louis performs Newsies | Photo by Mark Hermes The Fabulous Fox | Photo by Mark Hermes Photo courtesy of The Black Rep Laumeier Art Fair | Photo by Mark Hermes Laumeier Sculpture Park | Photo by Mark Hermes Laumeier Sculpture Park | Photo by Mark Hermes It won’t come as a great shock that I’m going to talk about the theater scene. In case you don’t know, theater is big in St. Louis, and we have a lot of incredibly robust companies and organizations that stage productions throughout the year. Towards the beginning of June, though, performances by The Fabulous Fox, the St. Louis Shakespeare Festival, Opera Theatre of Saint Louis, STAGES St. Louis, The St. Louis Black Repertory Company, The Muny and Circus Flora all overlap, making it one of the best times to visit if you love theater. If you have kids like mine, they’ll love the free cultural attractions in Forest Park, including the Saint Louis Art Museum, Missouri History Museum and Saint Louis Zoo. If it’s your first visit, prepare to be blown away! Even if you’ve been 100 times, there’s always something new to discover. Laumeier Sculpture Park is another unique attraction where you can get up close and personal with these large-scale sculptures in this beautiful park. Every year over Mother’s Day weekend, it also hosts an art fair that showcases 150 juried artists from across the country and their phenomenal work. St. Louis is a hotbed of creation. Whether you’re interested in art, music, theater or dance, you’ll find work here that has an impact on the national arts-and-culture scene. Share