Things to Do in Sacramento, California

Culture

Sacramento is known for its evolving contemporary culture, even being dubbed the fourth most "hipster city" in the United States in one 2016 poll.

Museums

Sacramento is home to 32 museums, including several major museums. The Crocker Art Museum is the oldest public art museum west of the Mississippi River. In 2010, the museum completed an expansion that tripled the museum's floor space to more than 145,000 square feet of exhibit space.

Also of interest is the Governor's Mansion State Historic Park, a large Victorian Mansion that was home to 14 of California's Governors. The Leland Stanford Mansion, which was completely restored in 2006, serves as the State's official address for diplomatic and business receptions. Guided public tours are available. The California Museum for History, Women, and the Arts, home of the California Hall of Fame, is a cultural destination. The California State Capitol is home to the California State Capitol Museum and offers free tours of the capitol's historic chambers and assembly rooms as well as a museum that is home to several historical artifacts.

The California State Railroad Museum in Old Sacramento has historical exhibits and live steam locomotives that patrons may ride. The California Automobile Museum, just south of Old Sacramento, displays the automotive history and vehicles from 1880 to 2006 and is the oldest non-profit automotive museum in the West. McClellan Air Force Base is home to the Aerospace Museum of California where more than 40 civilian and military aircraft and 50 historical jet engines are displayed to the public. In addition, the Sacramento History Museum, in the heart of Old Sacramento, focuses on the history of Sacramento from the region's pre-Gold Rush history through the present day. In 2021, the Museum of Science and Curiosity (MOSAC) opened in the restored historic power station building of Matsui Waterfront Park.

There is a Museum Day held in Sacramento every year when 26 museums in the greater Sacramento area offer free admission. The 2009 Sacramento Museum Day brought out more than 80,000 people, the largest number the event has gathered. Sacramento Museum Day is held every year on the first Saturday of February.

Performing arts

The Sacramento Ballet, Sacramento Philharmonic Orchestra, and the Sacramento Opera perform at the SAFE Credit Union Performing Arts Center (formerly known as the Community Center Theater).

There are several major theater venues in Sacramento. The Sacramento Convention Center Complex governs both the SAFE Credit Union Performing Arts Center and Memorial Auditorium. The H Street Theatre Complex consists of the Wells Fargo Pavilion, built in 2003 atop the old Music Circus tent foundations, the McClatchy Mainstage, and the Pollock Stage, originally built as a television studio and renovated at the same time the Pavilion was built. These smaller venues seat 300 and 90, offering a more intimate presentation than the 2300-seat Pavilion. The Eagle Theatre in Old Sacramento is a reconstruction of the oldest permanent theater in California and hosts several performances year-round. The newest venue in the city, the Sophia Tsakopoulos Center for the Arts, consists of the 365-seat Sutter Theatre for Children and the Mainstage, seating 250.

Professional theatre is represented in Sacramento by several companies. Broadway Sacramento and its locally produced summer stock theatre, Broadway at Music Circus, lures many directors, performers, and artists from New York and Los Angeles to work alongside a large local staff at the Wells Fargo Pavilion. During the fall, winter, and spring seasons Broadway Sacramento brings bus and truck tours to the SAFE Credit Union Performing Arts Center. Resident at the H Street Theatre Complex for the remainder of the year (from September to May), the Sacramento Theatre Companyprepares to celebrate its 75th season, beginning in the Fall of 2019. In addition to a traditional regional theatre fare of classical plays and musicals, the Sacramento Theatre Company has a large School of the Arts with a variety of opportunities for arts education. The B Street Theatre, having completed its 2018 move into the new Sophia Tsokopoulos Center for the Arts, continues its pursuit of producing smaller and more intimate professional works for families and children. Rounding out the professional companies is Capital Stage, which performed aboard the Delta King until the end of the 2010–2011 season and soon took up residence at its venue along the J-Street corridor.

The Sacramento area has one of the largest collections of community theatres in California. Some of these include the Thistle Dew Dessert Theatre and Playwrights Workshop, Davis Musical Theatre Co., El Dorado Musical Theatre, Runaway Stage Productions, River City Theatre Company, Flying Monkey Productions, The Actor's Theatre, KOLT Run Productions, Kookaburra Productions, Big Idea Theatre, Celebration Arts, Lambda Player, Light Opera Theatre of Sacramento, Synergy Stage and the historic Eagle Theatre. The Sacramento Shakespeare Festival provides entertainment under the stars every summer in William Land Park. Many of these theatres compete annually for the Elly Awards overseen by The Sacramento Area Regional Theatre Alliance or SARTA.

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