Sandler Center for the Performing Arts
201 Market Street
Virginia Beach, VA 23462
Phone: (757) 385-2787
Capacity: 1,200
Parking: Free parking is available in several lots and garages in close proximity to the Sandler Center. View a parking map of the area.
Click on a seating chart above to download a PDF.
Accessibility
If you need assistance while at the Sandler Center, please contact an usher or staff member. In addition, the Guest Services Center is located in the front atrium in front of the main entry doors. Any Guest Services Rep will be happy to answer any questions you may have.
Special Features for Patrons with Disabilities
In addition to the main entrance, Bank and Commerce Street are also wheelchair accessible. Once inside the Sandler Center, elevators are available to provide access between levels.
Seating
Accessible seating is available at various locations throughout the Sandler Center and is available to the patron with the disability and one guest. To purchase, please call our box office at (757) 892-6366.
Parking
Accessible parking is available in all of the parking lots surrounding the Sandler Center. In order to park in the spaces reserved for disabled guests, the vehicle must have a state issued handicapped window pass, sticker, or license plate.
Assisted Listening Devices
Assisted listening devices are available to hearing-impaired guests at no cost. They are available at the Guest Services/Coat Check booth located in the main lobby across from the entry doors.
Sandler Center for the Performing Arts
Upcoming Concerts at Sandler Center for the Performing Arts
Holiday Pops! • 12/13 – 12/15
Friday, December 13, 2019 | Ferguson Center for the Arts, Newport News | 8PM
Saturday, December 14, 2019 | Harrison Opera House Norfolk | 8PM
Sunday, December 15, 2019 | Sandler Center for the Performing Arts, Virginia Beach | 7PM
Join us for the must-see holiday tradition of the season – Holiday Pops! There’s no better way to lift your spirits than with seasonal songs and traditional carols delivered in full sound and spectacle by the Virginia Symphony, the inspirational voices of Virginia Symphony Orchestra Chorus, and special guests. Holiday Pops will have all the magical elements you’ve come to expect — high energy, familiar carols, and lots of holiday warmth! And we’ll even throw in a surprise or two! We can’t wait to celebrate the season together!
Virginia Symphony Orchestra
Virginia Symphony Orchestra Chorus
Robert Shoup, conductor
Aundi Marie Moore, vocalist
Nick Ziobro, vocalist
Sponsored By
Series Sponsors
Jingle Bell Jam • 12/15
Sunday, December 15, 2019 | Sandler Center for the Performing Arts, Virginia Beach | 3PM
Santa Claus is coming to town and he’s stopping by to be a part of the VSO’s ever-popular Jingle Bell Jam! Celebrate the magic of the season with an afternoon that showcases the music of the holidays performed by the best talent in Hampton Roads. You won’t want to miss this holly jolly concert! Get your tickets early – this family favorite is sure to sell out!
Pre-concert activities begin at 2PM in the lobby!
Aundi Marie Moore, vocalist
Nick Ziobro, vocalist
Sponsored By
Series Sponsor
Happy Birthday, Beethoven! • 1/12
Sunday, January 12, 2020 | Sandler Center for the Performing Arts, Virginia Beach | 3PM
Mr. Beethoven has a 250th birthday party only once, and you’re on the invitation list! Be there to help us blow out the candles in honor of this magnificent creative genius. Join the VSO for a concert celebrating the composer’s remarkable impact on the music we all listen to today.
Pre-concert activities begin at 2PM in the lobby!
Benjamin Rous, conductor
Series Sponsor
Berlioz Symphonie Fantastique • 1/24-1/26
Friday, January 24, 2020 | Ferguson Center for the Arts, Newport News | 8PM
Saturday, January 25, 2020 | Chrysler Hall, Norfolk | 8PM
Sunday, January 26, 2020 | Sandler Center for the Performing Arts, Virginia Beach | 2:30PM
Glasgow-born conductor Douglas Boyd enjoyed a stellar career as a world-renowned oboist, before stepping away after 21 years to begin an international career as conductor. Currently, Boyd is Music Director of the L’Orchestre de Chambre de Paris as well as Artistic Director of the summer opera festival, Garsington Opera, in Buckinghamshire, England. Boyd has conducted all the BBC Orchestras, as well as orchestras throughout Europe, Australia, and the United States. For his debut performances in Hampton Roads, Boyd conducts Hector Berlioz’ Symphonie Fantastique, a romantic symphonic portrayal of the gifted artist’s challenges with unrequited love.
Meet the artists and discover the orchestra experience from a new perspective during Behind the Notes, a pre-concert talked hosted by guest conductor Douglas Boyd. These casual presentations give you a special look at the music of the day as well as the music-makers themselves. They offer an informative way to learn about the music before your orchestra experience. One hour before each Classics concert (7pm or 1:30pm). Behind the Notes is FREE to ticket holders at all venues.
Douglas Boyd, conductor
Elena Urioste, violin
Stravinsky: Fireworks
Vaughan Williams: The Lark Ascending
Ravel: Tzigane
Berlioz: Symphonie Fantastique
Sponsored By
Series Sponsors
Mahler & Mozart • 2/21-2/23
Friday, February 21, 2020 | Ferguson Center for the Arts, Newport News | 8PM
Saturday, February 22, 2020 | Chrysler Hall, Norfolk | 8PM
Sunday, February 23, 2020 | Sandler Center for the Perfoming Arts, Virginia Beach | 2:30PM
“Danzmayr has what it takes,” wrote The Chicago Tribune of David Danzmayr’s performances leading the Illinois Symphony. Last year, Danzmayr was appointed chief conductor of the Zagreb Philharmonic – part of an extensive European career of concerts in venues like Musikverein and Konzerthaus in Vienna, and the Grosses Festspielhaus in Salzburg. One of his shorter symphonies, Mahler’s fourth is that last of his so-called Wunderhorn symphonies, all based on songs from The Youth’s Magic Horn – and is one of his most popular and widely performed.
Meet the artists and discover the orchestra experience from a new perspective during Behind the Notes, a pre-concert talked hosted by guest conductor David Danzmayr. These casual presentations give you a special look at the music of the day as well as the music-makers themselves. They offer an informative way to learn about the music before your orchestra experience. One hour before each Classics concert (7pm or 1:30pm). Behind the Notes is FREE to ticket holders at all venues.
David Danzmayr, conductor
Clara Rottsolk, soprano
Mozart: Divertimento KV 136
Mozart: Voi avete un cor Fedele
Mahler: Symphony No. 4
Sponsored By
Series Sponsor
Stravinsky Firebird • 3/6-3/8
Friday, March 06, 2020 | Ferguson Center for the Arts, Newport News | 8PM
Saturday, March 07, 2020 | L. Douglas Wilder Performing Arts Center, Norfolk | 8PM
Sunday, March 08, 2020 | Sandler Center for the Performing Arts, Virginia Beach | 2:30PM
Chicago-born conductor Fawzi Haimor has established an extensive international career with some of the world’s great orchestras, including the Pittsburgh Symphony, BBC Philharmonic, the Indianapolis Symphony, and just last summer, the Grant Park Symphony in his native Chicago. He is currently music director of the Württembergische Philharmonie. For his VSO debut, Haimor celebrates the Centennial of Stravinsky’s Firebird Suite, along with a first Hampton Roads performance from Finnish composer Einojuhani Rautavaara – his popular Cantus Arcticus, or Concerto for Birds and Orchestra featuring birdsong recorded at the Finnish Artic Circle.
Meet the artists and discover the orchestra experience from a new perspective during Behind the Notes, a pre-concert talked hosted by guest conductor Fawzi Haimor. These casual presentations give you a special look at the music of the day as well as the music-makers themselves. They offer an informative way to learn about the music before your orchestra experience. One hour before each Classics concert (7pm or 1:30pm). Behind the Notes is FREE to ticket holders at all venues.
Fawzi Haimor, conductor
Leonard Elschenbroich, cello
Joshua Cerdenia: Feuertrunken (Fire-Drunk)
Elgar: Concerto for cello
Rautavaara: Cantus Arcticus, op. 61 “Concerto for Birds and Orchestra”
Stravinsky: Firebird Suite (1919)
Sponsored By
Series Sponsor
Strauss Rosenkavalier Suite • 3/27-3/29
Friday, March 27, 2020 | Ferguson Center for the Arts, Newport News | 8PM
Saturday, March 28, 2020 | Chrysler Hall, Norfolk | 8PM
Sunday, March 29, 2020 | Sandler Center for the Performing Arts, Virginia Beach | 2:30PM
From the much-loved waltzes made famous in Strauss’ opera Der Rosenkavalier, to Robert Schumann’s one and only piano concerto, JoAnn Falletta has chosen a wide-ranging program of classics to show off the orchestra and soloist next spring, including French pianist Prisca Benoit – known for a refined pianistic touch with a wide range of colors. Benoit continues the orchestra’s collaboration with Sentara Healthcare’s “Music and Medicine” Program. The Schumann concerto will be recorded for later release.
Meet the artists and discover the orchestra experience from a new perspective during Behind the Notes, a pre-concert talked hosted by Music Director JoAnn Falletta. These casual presentations give you a special look at the music of the day as well as the music-makers themselves. They offer an informative way to learn about the music before your orchestra experience. One hour before each Classics concert (7pm or 1:30pm). Behind the Notes is FREE to ticket holders at all venues.
JoAnn Falletta, conductor
Prisca Benoit, piano
Bantock: The Witch of Atlas
Schumann: Piano Concerto in A minor
Strauss: Dance of the Seven Veils from Salome
Strauss: Der Rosenkavalier Suite
Sponsored By 
Series Sponsor
Old Dominion University Side by Side • 4/1
Wednesday, April 1, 2020 | Sandler Center for the Performing Arts, Virginia Beach | 8PM
Students from the Old Dominion University Orchestra will gain hands-on, professional experience by playing alongside the Virginia Symphony Orchestra in this special performance! The VSO is thrilled to partner with the ODU Orchestra to provide this exciting opportunity for the next generation of musicians.
Shostakovich Five • 5/8-5/10
Friday, May 8, 2020 | Chrysler Hall, Norfolk | 8PM
Saturday, May 09, 2020 | Ferguson Center for the Arts, Newport News | 8PM
Sunday, May 10, 2020 | Sandler Center for the Arts, Virginia Beach | 2:30PM
Hailed by The New York Times as “an interpretive dynamo,” conductor Eric Jacobsen returns to the VSO in the new season to lead one of the 20th Century’s tour de force masterpieces – Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 5. Jacobsen has built a reputation for engaging audiences with his innovative and collaborative programming, and in addition to the Shostakovich, Jacobsen will conduct the beautiful Prokofiev Violin Concerto No. 2, with violinist Alexi Kenney, a recipient of a 2016 Avery Fisher Career Grant. Kenney has been named “a talent to watch” by The New York Times, which also noted his “architect’s eye for structure and space and a tone that ranges from the achingly fragile to full-bodied robustness.”
Meet the artists and discover the orchestra experience from a new perspective during Behind the Notes, a pre-concert talked hosted by guest conductor Eric Jacobsen. These casual presentations give you a special look at the music of the day as well as the music-makers themselves. They offer an informative way to learn about the music before your orchestra experience. One hour before each Classics concert (7pm or 1:30pm). Behind the Notes is FREE to ticket holders at all venues.
Eric Jacobsen, conductor
Alexi Kenney, violin
Anna Clyne: Masquerade
Prokofiev: Violin Concerto No. 2
Shostakovich: Symphony No. 5
Sponsored By
Series Sponsor
Beethoven “Emperor” and Symphony No. 9 “Choral” • 5/15-5/17
Friday, May 15, 2020 | Ferguson Center for the Arts, Newport News | 8PM
Saturday, May 16, 2020 | Chrysler Hall, Norfolk | 8PM
Sunday, May 17, 2020 | Sandler Center for the Performing Arts, VA Beach | 2:30PM
JoAnn Falletta finishes her final season as Music Director with a history-making performance celebrating Beethoven’s 250th Year, in performances presented by the Virginia Arts Festival. For these concerts, Falletta will be joined by renowned pianist Olga Kern, who will perform Beethoven’s well-known “Emperor” Concerto. Kern is the recently appointed Connie and Marc Jacobson Director of Chamber Music for the Virginia Arts Festival. Following intermission, Falletta will be joined by four soloists and full VSO Chorus for Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9, the “Choral” Symphony.
JoAnn Falletta, conductor
Olga Kern, piano
Beethoven: Emperor Concerto
Beethoven: Symphony No. 9
*Please note this concert is not available for exchanges or Flex Package purchases.*
Meet the artists and discover the orchestra experience from a new perspective during Behind the Notes, a pre-concert talked hosted by Music Director JoAnn Falletta. These casual presentations give you a special look at the music of the day as well as the music-makers themselves. They offer an informative way to learn about the music before your orchestra experience. One hour before each Classics concert (7pm or 1:30pm). Behind the Notes is FREE to ticket holders at all venues.
Governor’s School for the Arts Orchestra Side by Side • 6/3
Wednesday, June 3, 2020 | Sandler Center for the Arts, Virginia Beach | 7:00PM
Students from the Governor’s School for the Arts Orchestra will gain hands-on, professional experience by playing alongside the Virginia Symphony Orchestra in this special performance! The VSO is thrilled to partner with the GSA Orchestra to provide this exciting opportunity for the next generation of musicians.
Jeff Phelps, conductor
Shostakovich: Symphony No. 5
