Center Stage Theater — Attraction in Atlanta

To be clear, the staff were incredibly friendly and helpful and I have no complaints about any individual person. Organization and management, specifically when it comes to accessibility, is extremely lacking and disappointing.

We purchased three general admission tickets (standing on the floor) several months ahead of a concert. Between that time and the day of the concert, one of our party received a diagnosis that made standing for the length of the concert impossible. She emailed the venue and asked if there were any seating accomodations available, and was assured there was, and we would not need any different tickets. She specifically asked if the other two in our party would be able to stay with her, and she was told yes. Her instructions were to let someone know we needed disability seating on arrival and nothing else would be necessary.

The night of the concert, we found out that all the seats reserved for those needing accommodation had been sold. We were still brought to that section to sit, and were told that as long as no one showed up, we could stay. The first part of the event was fine, but people showed up during intermission and of course we gave them their seats. The staff (again, as helpful as they could be) set up chairs along the wall in the hallway, but with significantly reduced visibility. The three of us ended up scattered across the venue rather than being able to spend the evening together as we had expected and attempted to plan for (and also paid for).

I feel this was a significant oversight and poor organization on the part of management. If we had known that seating accomodations weren't reliably available, we might have been able to find other tickets or work out some other plans. I hope the venue is able to work out a better system in the future for folks needing accommodation, because our experience was very disappointing.

As a side note, there is very little handicap parking available in the garage and when we were there the elevator was also broken. I'm not sure if the venue owns the garage, so I don't hold that against them. But anyone intending to make use of the on-site parking should be aware.

And once again, nothing but praise for the staff on the floor who did their best to assist us.

UPDATE: Later in the show, tbe staff were able to pull another seat up so two of us could sit together, which was deeply appreciated. I still wish the entire process could have been smoother and more discrete, but many thanks to the staff for...

I have been coming to Center Stage since 2005 when it was still called Earthlink Live for ProgPower USA. In my personal opinion, probably one of the most awesome events in music in the world! I've seen the changes and improvements this place has gone through all those years. Being a festival sponsor with full VIP access, I also get to see parts of this venue that the normal public would not typically get to see, such as the backstage areas and the dressing rooms. In recent years, especially with the new seats and finally adding some lighting to the stairs helped make this a bit better. Still, with the fairly steep access, do be careful when finding your seat, especially if you decided to imbibe in a few adult beverages during the course of a show. I've seen too many people over the years take a nasty tumble down those stairs. The new seats are actually quite comfortable, and actually have a drink holder as well! And speaking of drinks, the bars have always been well stocked and the bartenders do an excellent job getting people served. For a concert venue, the drinks are actually fairly decently priced (compared to those $13+ beers at the Jiffy-Lube Live pavilion in Virginia where I've seen Rush and a few other shows). There used to be an actual bathroom attendant, but have not seen that in the past few years. Even so, the bathrooms always seemed to be pretty clean. There really is not a bad seat in the house, although if you sit way to the extreme left or right of the "horseshoe", part of the stage could be obstructed. Definitely want to try to sit as close to the center as possible as get the best view as well as the sound seems to be better as well. Speaking of sound, at least at ProgPower, it has always been extremely good. I cannot vouch for other shows as the only show I've seen while there was ProgPower, but based on other reviews, it seems to be really good there as well. The security has always been really cool and courteous. Of course, it also helps to return the favor by being courteous to them as well. In addition, getting to the venue is pretty easy, the usual Atlanta traffic not-withstanding. There appears to be plenty of parking around, although I've never driven there (I always took MARTA and/or Uber/Taxi to get there). Also the "Art Center" MARTA stop is only a couple of blocks away. Overall, I really like this venue and already looking forward to the next ProgPower USA in...

YOOO this is probably one of my most favorite concert venues. I've been to many concerts at many venues but this one sits close to, if not at, the top of the list. I saw J.I.D on tour with Deante Hitchcock, Mereba, and Saba. Unless you get there early and claim a spot in the pit, general admission permits you to choose your own seat anywhere in house. And trust me when I say this, there is not ONE bad spot in the entire venue. It's a smaller more intimate experience with the artist which I prefer over huge concert halls and amphitheaters. You can see the face of every person in there, to put the size into perspective. The acoustics are great and the sound is fantastic. Parking in the actual venue itself so that's a huge huge plus.

However, just a warning about parking. When we went to the concert, the garage under/apart of the venue was already full so we decided to park in the garage directly across the street. I high advise visitors to NOT do this if parking fills up in the venue. That particular garage closes at 10pm and my friend and I, as well as about 10 other people were completely gated and locked out of the garage following the concert. We were extremely lucky to have someone pull out of the garage, which opened the gate and allowed for us to get to our cars and get out. Please please please find somewhere else to park! I don't want someone else to have to deal with this situation. This is not a complaint and has nothing to do with the actual venue itself, hence the 5 star rating. It's a wonderful venue that all types of...