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Seattle Center is an arts, educational, tourism and entertainment center in
Seattle, Washington Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest region ...
, United States. Spanning an area of 74 acres (30 ha), it was originally built for the
1962 World's Fair The Century 21 Exposition (also known as the Seattle World's Fair) was a world's fair held April 21, 1962, to October 21, 1962, in Seattle, Washington, United States.Space Needle The Space Needle is an observation tower in Seattle, Washington, United States. Considered to be an icon of the city, it has been designated a Seattle landmark. Located in the Lower Queen Anne neighborhood, it was built in the Seattle Cente ...
, which at the time of its completion was the tallest building west of the
Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the List of longest rivers of the United States (by main stem), second-longest river and chief river of the second-largest Drainage system (geomorphology), drainage system in North America, second only to the Hudson B ...
. Seattle Center is located just north of Belltown in the
Uptown Uptown may refer to: Neighborhoods or regions in several cities United States * Uptown, entertainment district east of Downtown and Midtown Albuquerque, New Mexico * Uptown Charlotte, North Carolina * Uptown, area surrounding the University of Ci ...
neighborhood.


Attractions


Landmarks

*
Space Needle The Space Needle is an observation tower in Seattle, Washington, United States. Considered to be an icon of the city, it has been designated a Seattle landmark. Located in the Lower Queen Anne neighborhood, it was built in the Seattle Cente ...
, an official city landmark, featuring an observation deck and revolving restaurantLandmarks Alphabetical Listing for S
, Individual Landmarks, City of Seattle. Accessed 28 December 2007.
*
International Fountain The International Fountain, designed by Tokyo-based architects Kazuyuki Matsushita and Hideki Shimizu during 1961–1962 for the Century 21 Exposition (also known as the Seattle World's Fair), is a concrete fountain and sculpture installed in Sea ...
, located in the middle of the campus, operates all year round. Built for the
1962 World's Fair The Century 21 Exposition (also known as the Seattle World's Fair) was a world's fair held April 21, 1962, to October 21, 1962, in Seattle, Washington, United States.Seattle Center Monorail terminus * John T. Williams totem pole - A 34 feet (10 m) high totem pole commemorating John T. Williams *Kobe Bell, an official city landmark *The outdoor Mural Amphitheatre, featuring a mosaic mural by
Paul Horiuchi Paul Horiuchi (April 12, 1906 – August 29, 1999) was an American painting, painter and collage, collagist. He was born in Oishi, Japan, and studied art from an early age. After immigrating to the United States in his early teens, he spent many ...
: the Horiuchi Mural, also created for the World's Fair, is an official city landmark. *Artists At Play playground *Howard S. Wright Memorial Fountain


Museums

*
Museum of Pop Culture The Museum of Pop Culture or MoPOP is a nonprofit museum in Seattle, Washington, dedicated to contemporary popular culture. It was founded by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen in 2000 as the Experience Music Project. Since then MoPOP has organ ...
(MoPOP, formerly EMP Museum) *
Chihuly Garden and Glass Chihuly Garden and Glass is an exhibit in the Seattle Center directly next to the Space Needle, showcasing the studio glass of Dale Chihuly. It opened in May 2012 at the former site of the defunct Fun Forest amusement park. The project feature ...
* Pacific Science Center, home of an
IMAX IMAX is a proprietary system of high-resolution cameras, film formats, film projectors, and theaters known for having very large screens with a tall aspect ratio (approximately either 1.43:1 or 1.90:1) and steep stadium seating. Graeme ...
TheaterIMAX Theater
, Accessed November 25, 2018
and Seattle Laser Dome * Seattle Children's Museum in the Armory


Performing arts

* Seattle Repertory Theatre, home of the Bagley Wright Theatre, the Leo Kreielsheimer Theatre, and the PONCHO Forum *Center Theatre, home of the Seattle Shakespeare Company and
Book-It Repertory Theatre Book-It Repertory Theatre (often shortened to "Book-It") is a regional theatre located in Seattle, Washington. It is a 501-c(3) registered nonprofit corporation, and is devoted to "transforming great literature into great theatre through simple an ...
*
Theatre Puget Sound Theatre Puget Sound (TPS) is a not-for-profit organization devoted to supporting the performing arts in the Puget Sound area of Washington. It was founded in 1997. Both individuals and organizations can be members of Theatre Puget Sound. Currentl ...
* The Center School *Cornish Playhouse, home of productions of the
Cornish College of the Arts Cornish College of the Arts (CCA) is a private art college in Seattle, Washington. It was founded in 1914. History Cornish College of the Arts was founded in 1914 as the Cornish School of Music, by Nellie Cornish (1876–1956), a teacher of ...
*
Marion Oliver McCaw Hall Marion Oliver McCaw Hall (often abbreviated to McCaw Hall) is a performing arts hall in Seattle, Washington (state), Washington, United States. Located on the grounds of Seattle Center and owned by the city of Seattle, McCaw Hall's two principal ...
, home of
Seattle Opera Seattle Opera is an opera company based in Seattle, Washington. It was founded in 1963 by Glynn Ross, who served as its first general director until 1983. The company's season runs from August through late May, comprising five or six operas of ...
and
Pacific Northwest Ballet Pacific Northwest Ballet (PNB) is a ballet company based in Seattle, Washington, in the United States. It is said to have the highest per capita attendance in the United States, with 11,000 subscribers in 2004. The company consists of 49 dan ...
, whose ballet school is adjacent at the Phelps Center. This is the third performance space on this site, the second being the Opera House built at the time of the World's Fair. * Seattle Children's Theatre at the Charlotte Martin Theatre * The Vera Project (or VERA) * Mercer Arena, formerly a sports, concert, and opera venue before sitting dormant for several years. It was demolished and the site is being redeveloped as the future home of Seattle Opera.


Venues

*Seattle Center Armory (known as Center HousePress Release
, Seattle Center March 26, 2012 Press release. Accessed 25 July 2013
from the early 1970s until 2012, and the Food CircusSeattle Center Armory
, Seattle Center Website. Accessed 25 July 2013
from 1962 to the early 1970s), including Center Theatre, the home of Seattle Shakespeare Company and
Book-It Repertory Theatre Book-It Repertory Theatre (often shortened to "Book-It") is a regional theatre located in Seattle, Washington. It is a 501-c(3) registered nonprofit corporation, and is devoted to "transforming great literature into great theatre through simple an ...
, as well as the Seattle Children's Museum, The Center High School and the Academy of Interactive Entertainment. Before the 1962 World's Fair, the building was an armory. Seattle Center Armory is an official city landmark. **A piece of the
Berlin Wall The Berlin Wall (german: Berliner Mauer, ) was a guarded concrete barrier that encircled West Berlin from 1961 to 1989, separating it from East Berlin and East Germany (GDR). Construction of the Berlin Wall was commenced by the gover ...
is in the food atrium. *Exhibition Hall, a space for trade shows, receptions, exhibits, and special events *Fisher Pavilion at Seattle Center is one of the largest rental venues on the grounds and the first City of Seattle building to achieve LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification. The large, flexible space can accommodate a wide range of commercial, charity and community events. *The Northwest Rooms, once a small conference center, now houses SIFF Film Center, The VERA Project, and KEXP-FM.


Athletics

*
Climate Pledge Arena Climate Pledge Arena is a multi-purpose indoor arena in Seattle, Washington, United States. It is located north of Downtown Seattle in the entertainment complex known as Seattle Center, the site of the 1962 World's Fair, for which it was ori ...
is the current home of the
Seattle University Seattle University (SeattleU) is a private Jesuit university in Seattle, Washington. Seattle University is the largest independent university in the Northwestern United States, with over 7,500 students enrolled in undergraduate and graduate pro ...
Redhawks men's basketball team, the WNBA's
Seattle Storm The Seattle Storm are an American professional basketball team based in Seattle. The Storm competes in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) as a member club of the league's Western Conference. The team was founded by Ginger Ackerl ...
and the NHL's
Seattle Kraken The Seattle Kraken are a professional ice hockey team based in Seattle. The Kraken compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division in the Western Conference and began play during the league's 2021–22 season. ...
. It was the home of the NBA's
Seattle SuperSonics The Seattle SuperSonics (commonly known as the Seattle Sonics) were an American professional basketball team based in Seattle. The SuperSonics competed in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member club of the league's Western Confe ...
, now the Oklahoma City Thunder, and the Seattle Thunderbirds (
Western Hockey League The Western Hockey League (WHL) is a major junior ice hockey league based in Western Canada and the Northwestern United States. The WHL is one of three leagues that constitutes the Canadian Hockey League (CHL) as the highest level of junior ...
)
ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice ...
. Originally opened as the Seattle Center Coliseum in 1962, it was renovated in 1995 as KeyArena and rebuilt in 2020-2021 as Climate Pledge Arena. The arena hosts over 100 events per year and was the region's top live concert touring venue in 2016 (according to Venues Today magazine) * Memorial Stadium, a
high school football High school football (french: football au lycée) is gridiron football played by high school teams in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular interscholastic sports in both countries, but its popularity is declining, partl ...
and
soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...
stadium which predates the World's Fair. It was the home of the NWSL's
OL Reign OL Reign is an American professional women's soccer team based in Seattle, Washington. Founded by Bill and Teresa Predmore in 2012 as Seattle Reign FC, it was one of eight inaugural members of the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL). In 2020, ...
from 2014 to 2018.


Festivals

Seattle Center hosts many cultural, music and arts festivals. Major attractions include: *
Bumbershoot Bumbershoot is an annual international music and arts festival held in Seattle, Washington. One of North America's largest such festivals, it takes place every Labor Day weekend (leading up to and including the first Monday of September) at th ...
*Seattle Center
Festál Festál is a free series of annual ethnically-related festivals that take place on the grounds of Seattle Center in Seattle, Washington. A major cultural program of Seattle, these festivals aim to celebrate and connect the city to its var ...
, a year-long series of 24 world cultural events, the largest of which is Northwest Folklife * PrideFest * Bite of Seattle *Winterfest


Gallery

File:Seattle - International Fountain & Space Needle.jpg, View of the Space Needle with the
International Fountain The International Fountain, designed by Tokyo-based architects Kazuyuki Matsushita and Hideki Shimizu during 1961–1962 for the Century 21 Exposition (also known as the Seattle World's Fair), is a concrete fountain and sculpture installed in Sea ...
in the foreground. File:McCaw Hall Kreielsheimer Promenade.JPG, Kreielsheimer Promenade and Marion Oliver McCaw Hall, Seattle Center. File:Monorail tracks enter EMP-SFM 01.jpg, Monorail tracks entering the Museum of Pop Culture (MoPOP) building. File:Pacific Science Center at night 02.jpg, The towers of the Pacific Science Center at night. File:Seattle Center - Kobe Bell 02A.jpg, The Kobe Bell. File:Aerial Space Needle and EMP - November 2011.JPG, MoPOP and Space Needle seen against the backdrop of the Seattle waterfront and Puget Sound.


References


External links

*
Seattle Center Foundation

Guide to the Seattle Center Annual Reports 1966–ongoingSeattle Center Century 21 CommitteeSeattle PrideFest
*"Seattle Center", pp. 18–24 i
Survey Report: Comprehensive Inventory of City-Owned Historic Resources, Seattle, Washington
Department of Neighborhoods (Seattle) Historic Preservation, offers an extremely detailed account of the history of the buildings and grounds. {{Authority control Busking venues Landmarks in Seattle Tourist attractions in Seattle World's fair sites in Washington (state)