Escondido built a campus for the arts, not just a hall. The California Center for the Arts covers about 12 acres on North Escondido Boulevard, next to City Hall and Grape Day Park, and it opened on October 1, 1994. The city owns the property and a nonprofit foundation runs it.
Two rooms, both seated
Concerts land in one of two places, so look at your ticket for the room name.
| Room | Seats | What it hosts |
|---|---|---|
| Concert Hall | about 1,500 | Touring concerts, dance, larger productions |
| Center Theater | about 400 | Plays, smaller concerts, lectures |
Both are seated rooms, so your ticket is for a specific chair. The campus also holds an art museum with rotating exhibitions and a conference center with a ballroom, and Grape Day Park is right next door if you want a walk before the show.
A long time coming
The center's roots go back to 1946, when the Philharmonic Arts Association started a concert series in the Escondido High School auditorium. A 1962 planning report recommended an arts center as part of a civic complex, and voters approved a bond measure for one in 1985.
The design came out of an international competition the city ran with the National Endowment for the Arts. Moore Ruble Yudell won it, and Charles Moore worked Southern California and Spanish Colonial touches into the buildings. Construction started in Grape Day Park in June 1991, and the doors opened three years later.
What it books
Expect jazz singers, folk and rock veterans, tribute acts, holiday tours and classical programs. Those nights show up on our blues and jazz, classical, country and folk and rock pages. Check your ticket for the start time and the night's rules.
Getting to downtown Escondido
Downtown Escondido is about 30 miles north of downtown San Diego, most of it on the 15. The center says the Escondido Transit Center, where the Sprinter and Breeze buses stop, is about half a mile away. The Sprinter runs west to Oceanside, where it meets the Coaster, so a train trip from the coast works with one transfer. Check the evening schedule before you rely on it for the ride home, and if you're driving, the trip back is one freeway most of the way.
For more shows in this part of the county, see Harrah's Resort Southern California in Valley Center, Frontwave Arena in Oceanside and our North County page.