The Santander is a beautiful venue. The acoustics and ambience are on point. I would go here to see…read morea show anytime. We had dinner on The Mezz and I would not recommend that. The food was just ok - very difficult to manage plates etc. Supposed to have wine with our ticket, but they were out of white wine entirely. So , go for the show, skip the dinner!

The Santander Performing Arts Center is one of the venues I frequent locally. It's absolutely…read moregorgeous! The architecture and design details are breathtaking, especially the ornate ceiling work and vintage theater charm. Every time I walk in, I'm reminded why I love live shows so much. The acoustics here are usually fantastic, making it a great place for concerts, comedy shows, and everything in between. I've been to many events here over the years and always enjoy the experience. I usually sit toward the front right side of the venue, where the view is clear and unobstructed by the structure it really feels like there isn't a bad seat in the house. There are several bars and snack stands throughout the venue, plus a small area for merch tables, so everything you need is within easy reach. Tickets are generally very reasonably priced for the quality of the experience. Parking is probably the only minor consideration there's on-street parking as well as multiple garages nearby, but you'll want to plan for a short walk. Overall, it's a beautiful, historic theater that delivers great shows and great vibes every single time. Highly recommend catching a performance here if you get the chance!

I went to the Berks Jazz fest to see Will Downing & several other great performers at this venue…read more Easy to get to - the crowd was large but everyone entered in an orderly fashion. The ushers were helpful and friendly. They had an open bar for drinks & after the show you could purchase CDs & merchandise. Plenty of free parking! Great place!

Amazing venue for Boney James concert as part of the Jazz Festival! Fully renovated inside and the…read moresound was amazing!

As we drove by the Goggleworks building on a visit to see my son, he mentioned that it was known…read morefor its arts programs and we should check it out. I visited the Goggleworks website (www.goggleworks.org) and was impressed with the options available. Via email, I inquired with my questions and was answered immediately. We ultimately chose a private glassblowing session. Remember when you are choosing to partake in these artisanal sessions, you are paying for the artisan's expertise and sharing of knowledge . So at first glance, it may seem pricey. However, given the experience as a whole, it does NOT disappoint! Our instructor Andrew was awesome! His energy and passion matched our excitement. He made our experience so much more fun with his anecdotes about the glassblowing. He explained everything in detail; we never felt rushed or uncomfortable about our skill level. There were four of us in our glassblowing session. He expertly guided us in the best artisan experience I have ever had. For our glassblowing class, we all chose to make drinking glasses. Each of us chose different color palettes to match our varying personalities. Of course, due to the nature of glassblowing, it was a very HOT experience but we were dressed accordingly and hydrated throughout. After we each had our turn, our glasses were immediately placed in a temperature-controlled device (I can't remember its name) to slowly cool the glass down and prevent cracking. We were not permitted to take the glasses home but rather had to come back another day to pick them up. After our session, we headed back to the main Goggleworks building to check out the art exhibits, gift store, and (what I'll call) the artist alley of artisans' work spaces and offices. We spent lots of time enjoying the space and speaking with varying artists. Turns out that the space is a former goggles factory that was used back in the 1800s and the space takes great care in preserving its history. It's soooo cool. It was truly enjoyable!! I highly recommend Goggleworks! This is one of my most memorable experiences!! I can't wait to see our glasses. Note: We arrived early to have breakfast at the onsite cafe, Thorn Alley Kitchen (see separate Yelp review for more details).

I love art! I have never heard of this place until looking up free things to do in the reading…read morearea. We walked in and the lady behind the retail/customer service desk told us about the building and where to walk since it was our first time visiting, she was very lovely! The first floor had their showing for their art show and the rest of the floors is their classrooms and displayed all their students art pieces. It is an absolutely beautiful building and all of the art is amazing. Some pieces you are able to buy which I find very cool!

We went to ser Phil Wickham here. The place, like any other arenas during a concert or any sporting…read moreevent is loud but the flow of traffic is good. There are enough security people and ushers to assist you so you shouldn't have any issues. There are food and drinks throughout the arena though you'll need a credit or debit card to make a purchase. It is definitely a good place to see an event.

Visited the Santander Arena this past weekend for an old school hip hop concert. I didn't even know…read morethe arena existed prior to my friend suggested this concert. After this show, I doubt I'd see another show here. The area is conveniently located across from a hotel, which is great if you're traveling to Reading, PA like we were from another city or state. Unfortunately I cannot review the parking situation, because with took a Lyft there. But it seemed like everyone parked away from the arena. All of the staff was extremely friendly. From the attendant that helped us find our seats to the nice lady who sold us the $15 deuce-deuce can I'd Trulys. It's really sad how ridiculous these arena prices arena! The seats at the Santander were horrible. Of course because it's a concert, everybody was dancing and having a great time, but the seats were wobbling and moving more than we were. I felt like I was going to end up in the floor! The sound system wasn't the best either. Most times, the music was completely overpowering the artist. For these two reasons, I doubt I'll be back. But the concert was great!

Great concert Saturday night in Wyomissing's Atonement Lutheran Church. All three pieces on the…read moreprogram were terrific; the big draw was Beethoven's Triple Concerto, which got a bravura turn from three soloists playing as visiting musicians with the Sinfonietta. But the second piece was a revelation in its own right; a symphony from Mozart contemporary Leopold Kozeluch, who featured much of the dynamics Beethoven would later employ to great effect. This thunderous 6th Symphony was tremendous fun. The Sinfonietta does a great job resuscitating music that has been ignored or forgotten. All were performed under guest conductor Tyler Readinger, who kept the orchestra moving in and out well behind the Beethoven soloists. High-quality music. The concert began with a few pieces played by student musicians in the Berks Camerata, especially some of Dvorak's American String Quartet.

Berks Sinfonietta is a unique community chamber orchestra based in Berks County, PA. The orchestra…read morecurrently presents between six and eight concerts annually, and has been doing so since 2014 (currently celebrating their 10th Season starting in August, 2023). As community support grows through increased ticket sales and through greater support from individuals and area businesses, the concert schedule will expand accordingly. I should probably mention that Berks Sinfonietta is a 501(c)(3) organization and that means donations are tax deductible to the extent allowed by state and federal tax regulations. The orchestra is unique because it is made up of residents of Berks County and it focuses on diverse programming that includes compositions by women composers, composers from minority communities and contemporary composers that are often overlooked by more mainstream orchestras. Tickets are extremely affordable with special consideration given to children and to student IDs! Information about the current concert schedule is posted on the orchestra's website. Concert tickets are also available through their website. Life is about creating memorable experiences, and live music provides that in abundance! If you're looking for a great live music experience, grab a couple tickets and catch the next concert with a friend! If you're new to classical music, Berks Sinfonietta is a great place to get into it without breaking the bank!

RSO is 100 years old this year, and check out the cool logo by Chip Kidd, who grew up in Reading…read moreand who is best known for designing the cover of Jurassic Park. You don't see many people under 50 at such events, and it is too bad, because they do major works with which most people of any age would be familiar -- probably because of movie scores and childhood music lessons. One of Reading's best organizations! It is amazing that it is still here and going so strong. The setting of the Sovereign Performing Arts Center (formerly the Rajah) just makes it better. You don't *have* to dress up, but why not enjoy a little formality? They let you take your drink in too, nice.

Enjoyed the Symphony on New Years Eve with the sounds of Simon and Garfunkel. We loved it! The…read moresound was beautiful and sitting in the balcony section we had a perfect view. Will be going again!

Dance recital gives preference on stage to favorites. Paid $50 (crazy!) to see our granddaughter…read moreonly to see her in back row barely visible. Other groups rotated dancers so all could be seen. Sad

I booked a drawing class for my daughter. Everything that I booked indicated that it would run from…read morebeginning of June to mid-August. I go to drop her off last week and was told the class was canceled. So before driving her in again I decided to check online and the remaining classes were all canceled. Evidently their schedule runs different over the summer and they just "cancel out" the remaining classes. I would have never booked had I know it was only 4 classes of someone standing there and watching kids draw. My daughter learned nothing and the teacher was just a glorified babysitter claiming to know art. Very disappointed. Be very very cautious when booking. Read every little thing.