Arts & Culture
Spanning performance stages to exhibit walls, Erie’s cultural diversity blends a metropolitan feel with engaging settings, riveting concerts, Broadway performances, theatrical musicals and dramas, national touring acts and artists.
Outstanding experiences await…an evening of live music in our vineyards or at the beach, theatrical performances in the park or a day filled with museum and gallery tours. Erie provides entertainment found in a larger city with the affordable, easily accessible and convenience of a smaller town.
Erie’s extraordinary arts and cultural community provide residents and tourists alike with experiences that deepen the roots of our region, enliven neighborhoods, fuel creativity, and learning and bridge cultural divides. Our community proudly tells the story of our heritage. It paints a picture of who we are today and our aspirations for an even more vibrant future.
Top Must-Sees!
Look to Erie Arts & Culture for a complete resource guide to all the area's arts and culture organizations.
Erie Mural Arts Tour
Take a self-guide tour of Erie's Mural Arts! Explore 11 murals located throughout Erie's Little Italy district, East 12th Street Corridor and Center City.
Download the Mural Tour Locator Map
Cultural Loop Trolley Service
Explore downtown Erie's Arts Scene With Ease!
The Cultural Loop is a free trolley service that operates every 15 minutes on Saturday evenings from 5:00 p.m. to midnight, along a dedicated route set apart from EMTA’s regularly scheduled lines. The service provides door to door transportation to and from great businesses and arts, cultural and sporting events in downtown Erie. Park and ride from the Erie Intermodal Transportation Center or Liberty Park.
If you’re visiting the Erie area, the Cultural Loop picks up at the Sheraton Bayfront Hotel! The route services French Street from the Bayfront to 14th, and makes stops directly in front of venues such as the Erie Insurance Arena, Warner Theatre, Erie Playhouse, Renaissance Centre (where DramaShop and Radius Gallery are located), and the Performing Artists Collective Alliance (PACA).
A partnership between EMTA, the Erie Downtown Partnership, Erie Events, and Erie Arts & Culture, the Cultural Loop offers tourists, boaters, and residents a convenient way to participate in extraordinary experiences right here in downtown Erie!
Cultural Loop maps are available at EMTA, and most arts and cultural venues in Downtown Erie. Route maps can also be downloaded online at www.erieartsandculture.org and www.ride-the-e.com. As a part of the expansion, and to better promote and service patrons, LED screens displaying where the trolley is along the route in real-time are being installed at the Warner Theatre and Sheraton Bayfront Hotel. Riders can also track the trolley via EMTA’s new mobile app myStop and sign up for texts that alert them when the trolley is arriving at their stop via www.ride-the-e.com/mystop.
For a complete resource guide to all the area’s arts and culture organizations, please click here for the Erie Arts and Culture organization. Erie Arts & Culture is a 501(c) 3 charitable organization located in Erie, PA. Founded under the legal name, The Arts Council of Erie in 1960, Erie Arts & Culture is the oldest arts council in Pennsylvania. Charter members include the Art Center (now the Erie Art Museum), the Erie Philharmonic and the Erie Civic Theater (now the Erie Playhouse). Today, Erie Arts & Culture represents the collective voice of hundreds of creators, investors and volunteers and is a proud partner to the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts and an Erie County Lead Asset as recognized by the Erie County Gaming Revenue Authority (ECGRA).
- Handicap Accessible
- Pet Friendly
- LGBT Welcome
