The space is perfect for watching performance in comfort. The aisles are long and there is enough leg room to accommodate those legs without being too cramped. The seats are roomy enough where you don't feel as if you're sitting in the next guest's lap or spilling into their seats. We watched the South Carolina Ballet perform The Nutcracker. It was spectacular with the lighting and the sound. The dancers from small to tall were fantastic. This is a must do during the holidays. read more

Koger Center For The Arts - Getting ready to see The Nut Cracker - Recreation Centers Near Me - Columbia, South Carolina

First time attending their Jazz in the Lobby series. It was awesome, beautiful venue for this to take place. Plenty of seating and the music was phenomenal. They also sell beer, wine and water during the show. I loved walking around seeing some of the beautiful artwork on the wall. read more

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This is such a cool place! I will have to come back when I have more time to look around. I initially came because my daughter's art work was in the Richland One district art show for her school. She's in kindergarten so this was a huge accomplishment for her especially when she LOVES art. The center is HUGE and beautifully filled with different art pieces to paintings, sculptures, etc. I think you have time, it is definitely somewhere you should come whether by yourself, friends, or even a date. read more

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My daughter was so excited to receive tickets to see Legally Blonde for Christmas. She was counting down from the time she received the tickets until the time we went to curtain call. I was surprised how easy it was to find parking- we parked and were in our seats in ten minutes. Santa chose balcony seats because those are the best! We were excited to watch Blonde as we both love the movie. Our seats were comfortable and we had plenty of room to seat and move about with out disturbing others. We enjoyed the show and loved the time together! read more

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When to see the last showing of the Avatar orchestra with my family and we loved it! Love the service so much especially Jennie, Rebecca, and Sarah, they were helpful and kind! The Kroger center is always such a beautiful experience, I love all the art work on the lobby walls. Everyone on stage was incredibly talented and passionate, so happy they were still super enthusiastic even though that was the last show. It sounded so clear, the audio was great quality! read more

Koger Center For The Arts - The orchestra setting up on stage - Recreation Centers Near Me - Columbia, South Carolina

A wonderful venue for the performing arts. Ticket prices were reasonable. My wife and I really enjoyed our seats in the orchestra. We could hear and see well. The Hamilton performance we saw was outstanding! The venue has clean restrooms and an overall newer, bright, clean inside. Entering with security screening was quick and smooth. The only drawback is there is no center aisle in the orchestra, forcing you to walk in front of nearly 25 people to get to the middle seats. However, there is more room in front of the seats than other theaters I've been to. We would definitely return. read more

Koger Center For The Arts - A view of the stage from Row N - Recreation Centers Near Me - Columbia, South Carolina

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Nice venue for larger musical or theatrical events. The acoustics are consistent with a college facility. If you like accurate acoustics in a more intimate setting, there are events in the front atrium area. There are pop up bars and plenty of rest room facilities. The seating is a bit tight, but adequate. read more

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Im really thankful that the Koger center brings great talent including broadways to Columbia! I attended the Nutcracker performance last Dec 2019. Parking is across the street for a fee normally $5 and up per car. There is some free parking on streets if you get lucky. USC parking handles large crowds, so no worries about a parking issue. The staff is always friendly and helpful. The Koger Center is very modern and up to date, bathrooms very large with plenty of stalls. The seats in the theater are comfy with enough walking space in between. They are leveled appropriately so others can see the stage comfortably. I will continue to use this venue for yrs to come! read more

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Went to go see lion king and it was truly spectacular! From the first scene I was almost in tears watching the amazing performance of my favorite childhood movie being performed live in a musical! This was definitely a breathtaking nostalgic moment for me. The mixture of culture and art I was truly breathtaking! read more

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What a great venue , we came to town to see Alton Brown. There were plenty of staff to greet you at the door. Masks were required, still Covid times, they were offered if you did not have one. It's beautifully decorated inside , well lite and comfortable. Inside the theater, the seats were very comfortable, great acoustics and the lighting was great . The show was enjoyable, we had no idea what it would be like. When the show was over , exiting was easy and fast . I would no hesitate to go back to this venue. read more

Koger Center For The Arts - What we saw that night. - Recreation Centers Near Me - Columbia, South Carolina

Such a fun location! They have great shows and tons of different events. Parking can be a challenge but there is valet offered and there is plenty of street parking for those who are able to walk. The seating is really comfortable. I've been to places where they pack you in tight as sardines with no leg space. The seating here is graciously spacious. You still have to move to let people walk through but it is quiet comfortable. There isn't a bad seat in the house. I've sat close to the stage and all the way up in the balcony. All seating is lovely and you get a great view of the show. The Koger Center membership is worth every penny! I have met so many new friends at events and it makes for such a nice change of pace on an otherwise ordinary weekday evening. They bring a wide selection of popular theater shows that keep me coming back year after year. Definitely great for a great time! read more

This review is with regard to Koger Center and not the actual production we saw. I took my elderly and handicapped Mother to see the Nutcracker. We wound up getting in late due to the horrendous parking. There were only 5 handicapped spots that were occupied upon arriving. I went in to the building and approached 2 staff members for help and guidance on how to get my Mom into the building without having to walk from an extended location. Both staff members were clueless and totally unhelpful. We wound up locating parking down the hill in a garage and had to walk up 3 huge flights of stairs to get inside (due to my Mother's physical situation, which took a long time and a lot from her).. Once inside we were then denied entry to our seats by a snarky young woman (because we were 15 minutes late) however they were letting folks come and go from their seats, without any restrictions (all because they made it in on time!? We asked to speak to management who "made an exception" and finally let us in. The whole operation seemed totally amateurish.. The production was good but hard to enjoy after the ridiculousness we had to go through to get in the facility. If you have handicapped people in your group please take heed. read more

Fantastic Venue! I am disabled, it's hard for me to walk. So this review comes from that aspect. Koger has been set up wonderfully for disabled individuals. The handicap row is in the back in the orchestra area, however, that row is about even with the second or third row in the grand tier instead of being way way back behind the grand tier almost. I was able to make it to the Grand tier, using an elevator, there are stairs to get down to where we were sitting but they were normal stairs with a regular handrail. If you have to use a walking Aid such as a walker that can be left at the top of the stairs with the ushers. they don't leave that area so it is safe. There is handicapped parking available in front of the building and they also block off a few streets around the building for handicapped parking only. On to the regular aspects of the venue. You've seen it in other reviews, there really isn't a bad seat in the house. We were sitting towards the right hand side in the grand tier and still had full view of everything going on on the stage. There are restrooms on each tier but the only refreshments are served on the main floor. It's a little bit of a walk during intermission. That is the only bad thing I have to say about the whole place and experience. I'm looking forward to going back and I can't wait to see what is coming so that I can make my ticket Arrangements early. We used will call this time. It was very easy to retrieve our tickets. read more

Koger Center For The Arts - The stage from row AA on the Grand Tier. Highly recommend it. Great View. - Recreation Centers Near Me - Columbia, South Carolina

It is a very cute venue. It's close to the Courtyard Marriott, only a five minute walk. My only complaint is they didn't tell you you couldn't bring drinks into the show until you were about to go into seating. We had to toss out drinks or miss the beginning of the show. read more

Koger Center For The Arts - Outside. - Recreation Centers Near Me - Columbia, South Carolina

In the last month, I've been to the Koger Center twice - once to see a ballet show, and more recently, to listen to the SC Philharmonic perform. Both times have been fantastic and a lot of the positive experience is thanks to the gorgeous space the Koger Center provides. It's a large glass building named for philanthropists Ira and Nancy Koger, and it dominates the block of Assembly and Greene Streets. It cost $15 million to construct (nice chunk of change!) and has a seating capacity of a tad over 2,250 (I know, big for Columbia!). When we saw the Columbia City Ballet perform Dracula, the stage design was awesome, and the lighting was AMAZING. When we listened to last night's Mostly Mozart concert, the sound system was phenomenal, and even with nose bleed seats, we heard and loved every sound. As a person who appreciates the Arts, the Koger Center really does a great job of providing some wonderful shows in a well maintained and large venue. If you haven't been, highly recommend checking out a show at the Koger Center, I have a good feeling you'll love it! read more

This is a really nice venu for both large and small performances. It is managed by USC and located right off Assembly St. It is now on the traveling Broadway circuit, so locals can now catch a great performance in Columbia. Unfortunately, Columbia must be on the "B list" for Broadway shows because they are always only during the work week...which is tough to attend unless you are retired. When we lived in Greenville, the Peace Center got amazing Broadway shows on the weekends. They have valet parking, as well as a huge garage in the back that is available (for a fee) for performances. The staff are all extremely nice, and the seating is pretty good. However, no reading lights are in the seats and no cupholders (in fact, food & drinks are not allowed in the seating area). -1 star because the entire facility feels dated. It is way overdue for a remodel. My reference is the Peace Center in Greenville....the Koger Center still has a long way to go to be on that level. read more

My first visit to the Koger Center and it's pretty nice. I'm in the 8th row off to one side but still have a great view of the stage and can hear all the performers in The Jersey Boys perfectly. It's a very nice theatre - almost intimate feeling even though it holds a lot of people. I do agree with other reviews that when sitting near the side of a row the security lights low on the wall get a bit annoying. It looks like sitting towards the center would be better. But overall it's a great venue. read more

This is such a mainstay of culture in Columbia. I can remember from youth performing with the USC String Project orchestras. I remember seeing ballets, symphonies, and graduations. It's a beautiful building with a great stage. I always take a look to see what they have going on when I'm in town. read more

Koger Center For The Arts - Recreation Centers Near Me - Columbia, South Carolina

We found the center to be very clean with polite, friendly staff and a good view from pretty much any seat. We had balcony tickets but they moved us down because it was a small crowd, which was nice. On other sites I saw people complaining horribly about the small seats. That is not the case. My husband is six foot and weighs 210 and he was very comfortable with legroom to spare. We also watched people get up from the middle of a row and no one had to stand to let them by or get out of their seats like you have to at the movie theaters. Definitely will go to more shows at the Koger Center! read more

Nice clean atmosphere. Attracts a respectable cliental. The wine was perfect temp. Vendor is very friendly with nice Xmas options. Sitting front and center, very good view from here. Usually get comp tickets to all events but even if I had to pay I would come back for more events in the future. read more

Koger Center For The Arts - Nutcracker Ballet xmas date with the love of my life - Recreation Centers Near Me - Columbia, South Carolina

I'm sorry this is a really negative review but this place was frustrating. It's a nice building and the Columbia Ballet was lovely. I saw The Nutcracker here tonight and thought they did a great job. The sets were vibrant and creative and the dancers were all wonderful. However, the audience sucked and I think most of it is the center's fault. I saw no less than three people videotaping the production. One was even using a mini-tablet. She was the only one that was told to put it away and that was about 15 minutes after she had already started. However, they might not have even known they weren't supposed to use their cameras and phones. The only thing saying no videotaping was allowed was a small sign when you first walk into the seating area. There were quite a few speeches before the ballet started and that might have been a good time to mention it. I loved that there was a lot of children there. I think I was about 6 or 7 the first time I saw The Nutcracker and remember thinking it was the coolest thing in the world. I loved that they were laughing and enjoying the ballet. The little girl next to me kept saying "wow" as the Christmas Tree grew taller and taller and clapping at the end of each dance. However, I wasn't a big fan of the infant next to us that was constantly either babbling or crying. But its ok because her mom brought a tub of cereal for her to snack on and shake. She eventually had to leave because the crying was getting louder and louder. I'm pretty sure no baby wants to sit in one spot completely quiet for 2 hours. This might sound really bad but most of the times I've seen Nutcracker they don't allow children under three to certain productions. They usually have matinees when the entire family can come. My seat was a really good one if you didn't know what was going on because the people behind us discussed it the whole time. The gentleman had no clue what was going on so his wife explained every character, dance and plot line. This might have been remedied if they had provided programs. They did provide a program with the dancer's bios and a bunch of ads but that was it. It would've been nice to have a program describing the plot, characters and dances. I think the worst part though was the constant opening and closing of the doors even after the ballet had started. It's pitch black and the dancing is beautiful then there's a blast of light as the door opens and people are moving around and getting up so they can get to their seats. Then someone gets up, everyone shuffles around and they leave. A few minutes later it starts over again. At most theaters and playhouses this isn't allowed. Once the lights go down and the program starts, if you're not in your seat your out of luck. If you get up and leave, you have to wait until intermission. The constant movement was distracting in the audience which means it probably wasn't that great for the dancers as well. read more

I have been to the Koger Center many of a time - mostly for the Broadway in Columbia Series that always passes though. Went to the Koger Center last night to see West Side Story, and as usual, was impressed with the theater. This is probably one of the newer buildings on the USC Campus, so that does not hurt. Seating is good (I guess it depends where your seats are). Our seats were on the first floor, but right by the doors and we were able to see the whole show without any problems. Acoustics are good and we were able to hear all actors. read more

Fantastic show by David Koz last Friday - it's a shame that the sound system was so poor that it was difficult to hear the performance properly. I expected better read more

I've been coming to the Koger Center since it opened. I've seen some amazing things there over the years. From the Kingston Trio to Tommy the Rock Opera. Willie Nelson to Once the Musical. It never disappoins. Not a bad seat in the house in my opinion. Columbia is lucky to have such a venue. read more

Can't drink inside venue even tho the seats are red & the floor is concrete. So be prepared to miss part of the show or chug. Then I was taking a small snippet of a video to send my daughter (like 10 sec...not trying to make a bootleg!) & some teenage "usher" comes & tells me videos aren't allowed. It was Weird Al Yankovic. Don't think I'm gonna profit off a 10 sec vid of "White & Nerdy". They never mentioned that you couldn't video & after that I wasn't even sure I could take pics. I was afraid I'd get chastised again so I didn't. Great concert. LAME venue! Bad taste in my mouth. Will never see a show here again. Drove here from Charlotte for this show. First & last visit. read more

This is a must see. The performance was superb and the performers mixed and mingled after the show. I would highly recommend again and again. The costumes and stage arrangements where first class This is a tradition around Christmas. Don't miss out.!!! read more

They should have a no perfume/cologne policy. We had to be moved twice during a concert and staff were not very understanding. The over fifty crowd bathes in the stuff and it causes an asthma attack each time. My wife is getting a honeycome carbon mask to wear at future concerts. I felt like I needed a bath after the last concert. The stench of others packed around me was in my clothing. They need to encourage no perfume/cologne...for everyone's health. Our doctor won't see people wearing the stuff...why should anyone be subjected to sitting in an auditorium with thousands of strong scents. Please ...Help!!! Greg & Kathleen M. read more