Celebrating Geoff Nuttall
Date: May 26
Venue: Charleston Gaillard Center
A star-studded tribute to Spoleto’s late Director of Chamber Music, renowned chamber soloists, special guests, and the Festival Orchestra all perform in honor of Nuttall’s boundary-breaking musical genius.
Vanessa
Date: May 27, 29, June 6, 10
Venue: Charleston Gaillard Center
Set to one of the most beautiful scores of the 20th century, Samuel Barber’s Pulitzer prize-winning opera explores the depths of its characters’ psyches in this modern, existential drama.
An Iliad
Date: May 25, 27, 28, 30, 31, June 2, 3
Venue: Dock Street Theatre
Tony Award-winner Denis O’Hare stars in this radical retelling of Homer’s epic, crafting a sweeping account of humanity’s unshakable attraction to violence, destruction, and chaos.
The Book of Life
Date: June 1–4
Venue: Festival Hall
Based on collected letters from survivors of Rwanda’s 1994 genocide, this US premiere infuses an arresting yet hopeful work with the rhythms of Rwanda’s first-ever female drumming ensemble.
Only an Octave Apart
Date: June 7–11
Venue: Dock Street Theatre
A Grammy Award-winning opera countertenor complements New York’s preeminent cabaret showstopper for a dazzling, genre-defying musical hybrid that revels in the coexistence of contrasts.
Dada Masilo: The Sacrifice
Date: June 1–4
Venue: College of Charleston Sottile Theatre
A brilliant exploration of ritual and sacrifice, the award-winning South African choreographer Dada Masilo reimagines The Rite of Spring—her latest work reframing iconic ballets through a contemporary lens.
Ayodele Casel: Chasing Magic
Date: May 27–29
Venue: College of Charleston Sottile Theatre
The buoyantly virtuosic tap dancer and choreographer returns to Spoleto with a new work that captures the magical spark of connection and creation—a joyous feast for the eyes, ears, and soul.
Scottish Ballet: The Crucible
Date: June 2–4
Venue: Charleston Gaillard Center
Choreographer Helen Pickett sets Arthur Miller’s seminal play in motion and pointe shoes, zeroing in on the female perspective as the townspeople of Salem devolve into mass hysteria.
Gravity & Other Myths: Out of Chaos
Date: June 7–11
Venue: Festival Hall
Australian physical theater company Gravity & Other Myths presents one of their newest works, Out of Chaos—a high-flying display of acrobatics that the troupe describes as its “boldest and most ambitious yet.”
The Rite of Spring
Date: June 5
Venue: Charleston Gaillard Center
John Kennedy conducts the Spoleto Festival Orchestra in Igor Stravinksy’s iconic masterpiece Le sacre du printemps on a program that also includes the US premiere of Phillip Glass’s thrilling Symphony No. 14.
New World Symphony
Date: June 7
Venue: Charleston Gaillard Center
Maestra Mei-Ann Chen leads the Spoleto Festival Orchestra in Antonin Dvořák’s triumphant New World Symphony and works by American composers Florence Price and Michael Abels.
Symphonie Fantastique
Date: June 9
Venue: Charleston Gaillard Center
Baltimore Symphony Music Director Designate Jonathon Heyward leads the Festival Orchestra through Berlioz’s epic Symphonie Fantastique and Edvard Grieg’s piano concerto, featuring buzzy soloist Micah McLaurin.
Bank of America Chamber Music
Date: May 26–June 11
Venue: Dock Street Theatre
Highlighting a broad range of repertoire spanning centuries, many of the world’s chamber music luminaries perform eleven riveting programs at the historic Dock Street Theatre.
A Poet’s Love
Date: May 26, 27, 29, 30
Venue: Queen Street Playhouse
Acclaimed tenor Jamez McCorkle both sings and accompanies himself on piano in this multilayered production of Robert Schumann’s song cycle Dichterliebe, set against a backdrop of magical projections and stagecraft.
Spoleto Festival USA Chorus: Density 40:1
Date: June 7–8
Venue: St. Matthew's Lutheran Church
The full sonic glory of Spoleto’s 40-strong choral ensemble reverberates through Thomas Tallis’s majestic Spem in alium, paired with works by celebrated contemporary composers.
Spoleto Festival USA Chorus + Orchestra: Handel’s Dixit Dominus
Date: May 30
Venue: College of Charleston Sottile Theatre
Twenty-four members of the Festival Orchestra join the full Festival Chorus for a heavenly program of two iconic Baroque masterpieces by George Frideric Handel and Henry Purcell.
Music in Time
Date: May 28, 31
Venue: Various
Two unconventional programs feature music from the cutting-edge: provocative and meditative selections reflecting on time, place, and humanity.
Tell Your Story
Date: May 27
Venue: Festival Hall
Four Festival Orchestra fellows pair with Charleston-based entrepreneurs, artists, and activists to create aural memoirs—works of creative placemaking distinct to the South Carolina Lowcountry and to this moment.
Wells Fargo Festival Finale featuring Tank and the Bangas
Date: June 11
Venue: Firefly Distillery
With a sound blending funk, rock, jazz, soul, and hip-hop, the Grammy-nominated band closes the Festival season with a celebratory bang—and fireworks—at Firefly Distillery in North Charleston.
Quentin Baxter Quintet
Date: May 27
Venue: TD Arena at College of Charleston
This rollicking homecoming concert puts Grammy Award winner Quentin Baxter centerstage, leading a band of Charleston’s musical royalty and esteemed special guests.
Abdullah Ibrahim and Ekaya
Date: June 8
Venue: College of Charleston Cistern Yard
On the heels of his 88th birthday and the release of his newest album, Solotude, distinguished South African pianist Abdullah Ibrahim makes a rare stop in the United States for a performance with his band Ekaya.
Kris Davis Diatom Ribbons
Date: June 2
Venue: College of Charleston Cistern Yard
The “powerhouse pianist” (New York Times) and composer Kris Davis leads a star-studded, experimental ensemble featuring Grammy-winning drummer Terri Lyne Carrington, as well as guitarist Julian Lage.
Henry Threadgill Zooid
Date: June 6
Venue: College of Charleston Sottile Theatre
Considered the most important jazz composer of his generation, Pulitzer Prize winner Henry Threadgill and his quintet Zooid make an exciting Spoleto debut for a performance at once radical, reverent, and utterly remarkable.
Immanuel Wilkins Quartet
Date: June 7-10
Venue: Queen Street Playhouse
One of the most promising jazz artists of his generation, saxophonist/composer Immanuel Wilkins imbues this five-concert residency at the Queen Street Playhouse with a spirit of creative innovation.
Courtney Bryan
Date: June 1–3
Venue: Queen Street Playhouse
An artist shaping the future of American contemporary classical music, Courtney Bryan bridges the gaps between jazz and traditional gospel, spirituals, and hymns. See her perform solo and with a quartet of saxophone, piano, electric bass, and drums.
Brandee Younger
Date: June 1–3
Venue: Queen Street Playhouse
Grammy-nominated harpist Brandee Younger is revolutionizing the instrument for the 21st century, stretching its boundaries and musical limitations.
Nickel Creek
Date: May 31, June 1
Venue: College of Charleston Cistern Yard
The platinum-selling bluegrass trio of Grammy Award winners reunite for two unforgettable evenings under the Cistern Yard live oaks.
Alisa Amador
Date: June 7
Venue: College of Charleston Cistern Yard
The 2022 NPR Tiny Desk Contest winner captivates listeners with her soulful voice, incisive lyrics, and syncopated rhythms rooted in her musical upbringing of Latin folk and jazz.
Kishi Bashi with Strings
Date: June 3
Venue: College of Charleston Cistern Yard
One of indie-rock’s most in-demand collaborators, multi-instrumentalist Kishi Bashi steps out on his own with unique musical explorations that celebrate his Japanese heritage and dig into themes of love and self-discovery.
Leyla McCalla
Date: May 26
Venue: TD Arena at College of Charleston
New Orleans-based singer and multi-instrumentalist Leyla McCalla mines her Haitian American heritage for a sound vibrating with Creole, Cajun, and American jazz and folk influences.
Conversations With
Date: May 28, June 2, 8
Venue: Various
Emmy Award-winning CBS News correspondent Martha Teichner hosts riveting, intimate conversations with the artists and companies of Spoleto Festival USA, illuminating the creative process and delving into the stories that form the 2023 productions.
Jazz Talks
Date: June 3, 5
Venue: Various
Spoleto Festival USA’s Jazz Curator Larry Blumenfeld speaks with artists from the 2023 Wells Fargo Jazz Series.