# Singletary Center for the Arts

Originally opened on November 1, 1979, as Center for the Arts, the Singletary Center for the Arts is a fine arts complex located on the campus of the University of Kentucky in Lexington, Kentucky. Nearly eight years after its opening, on April 16, 1987, Center for the Arts was dedicated to and renamed after the eighth president of the university, Dr. Otis A. Singletary, becoming henceforth known as the Singletary Center for the Arts.
As part of the College of Fine Arts and essential to the UK School of Music, the Singletary Center for the Arts’ mission is to host artistic, cultural and educational events for the university community, Lexington community and the Commonwealth of Kentucky. Additionally, the Singletary Center provides professional, full-service venues for the creation, practical application, and dissemination of artistic, cultural and educational expressions by international, national, regional, university, and student performers, artists, and speakers.
Since its opening in 1979, The Singletary Center for the Arts has served over 3.7 million patrons and has come to host over 400 events annually. Among these 400 annual events, Singletary plays host to a variety of musical performances spanning genres such as orchestral, choral, jazz, rock, world, and bluegrass music as well as dance, comedy, and lecture events. Some notable performers and speakers at Singletary include jazz legend Herbie Hancock, the Moscow Ballet, comedian Bill Burr, author David Sedaris, and many more.

## Notable events

| Performer(s)/Lecturer(s) | Event Type | Year of Appearance |
| Three 6 Mafia & Hypnotize Camp Posse | Music, Rap | 2000 |
| Herbie Hancock | Music, Jazz | 2002 |
| Jane Goodall | Lecture | 2002 |
| Wilco | Music, Rock | 2003 |
| Yo La Tengo | Music, Rock | 2003 |
| Nickel Creek | Music, Bluegrass/Americana | 2005 |
| Glenn Kotche | Music, Jazz | 2006 |
| Nels Cline | Music, Jazz | 2006 |
| B.B. King | Music, Blues | 2007 |
| Wynton Marsalis | Music, Jazz | 2008 |
| Emmylou Harris | Music, Americana | 2008 |
| Boyz II Men | Music, Pop | 2009 |
| Jean-Luc Ponty | Music, Jazz | 2009 |
| David Sanborn | Music, Jazz | 2010 |
| Joe Lovano | Music, Jazz | 2010 |
| Sarah Chang | Music, Classical | 2010 |
| Marvin Hamlisch | Music, Classical | 2010 |
| Beach Boys | Music, Rock | 2010 |
| Chris Isaak | Music, Rock | 2010 |
| Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg | Music, Classical | 2010 |
| Zoran Dukić | Music, Classical | 2011 |
| B-52's | Music, New-Wave | 2011 |
| Imelda May | Music, Rockabilly | 2011 |
| Pink Martini | Music, Pop-Rock | 2011 |
| Travis Porter | Music, Hip-Hop | 2012 |
| Natasha Paremski | Music, Classical | 2012 |
| Seth Meyers | Comedy | 2012 |
| Gabriel Iglesias | Comedy | 2012 |
| Andrew Bird | Music, Indie Rock | 2012 |
| Itzhak Perlman | Music, Classical | 2012 |
| Paul Galbraith | Music, Classical | 2012 |
| The Birdland Big Band | Music, Jazz | 2012 |
| Ron White | Comedy | 2012 |
| The Brian Setzer Orchestra | Music, Jazz | 2012 |
| David Sedaris | Lecture | 2012 |
| Joel McHale | Comedy | 2013 |
| Elena Kagan | Lecture | 2013 |
| Mayer Hawthorne | Music, Soul | 2013 |
| Arturo Sandoval | Music, Jazz | 2013 |
| Lynn Harrell | Music, Classical | 2013 |
| NEEDTOBREATHE | Music, Rock | 2014 |
| Lang Lang | Music, Classical | 2014 |
| Aziz Ansari | Comedy | 2014 |
| Morgan Freeman | Lecture | 2014 |
| Trombone Shorty | Music, Funk/Rock | 2014 |
| Dru Hill | Music, R&B | 2014 |
| Diego Garcia | Music, Bluegrass | 2014 |
| Branford Marsalis | Music, Jazz | 2014 |
| Jim Gaffigan | Comedy | 2015 |
| Beau Willimon | Lecture | 2015 |
| Joshua Bell | Music, Classical | 2015 |
| Bill Burr | Comedy | 2015 |
| Ben Rector | Music, Pop-Rock | 2015 |
| Sybarite5 | Music, Classical | 2015 |
| John Prine | Music, Americana | 2015 |
| Nick Offerman | Comedy | 2016 |
| US Army Field Band & Soldiers Chorus | Music, Classical | 2016 |
| Joe Bonamassa | Music, Jazz | 2016 |
| Ariel String Quartet | Music, Classical | 2017 |
| David Russell | Music, Classical | 2017 |
| Gordon Lightfoot | Music, Folk | 2017 |
| Conrad Tao | Music, Classical | 2017 |
| Viola Davis | Lecture | 2017 |
| Brian Regan | Comedy | 2018 |
| Berlin Philharmonic Wind Quintet | Music, Classical | 2019 |