Fourteen blocks of Penn Avenue make up the Cultural District you are entering, one of the most successful urban arts district developments in the United States. In the 1980s this corridor was in severe decline — vacant storefronts and the general blight that follows industrial collapse. The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust, founded in 1984, undertook a systematic renovation of the district's historic theaters and created new arts venues to anchor a revitalization strategy.
The Benedum Center for the Performing Arts, a 1903 Beaux Arts opera house restored in 1987, is home to the Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre and Pittsburgh Opera. Heinz Hall, a 1927 movie palace converted in 1971, is home to the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, one of the finest orchestras in the world. The O'Reilly Theater, designed by Michael Graves and opened in 1999, serves the Pittsburgh Public Theater.
The August Wilson African American Cultural Center honors the playwright who grew up in Pittsburgh's Hill District and set all ten of his Pittsburgh Cycle plays in that neighborhood. Penn Avenue on a weekend evening is one of Pittsburgh's most vibrant public spaces.