Thunder Road -Sioux Falls Performance at Levitt Shell, Falls Park, Sioux Falls Prairie Village -Madison CULTURAL HERITAGE AND THE ARTS In addition to its wealth of outdoor recreation opportunities, Southeast South Dakota provides a wide array of cultural and enter-tainment facilities. As the region’s largest city, Sioux Falls offers a wide variety of historical museums, art galleries and theaters. Take in world-class entertainment including music, dance, opera and Broadway hits. The South Dakota Shakespeare Festival, held during June in Vermillion, features a professional Shakespeare performance at a classic outdoor theater, new each year. Levitt at the Falls, a new outdoor music venue in Sioux Falls, is one of only eight permanent Levitt venues in the nation. In downtown Sioux Falls, ride the trolley system, designed after streetcars that operated in the early 1900s. Watch for Trolley Stop banners through-out the downtown as well as at Falls Park. Take the trolley from Falls Park to the Washington Pavilion of Arts and Science which houses a visual arts center, a hands-on science center, a performing arts cen-ter and the Wells Fargo CineDome with a 60-foot domed screen. Stop along the way at the Old Courthouse Museum, a grand 1800s quartzite courthouse with three floors of exhibits. Tour the Pettigrew Home and Museum, the beautifully restored 1889 home of South Dakota’s first senator, R.F. Pettigrew. The Center for Western Studies also offers a variety of history and art exhibits. Discover outstanding works of art by Native American and other regional artists at the Dakota Discovery Museum and Carnegie Resource Center in Mitchell, Center for Western Studies and Wash-ington Pavilion’s Visual Arts Center in Sioux Falls, South Dakota Art Museum in Brookings and museums/galleries throughout the area. Explore natural and cultural history at museums in Freeman, Madison, Mitchell, and Sioux Falls. These museums have preserved artifacts that showcase the rich Native American and pioneering his-tory of this region. Mark your calendars for area arts and music events such as the Yankton Riverboat Days & Summer Arts Festival and the Sioux River Folk Festival at Newton Hills State Park, both in August, and the Sidewalk Arts Festival in Sioux Falls each September. Downtown Sioux Falls, Yankton and Vermillion have original sculp-tures and murals on public display to enjoy throughout the year. New in 2019, the massive Arc of Dreams sculpture spans the Big Sioux River in downtown Sioux Falls. Porter Sculpture Park, located along I-90 at the Montrose exit, is a unique roadside attraction full of sculp-tures that are both whimsical and surreal, all made by one artist out of metal “junk”, some as tall as 60 feet and weighing 40 tons. Check ahead for up to date info as you plan your trip. The American West Continued on page 212 » SoutheastSouthDakota.com // 211 SOUTHEAST REGION
South Dakota Vacation Guide 2021 South Dakota Vacation Guide: Page 211
