Frequently Asked Questions

We perform in several venues across the Hampton Roads region.  Click on the links below for specific information about the venue nearest you:

• Chrysler Hall in Norfolk
• Sandler Center for the Performing Arts in Virginia Beach
• Regent University in Virginia Beach
• Ferguson Center for the Arts in Newport News
• Phi Beta Kappa Hall (on the College of William & Mary campus) in Williamsburg

Click here for directions to our venues.

Free parking available at or near all venues EXCEPT Chrysler Hall in downtown Norfolk.  Click here for specific parking information at each of our venues.

Reserved parking at Chrysler Hall available for subscribers. ($7 per concert).

There are several convenient ways to purchase Virginia Symphony ticket:

• By Phone: (757) 892-6366
• In Person: 150 Boush Street, Suite 201, Norfolk 23510, 9-5 Mon-Fri.
• Online: Buy Tickets

Please note that all sales are final.  Once an order is placed, tickets may not be refunded or exchanged.

All of our performance venues are handicapped accessible.  If you require accessible seating, please notify the box office when purchasing your tickets.  For information specific to each venue, please visit the pages as follows:

• Chrysler Hall
• Ferguson Center for the Arts
• Sandler Center for the Performing Arts
• Phi Beta Kappa Hall
• Regent University

For more information or for assistance, please call the VSO Box Office at 757-892.6366.

Wear whatever makes you feel comfortable.  Contrary to what many people think, formal attire (like tuxedos and evening gowns) is NOT required!  You'll notice that some concertgoers tend to dress up a bit, but we encourage you to wear whatever you think would make you comfortable in the setting of a concert hall.  A good guideline is to dress as you would for a nice dinner out with your friends.

VSO concerts begin promptly at the announced starting time. We recommend arriving 30 minutes prior to the concert start time in order to park and find your seat before the concert begins. This will also give you an opportunity to enjoy our student showcase performances in the lobby.

If you would like to learn more about the performance, we invite you to join us for Behind the Notes, our pre-concert lectures, which take place one hour prior to each Classics concert and guide you through the music's historical and cultural context. It's a great way to gain insight into the music and what to listen for before the music is performed.

VSO concerts begin promptly at the announced starting time. We recommend arriving 30 minutes prior to the concert start time in order to park and find your seat before the concert begins.  This will also give you an opportunity to enjoy our student showcase performances in the lobby.

If you are unexpectedly delayed, the ushers, out of respect for the artists and our seated patrons, will be able to seat you during the first appropriate pause in the program, at the discretion of management.

After the performance begins, reserved seats are not guaranteed. Latecomers may be seated in the back or in the balcony, again out of respect for the musicians and seated patrons.  Some programs are performed without an intermission or without a late seating break before intermission; therefore, no late seating can be offered at those concerts.

If you need to leave the hall before or during a work, you will be seated after the completion of the work.  We ask that, if possible, you remain in your seat until the concert has concluded.

For more information about your upcoming program and the late seating policy, please call the VSO Box Office, 757-892-6366.

Virginia Symphony Classics and Pops concerts generally run two hours, including a 20-minute intermission.

Our Peanut Butter & Jam Family Classics generally are one hour in length with no intermission.

Food and beverages are available for purchase at all of our performance venues and are permitted in lobby areas only.

All performance venues are smoke free.

Generally, it is considered proper concert etiquette to clap only after a piece is complete.  That means that, for example, if you're listening to Beethoven's Symphony No. 9, which has four movements, it is appropriate to applaud after the last movement.  You can look at your program book to find out how many movements a piece has.  Usually, there is a 15- to 30-second pause in between movements.   And if all else fails, you can always wait for the rest of the audience to clap before applauding. 

Another good sign is when the conductor either turns around or steps off the podium (the elevated "box" she stands on).

We love young children but discourage their attendance at evening concerts because of concert length.  We recommend children be six or older to attend a Symphony concert.

If your children are younger than six, you may want to consider our Peanut Butter and Jam concerts, which are created especially for children ages 2-12 and their families.

Please note that everyone, regardless of age, must have a ticket to attend any of our concerts.

Odds are you'll recognize far more than you realize.  Classical music is all around us: in commercials, movie soundtracks, television themes, cartoons, retail shops, and even some elevators! Popular music often quotes classical melodies, too. While you're listening in the concert to a piece you think you've never heard before, a tune you've heard a hundred times may jump out at you. Whether or not you've heard the music before the concert, as you listen, you'll notice that each classical piece uses its own group of several tunes over and over, in different ways. You'll start to "recognize" these melodies as a work progresses. Listen for the ways a melody is repeated: Is it exactly the same as the first time, or with a different character? Is it played by the same instruments, or different ones? Does it start the same as before, but go off in a different direction? Or start differently and surprise you by developing into the tune you recognize from earlier in the piece?

You don't have to be a gourmet chef to enjoy a fine meal, and you don't need to know the music on the program to have a meaningful concert experience.  One of the great joys of going to a Virginia Symphony concert is being introduced to a great piece of music you've never heard before, or listening to a superb performance of a piece you haven't heard in years.  Many audience members find it enhances their enjoyment of the music if they take time before the performance to read the notes in the program about the composer and the pieces that are to be played.

You can also come to our Concert Conversations, which take place one hour prior to each Classics concert.  These informative sessions provide you an opportunity to hear JoAnn Falletta, our guest conductor or soloist share insights into the music to be performed that night.

FANTASTIC SAVINGS.

• No matter which concrt series you choose, you'll save up to 25% off of single ticket prices.
• VSO Subscribers also save 10% when purchasing additional single tickets.

GUARANTEED SEATING.

• Your seats are guaranteed.  Period.  Even for sold-out concerts.  You'll get the best available seats for every concert.
• Each season, you're given the first option to renew or upgrade your current seats.
• Only subscribers can purchase additional tickets  for concerts BEFORE they go on sale to the general public.

FREE TICKET EXCHANGES.

• Can't make the show?  Don't worry!  You can exchange your tickets for any other concert during the current season up to 48 hours in advance of the performance.
  

THE BEST REASON OF ALL.

• World-class musicians, extraordinary concert halls, and one of the finest orchestras in America, right here in Hampton Roads!