The historic Lafayette Town Hall which opened in 1914 hosts several of the performing arts groups that add brilliance to the local arts scene:

The Town Hall Theatre Company of Lafayette

Town Hall Kids

Gold Coast Chamber Players

Lafayette Jazz Festival (Generations in Jazz)

Established in 1944 as The Dramateurs and reorganized in 1992 as The Town Hall Theatre Company of Lafayette, it is the oldest continuously active live theater in Contra Costa County. Over the years the group has earned more than its share of “Shellie Awards”, the County’s equivalent of Oscars, for productions as varied as M. Butterfly, Little Shop of Horrors and The Bible: The Complete Word of God (abridged). Each season brings six new productions to the friendly and intimate environs of Town Hall.

The Town Hall Kids program introduces children ages 7-16 to the magic of musical theater. The young participants delight in the zany plots of musicals written by Barrett Lindsay-Steiner and directed by the talented Cynthia Myers, both well known professionals within the Bay Area theatrical world. Town Hall Kids is a fun theater program created “to develop children’s self esteem, confidence, leadership and team-building skills.”

Since its inception in 1987, the Gold Coast Chamber Players has become synonymous with the Bay Area’s best in classical music. Performers, drawn from such distinguished groups as the San Francisco Opera and Symphony orchestras, Los Angeles Philharmonic and some of Europe’s finest ensembles, create performances with diverse and dynamic programming. Since moving to Town Hall in 1999, they continue to present an eclectic musical feast in the theater’s friendly, intimate setting.

This weeklong community festival features “students and stars” from the local middle and high school music programs playing alongside some of the best jazz musicians in the country.. Professionals who have appeared in past sold-out performances include Hall of Fame Jazz singer Countess Felder, Tower of Power’s Mic Gillete and a Dave Brubeck group.

Produced by the Generations in Jazz Foundation, the Festival is one of many activities organized by this group. Others include the Jazz in the Park concerts held each week during the month of September, the Lafayette Summer Music Workshop, and Jazz Outreach, a program designed to aid underfunded schools with resources, information and opportunities in jazz music.

Another world renowned orchestra arrived in Lafayette in Fall 2003 when the Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra, a San Francisco based ensemble, took up residence at the Lafayette Orinda Presbyterian Church. In 2004, the Orchestra was honored by Musical America, an east coast organization that recognizes outstanding contributors to America’s musical landscape. This was their first award to a period-instrument ensemble and the first to a California orchestra. .

The appreciation of fine arts in Lafayette is evident everywhere - in prestigious galleries such as the Barclay Simpson or Witherspoon; in one of the many shops committed to helping residents best display - or add to - their treasured collections including The Print Gallery/P & L Framing, Keenan Heinz or Fastframe; or in one of the many businesses in town that hang the impressive work of local artists.

The passion for art is clearly evident at the Lafayette Gallery. Opened in 1999, the Gallery is a cooperative of local artists with new exhibits mounted every eight weeks. Collaboration with The Gold Coast Chamber Players has resulted in striking new work developed to complement the musical group’s performances throughout the year. The members’ work can also be seen in a special “Local Artists” section of the annual Lafayette Art & Wine Festival held each year in September.

Lafayette Gallery is housed with The Art Room, a private art school and studio offering a variety of art classes for children, teens and adults.

Voted the Best Independent Book Store in the East Bay by readers of Diablo Magazine, Lafayette Book Store hosts a multitude of literary events throughout the year. Authors such as Michael Chabon, Gail Tsukiyama, and James Patterson have appeared either at the store or another local site. In addition, Literary Luncheons are held at local restaurants throughout the year to give book fans an opportunity to meet and talk with famous writers. More than 160 book clubs are registered with Lafayette Book Store, attesting to the locals’ voracious reading appetites.

Opportunities for “bookish” events will expand when the new Lafayette Library, now in design stage, is completed within the next few years. The library will be built on a new site at the corner of Mt. Diablo Blvd. and First Street.

With so many existing cultural activities already established in and supported by the community, Lafayette is attracting new artists and organizations who want to establish a presence in this dynamic and hospitable environment.

Lafayette’s lively combination of colors and textures is expressed in its thriving central business district. While other communities grapple to attain a human scale and distinct local flavor between strip malls and big box retailers, this city is able to balance its “small town downtown” feel with a vision for the future that reflects the city’s past.

Lafayette today is nearing completion of dynamic renewal in the core commercial area, fueled by private investment and the community’s clear vision of what we want to be. The next few years will see exciting retail development going up along side striking new civic structures, including a Veterans’ Memorial Hall and a vibrantly designed library.

The Chamber of Commerce spearheads a continuing awareness campaign to remind residents of the value of shopping locally. Not only do our merchants offer top quality shopping choices coupled with high levels of personal service, but by keeping your shopping dollars and using your buying power within Lafayette, you put money back into the community which serves you. This is one of the major thrusts of the “Shop Lafayette” campaign lead by a group of committed retailers.

There is a direct correlation between purchases made in Lafayette and the services that the City is able to provide its citizens. Nearly 12% of all sales tax collected in Lafayette is returned to the City and is a significant part - 28.5% - of the City budget. Street repairs, police services, youth and senior services are only a few of the programs which may be reduced or increased depending on the amount of money available to the City’s coffers.

Convenience: Save time and money by shopping near home.

Price: Local prices are competitive.

Service: When people do business with people they know, service and willingness to please are more apparent.

Product: A wide variety of shops offers excellent choices.