Best Performance Venue--Outdoors '98

Best Performance Venue/Outdoors

Reid Park DeMeester Outdoor Performance Center
Country Club Road and 22nd Street

READERS' PICK: This open-air bandshell on the park's east end hosts a variety of events throughout the year, such as the Reggae Sunsplash, Shakespeare in the Park community theatre summer series, summer pops concerts, Orts Theatre of Dance's annual free After Dark concert, and the upcoming Tucson Blues Festival (also free), which draws some 12,000 music lovers annually. Size does matter here: With its festival-style seating and an elevated acoustic stage fit for a symphony, DeMeester is versatile, flexible and (gloriously) most often free of charge.

READERS' POLL RUNNER-UP: St. Philip's Plaza, 4340 N. Campbell Ave. (at River Road), is a sunken courtyard of saltillo tile and concrete, bordered by tall eucalyptus and some of the finest upscale retail and restaurants in the city, including Obsidian Gallery (currently finishing its annual outdoor sculpture exhibit), Café Terra Cotta, and Daniel's Trattoria, to name a few. St. Philip's has long been a favorite venue for Tucson Jazz Society events, and seasonal jazz and world-beat concert series.

1997 Winner: Reid Park DeMeester Outdoor Performance Center