The Long Center

The Long Center sits beside Lady Bird Lake in Austin, with Michael & Susan Dell Hall holding 2,442 seats across three wrap-around levels. Its defining feature sits outside: the circular ring beam and colonnade that once supported Palmer Auditorium’s dome now frame the terrace and skyline. Inside, Dell Hall was designed for acoustic and amplified performances alike, giving classical programs, jazz, R&B vocalists, and carefully produced pop shows a room built for detail instead of club-volume force.

A civic auditorium, rebuilt around its frame

The site began as Palmer Municipal Auditorium, which opened on January 5, 1959 as a citywide municipal center. Its successor emerged after a long redevelopment effort: the Long Center opened in 2008, retaining Palmer’s stage house, lower structure, mezzanines, and the concrete ring beam while replacing the dome with a new multi-room performing-arts complex. The transformation also put reclaimed material at the center of the design; the project team reused or recycled over 97 percent of the material removed from Palmer.

Opening weekend supplied a succinct statement of intent. Lyle Lovett and Ray Benson performed beneath a circular canvas, while Austin’s opera, ballet, and symphony companies inaugurated their new home. That resident-company foundation still explains the hall’s formal scale and strong orchestral character, even as touring concerts and locally presented shows share the calendar.

The room and the programming

Dell Hall is a reserved-seat proscenium room: Parterre, Mezzanine, and Balcony seating curve around the stage, with six private boxes and three audience levels in all. Acoustic banners, a custom orchestra shell, and tiered seating aim for clear projection throughout the house. The Long Center presents its own events while also hosting promoter and community productions, so the mix runs from symphony, opera, and ballet to singer-songwriters, R&B revues, holiday productions, talks, and film. For a looser Austin concert experience, the adjacent lawn and terrace host free outdoor Drop-In shows on the H-E-B Stage, with a sloped, amphitheater-style viewing area and downtown views.