Humphreys Concerts by the Bay

Humphreys Concerts by the Bay is San Diego’s 1,400-seat outdoor theater, set between Humphreys Restaurant and Humphreys Half Moon Inn on Shelter Island. Its defining feature is San Diego Bay: touring acts play in a compact waterfront setting framed by tropical landscaping and Point Loma lights. The scale lands between a club and an amphitheater, with major artists presented under an open sky.

A lawn series grows up

Marc Berman Concerts launched Concerts by the Bay in 1982 on a patch of lawn overlooking the Shelter Island Yacht Basin, building a summer series around pop-jazz artists such as George Benson and Chuck Mangione. Almost every opening-season show sold out, establishing the series as an annual fixture.

In 1984, former critic, DJ, and singer Kenny Weissberg arrived in San Diego to take booking duties. By 1988, his program had added country shows after four country dates in 1987 sold out; Weissberg described the shift as diversification beyond an increasingly crowded pop-jazz market. A later snapshot of that range came in 2015, when UB40’s reunion tour brought Ali Campbell, Astro, and Micky Virtue to the venue.

Waterfront, close-range viewing

The season generally runs from April through October, and the booking mix spans rock, jazz, blues, folk, international music, and comedy. The 1,400-seat theater is built for assigned seats, while restaurant dinner packages include places in rows one through seven. Some 2026 dates carry a general-admission, standing-only designation, so the floor format varies by performance. The bayfront placement and small capacity are the draw; check the individual show setup before arrival.