If you're planning a winter vacation to sunny South Florida or if you're lucky enough to live there, exploring the area's bustling theatre and performing arts scene can be great fun. Miami is known as a haven for artistic expression and the city is home to some of the best performing arts venues in the country. Artists and performers flock to South Beach and Coconut Grove to find creative inspiration and soak up the Miami vibe.

To help you navigate the South Florida theatre scene, we're breaking down the best venues and shows you don't want to miss.

Best Performing Arts Venues

Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts
Miami, Fla.
The Adrieene Arsht Center is the focal point of the performing arts in South Florida. The center serves as both a showcase and laboratory, provide first-class facilities for smaller, emerging organizations as well as resident companies. Don't miss Joan Rivers live on stage on November 11.

Actors' Playhouse
Coral Gables, Fla.
You'll find exciting and critically-acclaimed dramatic and musical theatre on the stages of this magnificently restored venue.

New Theatre
Coral Gables, Fla.
The Miami New Times named New Theatre the 'Best Theater for Drama' in 2009. The shows often spill out into the audience in this cramped, yet intimate space, creating a magical and unique theatrical experience.

Florida Stage
Manalapan, Fla.
This is the only theater in South Florida that exclusively develops and produces new plays in a passionate and intimate environment. That means you can catch some great performances that you can't see anywhere else.

Gusman Center for the Performing Arts
Miami, Fla.
What began as a silent movie palace in 1926 has evolved into an iconic performing arts center that is now a Miami landmark. In the 1970s, the center was saved from demolition, extensively renovated and donated to the City of Miami. It is now listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Today, Maximum Dance Company, Florida Philharmonic and the Miami International Film Festival all call this theater their home.

GableStage
Coral Gables, Fla.
Founded as the Florida Shakespeare Theatre in 1979, this theatre has grown into a major cultural institution in South Florida. The year-round programming includes recent contemporary plays as well as educational theatre programs that include Shakespeare and the Classics.

Kravis Center for the Performing Arts
West Palm Beach, Fla.
The Kravis Center is one of the premier venues in Palm Beach County, showcasing local and regional arts organizations as well as national and international artists and companies. The schedule is always diverse with something for every taste.

Broward Center for the Performing Arts
Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
Theater, dance, music... it all happens here. This state-of-the-art facility features two theaters with over 3,000 seats, top-shelf catering and year-round world-renowned performances.

Can't-Miss Shows and Performances

Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 - Choral Ode to Joy - Palm Beach Opera
On December 11 and 13, The Palm Beach Opera will kick off the 2009/2010 season with this special presentation by the Palm Beach Opera Orchestra and the Palm Beach Opera Chorus and Soloists.

Reasons to be Pretty - GableStage
This Tony Award-nominated Broadway play is an edgy and dark comic love story that delves into the blue-collar world of ordinary people to explore the subjectivity of beauty and impossibility of love.

Two Jews Walk Into a War... - Florida Stage
Inspired by a true story, this wonderfully funny play tells the story of Ishaq and Zeblyan as they discover they are the last two surviving Jews in all of Afghanistan.