The Roanoke Times & World News may be guilty of regional boosterism in calling the Theater at Lime Kiln “one of the most agreeable spots in the western world.”  But there is no denying that this is, to quote another claim, “the most unusual theater setting in the United States.” Performances take place in an outdoor amphitheater amid the ruins of a 19th-century lime quarry and kiln where stone masons once worked and the kilns burned red-hot 24 hours a day.

The professionally presented musicals, plays and concerts are often family oriented and there are annual performances scheduled specifically for children.  Many of the works performed from Memorial Day through Labor Day  are original plays that focus on the history and culture of Virginia and the southern mountains.  Sunday concerts feature a wide range of music from the classics to zydeco and from folk to gospel.  The increasingly popular Family Folk Tale Festival offers a rotating repertory of one-act plays based on Appalachian fairy tales and legends.  The box office opens in mid-April; for schedule and ticket information call (540) 463-3074.

There are also two theaters for student and professional productions at Washington and Lee University’s Lenfest Center for the Performing Arts.  The attractive lobby has a gallery of art from the American West.  Call (540) 463-8000 for the schedule of performances.

At the Lexington Visitor Center, 106 East Washington Street, you can pick up brochures on the galleries in Lexington, including the popular Artists in Cahoots at 1 West Washington Street.  This cooperative gallery, run by local artists and craftspeople, always has innovative original pieces.  The gallery is open Monday through Saturday 10:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M. and Sundays 11:00 A.M. to 3:00 P.M.

Directions: From I-81 take Exit 188B toward Lexington; you will be on Route 60 west, Nelson Street.  Continue on Nelson Street through Lexington, go under the bridge at Washington and Lee University and continue .4 miles and make a left onto Borden Road (this is across from the athletic fields).  Borden Road will bear right through a residential community.  The entrance to Lime Kiln is .2 of a mile on your left.  From I-64 east take Exit 50 toward Lexington; you will be on Route 60 east.  Continue on Route 60 for five miles and make a right at the Shell gasoline station onto Belle Road, Route 666.  The entrance to Lime Kiln is at the end of Belle Road. Once in Lexington you will see small white and blue directional signs to the Theater at Lime Kiln.