The California Center for the Arts is a full-scale performing arts campus in downtown Escondido — the kind of venue you would not expect to find outside a major city. It hosts a 1,524-seat concert hall, a smaller theatre, and a contemporary art museum, all set in a landscaped complex designed by Moore Ruble Yudell and opened in 1994.
The museum rotates exhibitions of modern and contemporary art, with a particular focus on work by California artists. The performing arts calendar runs year-round, bringing in touring shows, classical concerts, Broadway productions, and comedy. If you are spending the evening in Escondido — which most visitors to the Safari Park do not bother to do — checking what is on at the Center is worthwhile.