Thomas Wolfe Auditorium

Awesome venue for a seated concert. I wish there was a small dancing section.
The downside was the $ 2 wrist band and one beer per person.

EXCELLENT acoustics and great seats! Moog Fest was delightful here ;)

Just saw my first show here and it was an awesome night! Thank you Trey!
The acoustics were great, the lights were amazing and it wasn’t crowded so there was shakedown space a plenty. We camped out in the first row of section J and literally had the whole section to ourselves. Our actual seats were front row of section M which would have been fine but we would have had to angle ourselves toward the stage because the seats face across and not toward the stage. Also, we felt we needed to relocate for safety because the balcony in front of our seats in M was literal jut above my knee and I was fairly certain I would have danced myself over the edge.
The venue had a few downers… we had to pay $ 2 for a wrist band to then be able to buy drinks, when I asked what the fee was for the dude said recycling but I didn’t see one single recycling bin in the whole place! After waiting in line and receiving our bracelets we then had to get in line to actually buy drinks, which were one per person. Yup, one drink per person, no exception, which makes for spending too much precious show time in the drink line. It was $ 5 for a beer which is fairly standard at shows but they did have a good beer selection, even local and organic brews. Liquor drinks were $ 6 and they were tiny and weak, not worth the time or money. Also, they would not just give me a cup of ice, I even offered to buy it and couldn’t. I bought a soda and a water and just wanted a cup of ice for them but no way jose! Not cool!

Let me preface this review by saying that any band you see here is going to look wonderful, and the acoustics are just great, they truly ring across the walls with either acoustic purity and mourning or fun electric soul crunching.
The downsides mostly come from the venue itself. For instance, if you sit in the balcony, and goodness knows its bound to happen at some point if you go to shows here, you’ll end up having to turn your head sideways for the duration of the show. This is understandable in an arena, but we’re talking a theater here. I’m not sure what the architects were thinking exactly. Unless you want to spend the show looking at the balcony across from you, which is pretty much how the angle turns out.
The overall décor is solid, but not spectacular.
The seats are comfortable. This can be a refreshing turn of events if you’re tired of having to stand constantly at the Orange Peel. And slopes are pretty advantageous to those who can’t see well in flat or small standing venues.
I think Asheville could support a better music venue. This is a growing arts and music town, and mid sized bands need to take note of something that’s just a notch better than the average feel of this place. Especially because visits to the Thomas Wolfe are usually booked between gorgeous theaters states over. There’s been a lot of demand for one, but not enough to merit action just yet apparently.
But anyway, that’s probably just picky of me, but I just want to see the Asheville concert scene hold up to the new attention it’s receiving. No longer are we passed over for Charlotte and Raleigh as quickly as we used to be.
And yeah, if one of your favorite bands comes here, don’t skip out, it’s perfectly cool. This venue is fun. Kick back in your padded red seat and have some groovy fun.

Thomas Wolfe is attached to the much larger Civic Center. The thomas wolfe is a great place to go if you want to go to a seated event… you can only dance in the front row or all the way at the top behind the seats.
Great drinks, some local beers & mixed drinks available for a LOW price– which is almost unheard of for a concert venue.
I have to say as a short person who has trouble seeing at standing only events like the Orange Peel, this place makes for a great evening for me.

This is probably one of my favorite venues. I think I’m fond of it becuase one of the best dates I’ve been on was here. Okay, well let’s get into it, shall we? Parking here is a dream! There are multiple garages so it makes getting in and out quick and efficient which is usually never the case before or after any concert. You will then walk into this building only to be met with bartenders offering you drinks. What a great way to start the night already. Drinks in hand and ready to have the best night of your life, you’ll head into the auditorium and realize it’s really not like your average auditorium at all. It’s more like an oldschool opera house with pretty well cushioned seats. Rates pretty up there on the charming scale. After taking the impossibility of a venue like this existing in and letting it marinate, all you can really do is just sit back and mentally prepare yourself for a really really great night.