Below the galleries, LOW END keeps a different kind of art night

A closed-gallery notice does not tell the whole story at Bemis Center this fall. The contemporary art center says its galleries are temporarily closed, but its calendar still points downstairs: Magic Tuber Stringband on Thursday, November 12, and Chief Adjuah on Thursday, December 10. Both LOW END performances are listed for 8 to 9:30 p.m. CST.

A listening room is part of the art program

LOW END is not a gallery exhibition with background music. Bemis describes it as the music venue within its Sound Art + Experimental Music Program, with a purpose-built lower-level space for sound artists, composers and experimental musicians. The room has custom seating, theatrical lighting, an anamorphic-perspective stage and industrial-grade audio equipment.

That distinction matters when choosing an art night. Instead of expecting an exhibition opening and adding a concert afterward, start with the performance itself. The room’s stated purpose is to give nontraditional music an audience and artists space to take risks. You do not need to pretend to know every sound on the program to read the listing and decide whether that is the kind of night you want.

Two dates, not an invented exhibition season

The next two listed names offer a practical place to begin: November 12 for Magic Tuber Stringband, then December 10 for Chief Adjuah. Bemis publishes a Get Tickets link for each show and separately states that LOW END admission is free, thanks to the Mammel Family Foundation. Follow those links for reservations, availability and entry details. Free admission is not the same as a guarantee that a room has space.

The venue’s design is also part of its identity. Bemis credits a collaboration involving University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s FACT design-build program, architect Jeff Day, artist and carpenter Sean Ward, musicians, engineers and staff. Its facilities include a recording and rehearsal studio as well as the performance space. That is a more useful frame than calling every night at an art center a gallery night.

Before you go

Bemis Center is at 724 S. 12th Street in Omaha. The site currently says, “Galleries are temporarily closed.” Do not plan a visit around a current gallery exhibition or infer a reopening date from the music calendar. These are confirmed LOW END performances, not evidence that the galleries have reopened.

Read about LOW END and its admission policy, then use the official event listings for the show you want. Checked November 7, 2026 CST.