The Les Schwab Amphitheater is an outdoor riverfront amphitheater built in the historic Old Mill District

Old Mill District

The Old Mill District is an area formerly occupied by two lumber mills in Bend, Oregon. Encompassing approximately 270 acres along the Deschutes River, the Old Mill District is now a mixed-use area known for its shops, galleries and restaurants. It draws thousands of visitors and employs more than...

 in Bend

Bend, Oregon

Bend is a city in and the county seat of Deschutes County, Oregon, United States, and the principal city of the Bend, Oregon Metropolitan Statistical Area. Bend is Central Oregon's largest city, and, despite its modest size, is the de facto metropolis of the region, owing to the low population...

, Oregon

Oregon

Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...

, United States. The amphitheater was named in honor of Central Oregon

Central Oregon

Central Oregon is a geographic region in the U.S. state of Oregon and is traditionally considered to be made up of Deschutes, Jefferson, and Crook counties. Other definitions include larger areas, often encompassing areas to the north towards the Columbia River, eastward towards Burns, or south...

 businessman Les Schwab

Les Schwab

Leslie Bishop "Les" Schwab was an American businessman from Oregon. He was the founder of Les Schwab Tire Centers, a company which Modern Tire Dealer called "arguably the most respected independent tire store chain in the United States." A native of Oregon, he served in the U.S...

. The venue accommodates approximately 8000 people for concerts and other events in a casual outdoor setting.

Free concerts by local and national performers are held most Sundays throughout the summer. Over the years, artists such as Cold Play, Willie Nelson and Bob Dylan have played at the Les Schwab Amphitheater, and the venue has hosted events such as Bend Brewfest.

A 2010 research study found that the Les Schwab Amphitheater impacts the Central Oregon economy in the following ways:

• Thirty nine percent of concert attendees (or 10,254 individuals) were out-of-town visitors.
• Among the out-of-town visitors, 80 percent said they came specifically for the concert.
• The average length of stay for out-of-town concert attendees was 2.2 nights with 71 percent staying in Bend lodging accommodations, five percent in Redmond, five percent in Eagle Crest, four percent in Sunriver and 15 percent elsewhere.
• Total concert-related spending in the Central Oregon area was estimated to be $3.61 million, spent on dining, shopping, lodging, recreation, groceries, gas stations, and a variety of other services.
• Total trip-related spending by out-of-town visitors attracted to Bend specifically to attend the concert series was $2.26 million.