Pioneer Center for the Performing Arts, Performing arts center in downtown Reno, United States

The Pioneer Center for the Performing Arts is a concrete theater in downtown Reno, Nevada, designed by the Oklahoma City firm Bozalis, Dickinson and Roloff. It is topped by a gold geodesic dome: a 500-panel aluminum shell on an inner steel frame carried by reinforced concrete arches. The orchestra level sits below ground, so the roof nearly meets the ground at the corners. The auditorium holds 987 seats on the main level and 513 in a balcony, 1,500 in all.

Planned as the Apollo Theater, the venue was renamed for a 1939 pioneer-family statue by Byron S. Johnson salvaged from the demolished Old State Building. The Washoe County Fair and Recreation Board chose a domed design after admiring Casa Mañana in Fort Worth. Completed in 1967, it joined the National Register of Historic Places in 2005.

The dome's nickname, the "Golden Turtle," comes from its gold-anodized aluminum shell, built by Temcor, the firm of Don Richter, a student of Buckminster Fuller. The 500-panel shell sits on an inner steel frame carried by reinforced concrete arches, and the orchestra level is sunk below ground so the roof nearly meets the ground at the corners.

The center is located in downtown Reno at South Virginia Street and is easy to reach. Visitors should check what shows are scheduled before visiting, as performances and types of events vary throughout the year.

The building earned the local nickname Golden Turtle because of its metallic dome that reflects sunlight across the city skyline. This distinctive shape is visible from many points around Reno and has become a recognizable landmark.