Things to Do in Indianapolis

More than 50 years old and 8,500 members strong, the Percussive Arts Society (PAS) strives to promote percussion through education, research, and performances across the world. To carry out this mission, the organization includes more than 50 chapters in the US and 28 chapters abroad, all of which communicate online via resources such as lessons, free practice exercises, and annual events. Each year PAS hosts the annual Percussive Arts Society International Convention—the largest of its kind in the world—in which exhibitors convene to showcase the newest developments in percussion technology, instruments, and publications. The convention also includes over 120 clinics and performances with lauded artists covering all genres and styles of music.

After walking through the doors, visitors find themselves surrounded by treasured sports memorabilia and artifacts from colleges across the nation. On the first floor, 23 interactive kiosks each immerse users in a different NCAA sport. Interactive screens illuminate with stories of past champions, trivia questions, and footage of Bobby Knight screaming in different arenas. After a stroll up to the second floor, visitors immerse themselves in simulated and actual athletic competitions, such as throwing a virtual football and measuring their vertical leap. A fully realized 1930s-style gymnasium invites modern folks to shoot hoops just like their grandparents did—uphill both ways in the snow.

Despite an inherent awareness of its artifice, live theater's in-room presence creates an immersive experience that can feel more real than the most subtly acted film or actually happening work day. None of the Above introduces audiences to Jamie, a 17-year-old private-school student living the high life in New York City. When she answers the door expecting her drug dealer, it turns out to be Clark, her SAT tutor. The play follows the clash of their personalities, a meeting like unto Gore Vidal confronting Kelly Bundy. As the story progresses, Jamie and Clark negotiate an unusual pact over their contradictory worlds of multiple choices and socialite flight. You get one general-admission ticket to witness the Protean intellectual battle, though you can purchase up to four and make an outing for friends and family.

Buy multiple Groupons to accommodate your entourage, and follow the instructions on your Groupon to reserve your seats.

Royal Pin’s four bowling centers each boast 80 gleaming lanes, but their widely varied facilities offer far more than games of tenpins. The Woodland location, voted Best Bowling in Indianapolis by CityVoter, ups the ante with flat screens above the lanes and cushy couches where players recline while waiting their turn to take a ride through the pinsetter. Its adjacent mini-golf course, Pirates’ Cove, sends putters on a salty adventure with 18 Lilliputian fairways populated by streams, waterfalls, and a pirate ship. The Expo location switches it up with a gaming arcade and Laser Storm laser tag, where players battle for rights to moon territories.

At all four locations, cosmic-bowling nights create a psychedelic atmosphere with fog, music, and black lights. Darts fly and pool balls clack in their lounges, and the Royal Cafe fuels revelry with hamburgers and tenderloin sandwiches, as well as brews poured at a full-service bar. Besides their alleys, Royal Pin also manages the 5-acre Greatimes Family Fun Park, where kids zip around a go-cart track, bounce through a multilevel playland, or pilot bumper boats equipped with blaster squirt guns and highly sensitive grownup detectors.

All three bowling centers provide ample hours of open bowling time and, for any alley-based hunger attacks, a lineup of tasty snack spots serving up eats for turkeyers and gutterballers. Roll your way through prime spare real estate—Brownsburg hosts 28 smooth synthetic lanes, Sunset knocks down 16 of the same, and, on the cozier end, Country Lanes features 12 classically wooden lanes. For sphere slingers over 21, Brownsburg Lanes serves up adult beverages at the Dog House Sports Bar, and for players of any age or level of mathematical prowess, all three centers feature Brunswick automatic scoring. If you buy five Groupons, you'll have 15 games in which to impress your father-in-law by picking up a 7-10 split.