Strasbourg Nightlife

Alsacians (and among them Strabourg's inhabitants) absolutely love theater, be it classical, regional or modern.

The TNS (Theatre National de Strasbourg) presents a special status among french theaters : It is one of the 5 "théâtre national" in France (beside Comédie Française, Odéon, Théâtre national de la Colline and Théâtre national de Chaillot) but is the only regional theatre one (The other four are in Paris).

The theatre building hosts the theatre's permanent troupe, the Ecole supérieure d'Art dramatique (one of only two national drama schools in France).

On average, the TNS produces 15-20 productions per season, including performances by its permanent troupe, co-productions and guest productions by visiting companies, some in other languages than French.

All in all, there are about 150 - 200 performances in Strasbourg and another 50 to 100 on tour.

The drama school is part of the theatre since 1954 and is housed within the same facilities. The school has a multidisciplinary curriculum and takes in, two years out of three, a group of 22 or 25 students made up of actors, scenic designers, stage managers and, since 2001, directors and "dramaturges".

Dress Code: Business casual for matinees, a bit more dressed up in the evenings.
Tuxedo and long dresses only for the Premieres

Le Rafiot is a boat on the river and its converted to the musical cafe/bar
the atmosphere is quite romantic and the teenagers of strasbourg like to spend their time
with a beer or equivalent beverages on this boat

Dress Code: no needed

I'm a fan of contemporary dance and Strasbourg has a lot to offer in that respect. You'll regularly find excellent stagings by top-choreographers.
There are other venues (see other tips), but the Opéra du Rhin is undoubtedly the nicest setting for an evening. The architecture is impressive from the outside and lush in a red-velvet kind of way from the inside. Also, there is a stylish (but slightly overpriced) bar/café where you can have a glass of Crémant d'Alsace before the show.

Dress Code: Elegant evening wear, but not over the top. Modern rather than ball-gowns.

Le Maillon used to be the place to go for new contemporary dance in Strasbourg, but unfortunately subsidies were cut, and they concentrated on theatre. Then the main stage in Hautepierre fell victim to arson in 2003. Now the shows are staged in Wacken or on the Pole Sud stage, but you will still be able to see exciting young choreographers at affordable prices.

Dress Code: elegantly casual or casually elegant

While you can see the more established choreographers at the Opéra du Rhin, both Pole Sud and Maillon offer a stage to the less well-known choreographers. Pole Sud took over Maillon's role as the main stage for modern dance and if you like this other type of ballett, this is the place to go.

Dress Code: see Le Maillon. Elegant. Hey, this is France!

This is a town that Kevin Bacon in Footloose needs to visit. The dancing is very very bad as are most of the bars. You could try Offshore in Bischeim which is the best in Strasbourg but take my advice and don't bother with any other. IT WILL ONLY LEAD TO DISPPOINTMENT!

Dress Code: really don't bother unless you like meat markets

Strasbourg is a prime spot in France for classical music and opera, music helds an important part in the city life (kids in the elementary school even getting specially organised concerts by international orchestras). In such a context, it was nearly impossible not to have an opera in the town.

The Opéra du Rhin was created in 1972 when the Opera in France was facing a considerable disinterest in the general public.
The ministry of Culture (following Marcel Landowski's idea) decided to focus on five or six large cities, in the goal of re-establishing veritable centers of operatic art but the project took time to come out.
The three towns of Strasbourg, Mulhouse and Colmar decided together to found the Opéra du Rhin, an intermunicipal organization that is currently the only functioning regional opera house in France.

The Opera du Rhin attained a national status in 1998. It has hosted some of the greatest voices of the century,likeTeresa Berganza, Régine Crespin, Montserrat Caballe, José van Dam and others. It offers an annual program of over 130 performances orchestrated around various themes. A central theme beeing chosen for each season.

The Opera du Rhin is also the homebase of the Strasbourg Philharmonic Orchestra.

Beside seeing and listening the performances in the opera house, you can also find a cafe (very nice service) with a terrace (with authentic opera plush chairs on the Opera steps) when the weather is fine.

Dress Code: Business casual for matinees, a bit more dressed up in the evenings.
Tuxedo and long dresses only for the Premieres

If you have a whole night to spend in Strasbourg and you don't feel like you want to sleep, go to this street named "rue des frères" on the left side of the cathedral and you'll find lots of bars where you can have fun and you can change place as long as you want because you'll have the choice : Irish pub, jazz bar, café, brasserie.
A bit hungry? you'll also find lots of restaurants on the same street (which is not that big but there is a lot to do there) : pasta, kebab, flam's, mexican food...

Dress Code: Definitely jeans and T shirt.