Theatre & Performing Arts

If you want to be entertained or enlightened, appreciate art or make your own masterpiece, enjoy live music, take part in an open-mic night, or dance to the region's best DJs, then you will always find something in Exeter to suit your taste. 

With such a wide variety of entertainment across the city there is bound to be something different happening in every part of Exeter on almost every night of the week. All you need to do is choose which of the many venues you would like to visit for a really great night out.

At the heart of the city, the historic and beautiful Exeter Cathedral provides a spectacularly atmospheric setting for concerts, exhibitions, workshops and lectures in a rolling programme of inspiring event programming, as well as playing host to charity concerts.

The city has four main theatres and numerous indoor and outdoor areas where performing arts feature within an annual programme of festival and events.

The Exeter Northcott theatre located on Streatham Campus of the University has an annual event programme that will delight and often inspire you to experience something different. With an intimate atmosphere, it provides a chance to get ‘up close and personal’ with many well-known actors visiting with touring production companies. 

The Exeter Barnfield Theatre is Exeter's independent community theatre with a regular list of jazz, folk, rock, classical and live music, pantomime, drama and dance events. Now completely run by a charity, it supports local theatre and stage companies, and hosts many school events.

The Cygnet Theatre has its own unique theatre training school programme offering full-time professional training for thirty years, and where graduates have gone on to work successfully for stage, film, TV and radio. Encouraging new writing is one of its specialist features. Cygnet Theatre plays a key role in the region’s arts scene, supporting local artists to present their own work at the venue and introducing over 60 performances in professional venues in Exeter and on summer tours around the area.

The largest indoor venue is the University of Exeter's Great Hall, which offers a wonderful location for classical and contemporary music concerts, including the seasonal visit of the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra. On the University campus you will also find ‘The Lemmy’ – where DJ sets, rock and pop concerts are regularly featured and where current and up and coming music artists are often promoted.  

The Exeter Corn Exchange is the city’s second biggest adaptable space, and offers a programme of all kinds of music, cabaret and other entertainment and trade shows. It also holds a good selection of weekly and monthly group activities to join and is now firmly established as THE place to see the best top-line comedians on the stand-up circuit.

Exeter Phoenix, located next to the city’s museum hosts a varied programme of contemporary and unusual events, including live music and DJ sets, dance, comedy nights, theatre, talks and workshops. Studio 74 is Exeter Phoenix’s solar powered cinema, the only independent cinema in Exeter showing the latest films as well as the best of World Cinema, documentaries and classic titles. Along with the Corn Exchange, you are sure to find great family events at Christmas and during school holidays here. 

Based at Emmanuel Hall in Exeter, Theatre Alibi are contemporary storytellers and create exiting and imaginative work for audiences of all ages, performing at venues throughout the city as well as touring nationally. The company integrates a wide variety of art forms into its work and recent productions have featured animation, film, puppetry, photography and music both live and recorded, encouraging young people to discover and enjoy a of theatre. Theatre Alibi is an ‘Arts Award Supporter’ organisation.

Exeter is also well represented in performing arts with a large selection of dance and stage schools, including adding to its list recently, the prestigious Pauline Quirke Academy of Performing Arts. You will often find young people from Stage by Stage, Razzamataz Theatre School or Stagecoach Performing Arts, or The Richard Dale Theatre School appearing in our venues in special productions.

The city is fortunate to have a collection of long established and highly regarded choral choirs, one of which was first established in 1846, plus several symphony and concert orchestras, chamber choirs and children’s orchestras and music groups. A Capella singing is also popular around the city. Watch out for a performance from Exeter University’s own Semi-Toned, winners of the BBC programme The Choir: Gareth's Best in Britain.

You may even be able to hear brass band music from the City of Exeter Railway Band (who regularly perform on the Quayside in the summer) or catch a glimpse of the City of Exeter Pipes and Drums parading down the High Street!