Arts & Entertainment
Whatever your age or taste, Norwich has something for everyone.
Theatres
The Theatre Royal in Theatre Street was refurbished in 1992 and has an excellent reputation as one of the country’s finest provincial theatres, attracting companies and artists from all over the world. Productions staged include ballet, opera, plays, musicals and children’s shows. The theatre also has a restaurant, bar and café.
Norwich Playhouse on St George’s Street plays host to a range of touring companies with productions that include drama, comedy, music and dance.
The Maddermarket Theatre in St John’s Alley is the home of the Norwich Players and has been for many years. They are an amateur company, who are highly respected and produce work of a very high standard.
Norwich Puppet Theatre on Whitefriars is housed within a medieval church and provides imaginative productions that appeal to all ages.
Galleries and Arts Centres
The Assembly House in Theatre Street has two rooms in which local artists and craftsmen display their work. There is also an excellent restaurant that is open all year round.
Castle Museum is home to a collection of the Norwich School of Painters and also some other local artists. There are English watercolours of both the 18th and 19th centuries as well as modern English work. They also have visiting exhibitions, including art work from the Tate.
The King of Hearts on Fye Bridge is situated in part of a Tudor mansion. It is a popular yet intimate place with changing exhibitions of contemporary paintings. It also has a variety of events, which include poetry readings and workshops and concerts.
Norwich Arts Centre at Reeve’s Yard on St Benedict’s Street has photographic exhibitions and is a centre for the performing arts. It hosts a range of entertainment including comedy, drama, folk and blues and workshops.
The Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts is at the University of East Anglia (UEA). It displays art from different cultures and ages and the building itself, designed by Sir Norman Foster, has won several awards.
Cinemas
Hollywood in Anglia Square, Vue in Castle Mall and
Odeon at the Riverside complex, all of which are multiscreen cinemas.
Cinema City on St Andrew’s Street is a single screen cinema showing English and foreign films.
Nightlife
Norwich is considered the clubbing capital of East Anglia attracting people from far afield. The Riverside has popular pubs and clubs open until the early hours, as well as Prince of Wales Road and Tombland.
University of East Anglia (UEA) off Earlham Road provides a range of performances from classical works to rock bands, as well as public lectures by leading writers.
Sainsbury Centre
Situated in the beautiful parkland campus of the University of East Anglia, the Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts is south west of the historic city of Norwich and is suitable for families, school and student groups and anyone with an interest in art. It is free to enter for everyone, with a charge for their special exhibitions. The Sainsbury Centre is accessible to disabled visitors including those with limited mobility and those accompanying them, with the exception of the Mezzanine Gallery.
Norwich Arts Centre
Located in St Benedict’s Street, Norwich, close to the city centre, Norwich Arts Centre is internationally recognised and a contemporary arts venue delivering a wide programme of live music, theatre, live art, dance, visual art, family performances, exhibitions, comedy and literature. A small, independently run venue with charitable status, its mission is to support the development of artists and nurture emerging talent across a range of art forms and is considered by some as one of the best small venues in Britain.
Norwich Puppet Theatre
Norwich Puppet Theatre is housed in a converted medieval church to the north of Norwich’s city centre, adjacent to the Whitefriars/Barrack Street roundabout. It offers a unique experience to visitors, with a regular programme of puppet-making workshops and performances and is one of only three building-based puppet theatres in England. It is an excellent introduction to the magic of theatre and puts on original shows, many activities, workshops and masterclasses for visitors of all ages.
Maddermarket Theatre
The Maddermarket Theatre was formed in 1921 by its founder Nugent Monk and is a unique and intimate theatre located in St John’s Alley, Norwich. Audiences across the ages have enjoyed incredible theatre, comedies and music concerts at this community theatre, situated in the heart of Norwich’s city centre.
Norwich Theatre Royal
Located on Theatre Street, Norwich Theatre Royal is an art-deco theatre that hosts a large range of touring productions. Theatrical performances in Norwich date right back to late medieval times where shows were performed on decorated stages wheeled into the city centre during festivals. Groups of actors would travel across the country in the late 17th century and regularly visited Norwich.
An abundance of Theatres in Norfolk
Norfolk has a great variety of theatres dotted across the county, from the impressive Theatre Royal in Norwich, to smaller, more intimate venues.
Live Music Venues in Norfolk
You can’t beat live music and in Norfolk there are some great music venues; from large open-air concerts to pubs offering more intimate experiences. Whatever your preferred genre, you are sure to find some live music at one of these Norfolk music venues.
Cinemas in Norfolk Slash their Ticket Prices
Gone are the days when watching a film meant going to the local cinema. Today there are many other options available, with on-demand movies proving very popular, with the likes of Netflix, Sky, Amazon Prime and other streaming services all vying for a share of the market. Many people have cinema sized TVs as standard at home, so going to the cinema to watch a movie is no longer imperative.
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Burnham Market, Norfolk
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Useful links
Visit Norfolk is the strategic voice of the county's visitor industry. This brand delivery vehicle, operated by Visit East Anglia, is responsible for promoting all that the county has to offer at local, regional and national levels.
An independent tourist guide for the county of Norfolk in England, that shows you what places actually look like.
www.norfolkandsuffolkattractions.co.uk
Norfolk + Suffolk Tourist Attractions is the trade association for tourist attractions in Norfolk and Suffolk.
