10 Best Performing Arts in Tel Aviv, Israel

Founded in 1944, this long-standing Hebrew performance theater, located in the Tel Aviv Performing Arts Center, offers a useful "See it in Hebrew, Read it in English" program every Tuesday, in which the performance is simultaneously translated into English. Shows range from classic plays to international dramas, comedies, and local pieces.

Israel's largest concert hall is the home of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, led by maestro Zubin Mehta. The low-slung gray building was among the most architecturally sophisticated cultural buildings in the country when it was completed in 1957. It has excellent acoustics and a seating capacity of 3,000 people. The hall also hosts pop and rock concerts.

One of Israel's largest repertory theaters, the Beit Lessin Theatre hosts works by Israeli playwrights in Hebrew.

Run by the city, the Enav Cultural Center is a 300-seat venue offering eclectic music and theater, ranging from Israeli music to classical, opera, jazz, and blues.

This troupe is rooted in the Russian Revolution, when a group of young Jewish artists established a theater company that performed in Hebrew—this at a time when Hebrew was barely a living language. Subsequent tours through Europe and the United States in the 1920s won wide acclaim. Many of the group's members moved to Israel and helped establish a theater company that now inhabits multiple spaces, including a nicely renovated complex at Habima Square. Even though the vast majority of productions are in Hebrew, many are also simultaneously translated into English.

In Old Jaffa, HaSimta Theatre features avant-garde and fringe performances in Hebrew (or sometimes without words at all).

This exciting troupe of drummers and dancers bangs in perfect synchronicity on anything from garbage pails to the floor. It also plays actual drums from cultures all over the world.

This intimate jazz club presents everything from hip-hop to ethno-jazz Monday through Saturday nights. Performers range from veteran artists to up-and-coming young talents.

The Tel Aviv Performing Arts Center is home to the Israeli Opera, as well as the Israel Ballet and the Cameri Theatre. It's possible to book a behind-the-scenes tour 75 minutes prior to the performance.

One of Tel Aviv's best venues for live music, the intimate Zappa Club is named after American music legend Frank Zappa. It is in the Ramat HaHayal neighborhood, just a short cab ride away from downtown.