12 Best Performing Arts Venues in Bath and the Cotswolds, England

Held over two weeks in May, the Bath Festival is a multi-arts celebration of literature and music in and around the city. Events include classical, jazz, and world-music concerts, dance performances, literary talks, and exhibitions, many in the Assembly Rooms and Bath Abbey.

The 10-day Literature Festival in October brings world-renowned authors, actors, and critics to Cheltenham for hundreds of readings, lectures, and other events.

One of the best theaters in the region has a state-of-the-art auditorium that can accommodate 200 spectators. The program is a combination of professional productions and film showings, and the Téatro Bar & Restaurant is handy for pre- and post-theater dinners.

Running for three weeks in March or April, the Bath Comedy Festival features comedy events at venues throughout the city. The festival is organized by the Bath Comedy Club, which also hosts additional events throughout the year.

Held over a week in late April or early May, the Cheltenham Jazz Festival presents noted musicians from around the world.

Held annually in July, this famous music festival highlights new compositions, often conducted by the composers, plus choral and instrumental classical pieces.

For six days in early June, the festival attracts leading scientists and writers to Cheltenham.

The early-20th-century assembly rooms are now a Grade II–listed (meaning architecturally or historically significant) performance venue hosting live events for up to a thousand people. Performances include dance, music, and comedy, including enjoyable tribute bands.

The late-Victorian Everyman is an intimate venue for opera, dance, concerts, and plays. The interior is the work of Frank Matcham, a famed architect of English theaters and music halls. There's a varied program of events year-round in the Main House, and the Irving Studio Theatre, a smaller, more intimate venue, stages more unusual productions. You can often catch pre– or post–West End productions here at a fraction of big-city prices. If you are visiting Cheltenham around Christmas and the New Year, try to get tickets for the annual pantomime, a family-friendly tradition that will have you rolling with laughter at familiar fairy-tale characters.

For information on the town's ambitious lineup of festivals, contact the Festivals Box Office via phone from Tuesday to Friday.

Celebrating the great writer with films, plays, walks, and talks for 10 days in September, the Jane Austen Festival is a feast for Janeites. Festivities in 2025 will commemorate the 250th anniversary of the writer's birth.

A gemlike Regency playhouse from 1805, the Theatre Royal has a year-round program that often includes pre- or post-London tours. You must reserve the best seats well in advance, but you can line up for same-day standby seats or standing room.  Take care with your seat location—sight lines can be poor.