17 Best Performing Arts Venues in Manchester, Liverpool, and the Peak District, England

Huge investment culminated in the 2023 opening of the world-class Aviva Studios cultural center. The home of Factory International, the riverside complex hosts a constantly evolving program of arts, dance, theater, film, and multimedia events that has cemented Manchester's status as a leading cultural destination.

The city center's oldest building is now a creative hub encompassing contemporary visual arts, live art, literature, music, and dance, along with a café and bistro.

In the historic former Mayfield railway station, with a backdrop that showcases the city's industrial past, this vast venue has a lively roster of arts, music, industry, culture, and community events. Its atmospheric spaces include the old concourse and the rooftop, open-air platform, and the place is dotted with street food vendors.

Housed in the city's onetime cotton exchange, this innovative venue for classic and contemporary works includes a glass-and-metal structure cradling a theater-in-the-round, plus a studio space.

This dramatically modern venue—which sits on 280 springs to reduce external noise—is home to Manchester's renowned Hallé Orchestra, as well as the BBC Philharmonic. It also hosts rock and pop concerts.

This renowned event, held for two weeks during mid-July each year, includes opera, drama, and concerts.

Set in a prize-winning building, this vibrant theater focuses on British playwrights and experimental productions from around the world, as well as hosting a playwrights' workspace. There's also a café and a basement bistro. A nearby sister theater, the Playhouse, stages slightly more mainstream productions.

The Foundation for Art and Creative Technology offers up a unique mix of exhibitions, films, and participant-led art projects, plus a café.

Musicals, live-music acts, and, occasionally, dance or opera productions are on the bill at this theater.

This elegant historic venue hosts musicals as well as opera, classical ballet, concerts, and Christmas pantos.

One of the city's largest theaters presents mainly touring musicals and tribute acts.

This large Art Deco concert hall and sometime cinema hosts concerts by the resident Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, as well as contemporary rock, pop, folk, roots, jazz, and blues performances.

This restored Art Deco venue is one of the city's most appealing sites for stand-up comedy, theater, and more. You can also take a heritage tour of the building (tickets must be booked in advance).

The College hosts classical and contemporary music concerts—everything from opera to jazz.