The Bonn Opera House, situated directly on the Rhine, has a young, enthusiastic ensemble and one of Germany's best opera orchestras in the Beethoven Orchestra. With productions ranging from classical to modern - from Handel via Mozart and Verdi to modern musicals such as "Hair" - the Bonn Opera House has carved out a leading place for itself among Germany's musical stages. There are regular guest appearances from the best of the international ballet and dance scene, as well as cabaret evenings and concerts. Culture fans, families, and also non-local visitors continually ensure that the opera house's more than 1,000 seats are sold out. The season runs from early September until early July.

Bonn has a varied and vibrant theatre landscape. As a theatre, Schauspiel Bonn also enjoys fame beyond the Bonn region with its productions at the Schauspielhaus and the Werkstattbühne. The city's private theatres and independent scene are also very impressive and well worth a visit. Variety entertainment and cabaret are very popular, and children's and youth theatres have also experienced a rapid boom during recent years. Bonn has an exceptionally rich landscape of school theatres, and during the summer, the centre of the city plays stage to cultures from all over the world.

The commercial theatre in Bonn has a good reputation as well: Contra-Kreis Theater next to the University (seating 216), Kleines Theater in the Bad Godesberg Park (seating 161), Euro Theater Central (seating 50) in the Bonn pedestrian precinct, and a special youth theatre (Theater der Jugend) in Beuel (seating 189) offer a variety of plays and events. The Beuel Brotfabrik (a converted bread factory), the Brückenforum near Kennedy Bridge and Theater im Keller (tik) in Duisdorf round off the range of theatres to visit. Pantheon at Siegburger Strasse is a nation-wide renowned specialised satirical cabaret and comedy theatre. The improvisation theatre Haus der Springmaus and Theater im Ballsaal are located at Endenich. Malentes Theater Palast is seated in a historic spiegeltent and offers musical entertainment theatre.

The Bonn Players e.V. is a Bonn-based, English-language community theatre company. Founded in 1981, they provide anyone who loves theatre in English with an opportunity to produce and perform plays.

Most movie theaters in Bonn show foreign-language movies every week. For details, please visit: