Montreal Theatre

Whether you live in Montreal, or you are just visiting, the theatres should definitely be a place on your to do list. Larger venues, the Bell Centre and Place Des Arts for example, will host popular touring shows like Cirque Du Soleil. The Place des Arts is also well known for hosting Broadway musicals like Mamma Mia, Cats and The Lion King.

Amongst the most popular English theatre houses in Montreal are the Segal Centre and Centaur Theatre; both theatre houses present about six shows per season, ranging from Canadian to historic Shakespearean plays.

Montreal also has a great demand for French language theatre, and, in effect, has a large selection of theatre houses that host French plays. One of the largest French theatre houses is Theatre St-Denis.

Image: Flickr, Spectrum Montreal, the Spectrum, once a mainstay theatre in Montreal, closed its doors sometime in 2007.

Place Des Arts

Located at 175 St Catherine Street Ouest, Place des Arts is a theatre that showcases both French and English plays and performances. It hosts many musicians and touring concerts. It is the home of the Grand Ballets Canadiens Christmas Nutcracker show, and will be hosting the popular Broadway show The Lion King this summer.

The Segal Centre

With a vision "to entertain, to educate, and to stimulate" the Segal Centre formally known as the Sayde Bronfman, was founded in 1967.

Its full name, The Segal Centre for the Performing arts, exemplifies its mission. The centre promotes the education of the arts: theatre, music, dance and cinema. They strive to "support emerging artists and foster intercultural understanding through the arts." A majority of the plays performed at the Segal Centre relate to Montreal's history and culture.

The Centaur Theatre

Located at 453 St-Francois Xavier, in the heart of Montreal's Old port, is the Centaur Theatre Company which was founded in 1969. It is an English language theatre, and does not host French plays. The beautiful building in which it is located is Montreal's old stock exchange building. The theatre has two auditoriums; one with 250 seats the other with 600. It has hosted plays by many well known playwrights, and many emerging Montrealites.

Infinitheatre

Located at 5413 Boul St Laurent, Infinitheatre formally known as Theatre 1774 was founded in 1988. Infinitheatre is an English language theatre company that occasionally produces French plays. A unique aspect of this theatre company is that their main stage is at Bains St Laurent, which is an old bathhouse located at 5300 St Dominique. The stage is located in the deep end of the pool and the spectators sit in the shallow end.

Theatre St-Denis

Located at 1594 St Denis, Theatre St-Denis is French language theatre in Montreal. The venue has two large auditoriums that seat over 1000 people. If you are looking for good French plays then this is definitely a theatre to look into.

Useful Links:

For a list of English Language theatres in Montreal visit:

English Language Theatre in Montreal.

For a list of French language theatres in Montreal visit:

French Theatre in Montreal.

For a list of recent reivews and news theatres in Montreal visit:

MTL Theatre Newsfeed