Wan Chai & Northeast Hong Kong Island
An outing at the races is one of the quintessential Hong Kong things to do, especially if you're around during the weekly Wednesday-evening races. Punters…
Must-see entertainment in China
The Bund & People's Square
Shanghai’s state-of-the-art concert venue hosts everything from Broadway musicals to symphonies, ballets, operas and performances by internationally…
Kowloon
This Town Needs…more underground music venues like this, staging 10 to 15 gigs monthly in a hip warehouse space in the coastal Kowloon burb of Yau Tong…
Kowloon
The oldest and most atmospheric of Temple St's singalong parlours, Canton resembles a film set with mirror balls and glowing shrines. Singers take to the…
Hong Kong
Charming Peel Fresco has live jazz every day of the week, with local and overseas acts on an intimate stage close enough for listeners to chink glasses…
Chengdu
This famous century-old theatre and teahouse puts on excellent 1½-hour shows that include music, puppetry and Sichuan opera's famed fire breathing and…
Macau
The House of Dancing Water, Macau’s most expensively made show, is a breathtaking melange of stunts, acrobatics and theatre designed by Franco Dragone,…
French Concession
The JZ brand has been in Shanghai for decades, and its newest spot hosts live music every day of the week in an old Shanghai–style jazz club. It's always…
Shanghai
Small enough to feel intimate, but big enough for a sometimes pulsating atmosphere, Yùyīntáng has long been one of the top places in the city to see live…
Guandong Guild Hall Peking Opera
Tianjin
Popular Peking opera performances are held every Saturday and Sunday afternoon at this fabulous 100-year-old wooden tea house-theatre inside the Guangdong…
French Concession
An intimate jazz bar with an art deco feel and a drinks menu to match Shanghai's decadent era. Cocktails are top notch, with plenty of vintage flavours on…
Shanghai
Down a quiet street, this leafy cabin surrounded by trees is an intimate live venue run by the JZ family with live jazz, and regular acoustic folk and…
National Centre for the Performing Arts
Forbidden City & Dongcheng Central
Plonked in the middle of an artificial lake like an alien spaceship, the Paul Andreu–designed NCPA (aka 'The Egg') is a surreal yet spectacular venue at…
Shanghai
The Shanghai Acrobatics Troupe has popular performances here most nights from 7.30pm. It’s a short but fun show and is high on the to-do list of most…
Kowloon
Illuminating both sides of Victoria Harbour every night, symphony of lights is a kitsch paean to all that bling real estate (and a middle finger to Earth…
Shenzhen
From hair metal to experimental jazz, all genres are equal at this warehouse live-music venue that welcomes eclectic performers from around the world. The…
Macau
The go-to place for indie music in Macau, this excellent dive inside an industrial building hosts live acts from Macau and overseas. There are two or…
Nanjing
Kūnqǔ, an extant form of Chinese opera originating from Jiangsu, is staged at this intimate theatre every Saturday evening at 7.15pm. The English…
Beijing
A hip hutong livehouse popular with local musicians, Jiang Hu stages folk, blues, jazz and open-mic shows most nights in its wood-beamed courtyard space…
Wuhan
Vox Livehouse is Wuhan's indie music venue of choice. Cover charge ranges from free to ¥220; call or check online for opening dates. It's on the south…
Guangzhou
Two steps from the metro exit, 191 Space is a throbbing dive that features live indie gigs from China and overseas every weekend.
Macau
In addition to a sprawling gaming floor, this colossal hotel-casino-mall complex is home to four sleek hotels, several restaurants (that include award…
Macau
Said to be one of the 10 largest buildings in the world, the Venetian is 980,000 sq metres of what might be described as Casino Gothic architecture,…
The Bund & People's Square
Shanghai’s most famous hotel features Shanghai’s most famous jazz band (starts at 7pm), a septuagenarian sextet that’s been churning out nostalgic covers…
The Bund & People's Square
Fittingly dark and divey, this vintage jazz and blues bar exudes plenty of class with its polished heavy wood decor. The house band delivers live jazz or…
Hongkou & North Shanghai
Mid-sized live venue with excellent sound quality, run by the Modern Sky record label. It's a top place to catch touring bands: previous acts include…
Beijing
The most atmospheric Peking opera house in town (it was undergoing refurbishment at time of research, so fingers crossed it stays that way...), Huguang…
Lijiang
Attending a performance of this orchestra inside a beautiful building in the old town is a good way to spend an evening in Lijiang. Not only are all two…
Beijing
Beijing's premier acrobatic show is a rapid-fire fiesta of youthful acrobats, gymnasts, contortionists and daredevils, who between them pull off some…
Beijing
One of Mao's '10 Great Buildings' erected in 1959 to mark a decade of the People's Republic of China, the Workers' Stadium was built to hold 80,000 people…
Macau
Towering over Cotai like a sci-fi palace out of Star Wars, the ginormous gold-and-white Galaxy is one of the most extravagant megacasinos in the city (and…
Macau
Despite the outdoor Performance Lake, which gives a fountain show every 15 minutes to the tune of 'Money Makes the World Go Round' or Chinese tunes, the…
Forbidden City & Dongcheng Central
The opera mask on the forecourt is the only giveaway, save for the Chinese sign, that this modern block is actually an opera house. Chang'an Grand is more…
Beijing
Local bands, cabaret, salsa dancing and life drawing are just some of the antics unfolding nightly at this arty, Jazz-Age-styled bar and performance space…
Kowloon
Overlooking the most beautiful part of the harbour, the aesthetically challenged and windowless Cultural Centre is a world-class venue containing a 2085…
Forbidden City & Dongcheng Central
In a secluded hutong, Dusk Dawn Club is the place to catch small and mid-sized bands, from post-rock noise outfits to folk strummers, both Chinese and…
Shanghai
Home of the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra, the Oriental Art Center was designed to resemble five petals of a butterfly orchid. There are three main halls…
Lhasa
If you're in the mood for a glitzy Tibetan night out, head to this impressive Tibetan nangma place by 9pm, invest in a tableful of beers and wait for the…
Henan
Coming through Shaolin Temple's main entrance, you’ll pass several wǔshù schools for children. On the right, about 500m in, is the Wushu Training Centre,…
Guangzhou
This 58,000-capacity stadium is the home of Guangzhou Evergrande Taobao FC, the more decorated of the city's two Chinese Super League soccer teams. One of…
