Music: Kyoto Concert Hall, 1-26 Hangi-cho Shimogamo, Sakyo-ku (tel: (075) 711 2244; website: www.kyotoconcerthall.org), home to Kyoto Symphony Orchestra, has a lovely, very modern, exterior design and fantastic acoustics inside. The large hall is home to the city's symphony orchestra, while the smaller hall is more suitable for chamber music. Classical music performances are also given at the Kyoto Kaikan Hall, 13 Saishoji-cho Okazaki, Sakyo-ku (tel: (075) 771 6051; website: www.kyotokaikan.org), a culture and conference centre with several big assembly halls, the largest of which can take more than 2,000 people.

An excellent performing arts venue (for music, dance and theatre) is the 560-seat Kyoto Prefectural Citizen's Hall, 590-1 Tatsumae-cho, Karasuma-dori, Ichijo sagaru, Kamigyo-ku (tel: (075) 441 1414; website: www.alti.org).

Theatre: The Kyoto Theatre, Kyoto Station building, Shiokoji-sagaru, Karasuma-dori, Shimogyo-ku (tel: (075) 353 3551; website: www.shiki.gr.jp) is located in the JR Kyoto Station building and puts on classic and modern western plays and musicals.

Kyoto's most famous theatre and one of the city's cultural landmarks is the Minamiza Kabuki Theatre, Shijo-ohashi-bridge, Higashiyama-ku (tel: (075) 561 1155) in Gion. It is the birthplace of kabuki, one of Japan's most famous traditional performing art forms, which combines high drama, dance and music in an extremely stylised manner. Not only kabuki plays, but also concerts and rakugo (traditional comic storytelling) performances are held here. Kyoto also has its own noh theatre, the Kongo Nohgakudo (Kongo Noh Theater), Karasuma-dori, Ichijo-sagaru, Kimikyo-ku (tel: (075) 441 7222; website: www.kongou-net.com). It was established in 2003 just to the west of Kyoto Imperial Palace.