Brussels City Guide - Culture

Brussels' cultural life (or lives, rather, as the scene is linguistically split between French and Flemish) is booming, despite a lack of funding partly caused by the language divide. Obviously, some art forms cross all language boundaries. French-Belgian cinema came to prominence in 1994, with Jan Bucquoy's hilarious La Vie Sexuelle des Belges, while the more serious Flemish film, Daens (1992), directed by Stijn Coninx, was nominated Best Foreign Film at the 1992 Oscars. In 2005, The Child, a film by Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne, took the coveted Palme d'Or at Cannes.

Contemporary dance came into its own in the 1980s, thanks to Flemish choreographer Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker (Rosas Company) and Wim Vandekeybus (Ultima Vez Company). Theatre is celebrated annually during the Kunstenfestivaldesarts (tel: (070) 22 2199; website: www.kfda.be) in May. Opera is performed at the prestigious Théâtre Royal de la Monnaie, Place de la Monnaie (tel: (070) 233 939; website: www.lamonnaie.be), where the rousing performance of an Auber opera provoked the audience into starting the Belgian revolution in 1830. Notable touring companies to perform here include the RSC and Comédie Française.

The principal cross-cultural venue is the Victor Horta-designed Palais des Beaux Arts, Rue Ravenstein 23 (tel: (02) 507 8200; website: www.bozar.be), which hosts major temporary art exhibitions, French theatrical productions, classical and contemporary dance, classical music and the finals for the internationally renowned Queen Elizabeth music competition. The Cirque Royal, Rue de l'Enseignement 81 (tel: (02) 218 2015; website: www.cirque-royal.org), allows for varied performances in the round, including classical music, dance, musicals and opera.

The Halles de Schaerbeek, Rue Royale Sainte-Marie 22B (tel: (02) 218 2107; website: www.halles.be), hosts large-scale operatic, theatrical and dance performances and pop acts. Flemish-language theatre and contemporary dance is well represented at the neo-baroque Koninklijke Vlaamse Schouwberg or Royal Flemish Theatre, Rue de Laeken 146 (tel: (02) 210 1112; website: www.kvs.be).

The 'What's On' sections of English-language Bulletin, the Wednesday pull-out section of Le Soir and the 'Agenda' section of the Brussel Deze Week free newspaper (website: www.brusseldezeweek.be), available every Thursday, all provide cultural listings.

Information and tickets are available at the Brussels Tourist Office, Hôtel de Ville, Grand-Place (tel: (02) 513 8940) and the Fnac store at the City 2 shopping complex, Rue Neuve (tel: (02) 275 1111). The Fnac booking line (tel: 0900 00600) is for concert, theatre and exhibition theatre tickets. Ticket prices are usually priced around €13-70 for dance and theatre performances, anything from €15-90 for opera and approximately €6-8 for cinema.

Music: The national opera house, at the Théâtre Royal de la Monnaie, Place du Monnaie (see above), continues to excel. With only 1,200 seats, it is best for visitors to book in advance. For Flemish opera, take a trip to Vlaamse Opera, Van Ertbornstraat 8, Antwerp (tel: (070) 220 202; website: www.vlaamseopera.be), or in Ghent at Schouwburg Straat 3 (tel: (09) 268 1011). The Palais des Beaux Arts (see above) is home to the National Orchestra (tel: (02) 507 8200; website: www.nob-onb.be) and Philharmonic Society, which organises most of the major concerts in Brussels. The season, annually consisting of over 350 concerts, runs from September to June.

In addition to these major venues, there is the intimate Conservatoire Royal de Musique, Rue de la Régence 30 (tel: (02) 511 0427; website: www.conservatoire.be), which is tailor-made for chamber recitals. The auditorium at Musée d'Art Ancien, Rue de la Régence 3 (tel: (02) 508 3211; website: www.fine-arts-museum.be), hosts lunchtime concerts on Wednesday, from September to June.

Theatre: There are over 30 theatres in Brussels. The leading French-language is Théâtre National, Boulevard Emile Jacqmain (tel: (02) 203 5303; website: www.theatrenational.be). The main Flemish theatre, Kaaitheater has two locations - Kaaitheater, Place Sainctelette 20 and Kaaitheater Studios, Rue Notre-Dame du Sommeil 81 (tel: (02) 201 5959; website: www.kaaitheater.be).

Innovative productions are performed in French at the Théâtre le Public, Rue Braemt 64-70 (tel: 0800 94444; website: www.theatrelepublic.be), while literary discussions and readings take place at the Théâtre-Poème, Rue d'Ecosse 30 (tel: (02) 538 6358; website: www.theatrepoeme.be). The American Theatre Company (website: www.atc-brussels.com) is an English-language theatre group based in Brussels, staging performances at The Studio Theatre, Rue Waelhem 73, Schaerbeek.

One venue not to be missed is the Théâtre de Toone, Petite Rue de Bouchers 21 (tel: (02) 511 7137; website: www.toone.be), where classics such as Faust and King Lear are performed by marionettes manipulated by seven puppeteers. Performances are in French (peppered with local dialect), Flemish and occasionally English. It is housed in a 17th-century pub and offers a good range of local beers for refreshment.

Dance: De Keersmaecker's Rosas Company is closely linked to the Théâtre Royal de la Monnaie, Place de la Monnaie (tel: (070) 233 939; website: www.lamonnaie.be), while the works of radical choreographers (also contemporary music and avant-garde theatre) are often staged at the Kaaitheater, Place Sainctelette 20 (tel: (02) 201 5959; website: www.kaaitheater.be), and Koninklijke Vlaamse Schouwburg (Royal Flemish Theatre), Rue de Laeken 146 (tel: (02) 210 1100; website: www.kvs.be).

Alternative music, dance and theatre is performed at the trendy Beursschouwburg, Rue Auguste Orts 20-28 (tel: (02) 550 0350; website: www.beursschouwburg.be). Although contemporary dance is extremely strong in Brussels, there is no dedicated dance venue. An interest in classical dance is best pursued at the Royal Ballet of Flanders (tel: (03) 203 9585; website: www.koninklijkballetvanvlaanderen.be) in Antwerp.

Film: About 50% of films are shown in English ('VO' - version originale), with French and Flemish subtitles. Programmes change each Wednesday. Hollywood blockbusters are shown at the 12-screen, ultra-modern UGC De Brouckère, Place de Brouckère 38 (tel: 0900 10440). State-of-the-art Kinepolis, Boulevard du Centenaire 20, Bruparck (tel: 0900 00555), boasts 25 screens and an IMAX auditotium. The centrally located Actors Studio, Rue des Bouchers 16 (tel: (02) 512 1696) specialises in arthouse cinema.

Literary Notes: Brussels sheltered Karl Marx in exile and it was here that he wrote the Communist Manifesto in February 1848. Victor Hugo was temporarily protected at Place des Barricades 4, before being exiled once again for protesting against the government's ban on refugees. Perhaps the best literary ambassador of Brussels is the boy reporter, Tintin, created by Hergé (Georges Remy, 1907-1983).

Brussels-born Jacques Brel, the celebrated singer-songwriter of Ne Me Quitte Pas/Don't Leave Me (1959), has been adopted by the French as their own, as have detective writer Georges Simenon, Marguerite Yourcenar and other Belgian luminaries. But Belgium developed its own national literary identity during the symbolist movement and writers like Emile Verhaeren, Charles Van Lerberghe and Nobel Prize-winner Maurice Maeterlinck created a misty, dreamy ambience for art nouveau Brussels.

This taste for the fantastic and otherworldly, hidden in the hearts of staid Brussels burghers, was continued by Henri Michaux and the surreal visions of Magritte and Delvaux. This vision was shared by the comic artists too. Belgians have commandeered the Francophone comic book industry (Hergé is just the tip of the iceberg), proof that Belgians do whimsy and goofy charm far better than the French. For a British take on Brussels, readers should try the modern bestseller, Travels as a Brussels Scout (1997), by London-born author Nick Middleton.