Basel Culture

The music hall in the Basel City Casino (Staadtcasino Basel), Steinenberg 14, Barfüsserplatz (tel: (061) 225 9393; www.casinobasel.ch) is the musical heart of the city. This is where the Basel Symphony Orchestra (tel: (061) 366 9166; www.sinfonieorchesterbasel.ch) performs. The hall can seat over 1,500 people, and the acoustics are among the best in the world. There are three more halls available in the casino for chamber music concerts, presentations, exhibitions, conferences and traditional company events.

Theater Basel (tel: (061) 295 1133; www.theater-basel.ch) is Switzerland's biggest theatre company to stage productions in the three genres opera, theatre and ballet. Kaserne Basel (tel: (061) 666 6000; www.kaserne-basel.ch) is an exciting cultural centre for independent theatre, dance and music located in the middle of Kleinbasel north of the Rhine.

Pathé Küchlin, Steinenvorstadt 55 (tel: 0900 004 040; www.kinobasel.ch) is Basel's biggest cinema, a multiplex with eight screens located in the city centre. The kult.kino group (tel: (061) 272 8781; www.kultkino.ch) shows a variety of art films at various venues. Open-air cinema is popular in summer months, with one of the world's largest screens at Münsterplatz during August.