Wellington Entertainment

Wellington has long been considered the cultural centre of New Zealand, as it is the home of most major musical, dance and performing arts schools, museums and theatres. Visitors will find cuisines from many different countries and fresh seafood readily available. After dinner or a show, the bustling nightlife beckons, offering plenty of bars and nightclubs.

Nightlife

New Zealand’s capital city has nightlife second to none. Wellington is compact and it offers an exciting and safe after-dark experience, with most venues within walking distance of each other

Bohemian Cuba Street is a good place for drinking, with cool and funky bars, while Courtenay Place is the venue for late night bars and clubs. Here you can find a large variety of clubs and bars as well as restaurants and games rooms. There are also several Irish pubs, bars with live music, electronic dance clubs and some pretty posh clubs. With numerous bus routes running along this street, it’s easy to get to and from the different venues.

The main nights to go out are Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays, with Wednesdays and Sundays being a lot quieter. Most people don’t go out until late, so it usually gets busy from 23:30 to midnight. Most places stay open until at least 03:00 or 05:00 on busy nights. The free listings papers, Capital Times and City Voice, are a good place to turn for up-to-date information on nightlife in Wellington.

Theatre and music

Wellington is home to many outstanding theatres and entertainment venues, which are located in and around the city centre. They regularly host popular musical performances, theatrical and comedy events, family shows, rock and classical concerts, ballets and operas. The Circa Theatre staged its first production in April 1976, and in the succeeding years, it gained a reputation as one of New Zealand's liveliest and most innovative theatres. Downstage is New Zealand's longest-running professional theatre. It’s a small, intimate theatre that seats about 250 people. The BATS Theatre is a small venue located at the Royal Antediluvian Order of Buffaloes building at Kent terrace.

The local music scene, on the success of bands like The Phoenix Foundation, Shihad, Fat Freddy's Drop and The Black Seeds, has developed into a diverse and thriving pool of talent. The Bar Bodega is Wellington’s best mid-sized live music venue. Almost all of New Zealand’s top bands and many foreign stars have played at ‘The Bodge’ at some stage. There’s live music nearly every night of the week and this is one of the best places to find some local acts. Bodega’s enthusiastic support of micro-breweries including local Tuatara makes it equally popular with beer drinkers.

A relative newcomer, Sandwiches has quickly become popular for its commitment to the dance music scene and its excellent sound system, which is one of the best in town. Look forward to seeing the cream of local and national bands and DJs, with some big-name international performers joining in on occasion.

Festivals

There are a number of annual festivals that are unique to the city, with highlights including:

• Cuba Street Carnival takes place every second year over the last weekend in February and is the largest, most spectacular free street festival in the country. Considered one of the major events in the city's calendar, it is a global mix of music and dance, showcasing the city's energetic cultural diversity.
• Hosted by the Wellington Racing Club, the Wellington Cup Carnival held at Trentham racecourse, just outside Wellington, is the main event in the Wellington racing calendar and is a social highlight for those who like high fashion and sporting action.
• The Fringe Festival has become a renowned launch pad for new and innovative arts in New Zealand and it provides a stage for a mix of new talent across a range of different arts and mediums. Around 100,000 festival-goers enjoy the varied fare on offer throughout this three-week arts extravaganza.
• The International Film Festival in July grows bigger and better every year. View alternative or art-house productions that are not traditionally screened in commercial cinemas. Most films only have one or two screenings, so book early to avoid disappointment.
• The 10-day Wellington International Jazz Festival in November brings outstanding international acts to the capital and draws from a vibrant pool of local musical talent.