Shanghai International Arts Festival 2026: an expat guide to dates, venues and tickets

The 25th China Shanghai International Arts Festival opened on Saturday 17 October at the new Shanghai Grand Opera House and runs until Sunday 15 November 2026. This year’s edition has nearly 400 programmes and close to 1,100 performances, exhibitions and events, according to the Ministry of Culture and Tourism.

If you live in Shanghai, here is what is still to come and how to get tickets as a foreigner.

When and where is the festival?

Most shows are in Pudong and central Shanghai. Three venues host many of the big names, according to the official festival website:

• Shanghai Grand Opera House: No. 1 Yongzhan Road, Pudong New Area, in the Shanghai Expo Culture Park
• Shanghai Oriental Art Center: No. 425 Dingxiang Road, Pudong New Area
• Shanghai Culture Square: No. 597 Fuxing Zhong Road, Huangpu District.

More than 180 further performances take place at branch venues in Jiangsu, Anhui and other provinces, according to the Shanghai government’s festival overview.

Which big shows are still to come?

Dates, venues and prices as listed on the festival website on Tuesday 20 October:

• Bolshoi Ballet, Don Quixote: 21 to 23 October, 7.30pm, Shanghai Culture Square, ¥80 to ¥1,280 (listing)
• Teatro La Fenice, Tosca: 22 and 24 October, Shanghai Grand Opera House, ¥80 to ¥1,280 (opening season guide)
• Shostakovich symphony cycle, Valery Gergiev and the Mariinsky Orchestra: all 15 symphonies from 23 to 28 October, Shanghai Grand Opera House, ¥180 to ¥1,280 (listing)
• Mariinsky Theatre, Verdi’s Aida: 30 and 31 October at 7pm, 1 November at 2pm, Shanghai Grand Opera House, ¥80 to ¥1,280 (listing)
• Beethoven piano concertos, Rudolf Buchbinder and the Staatskapelle Berlin: 7 and 9 November, Shanghai Grand Opera House, ¥280 to ¥1,280 (listing)
• Yuja Wang and the Mahler Chamber Orchestra: 13 and 14 November, Shanghai Grand Opera House, prices not yet published (listing)
• Closing show, American Ballet Theatre’s Swan Lake: 12 to 15 November, including a 2pm matinee on Saturday 14 November, Shanghai Grand Opera House, ¥180 to ¥1,280 (listing).

Christian Thielemann also conducts the Staatsoper Unter den Linden’s Der Rosenkavalier on 8, 10 and 12 November. Programmes and casts can change, so check the listing before you book.

Are there free events?

Yes. The Art Space programme opened on 11 October with more than 100 performances by artists from nearly 30 countries and regions in public spaces, according to the Shanghai government’s Art Space update. Shows in shopping districts need no reservation. Look out for:

• Lujiazui Central Green: a programme with the Lujiazui Coffee Festival until 25 October, including the Czech boys’ choir Boni Pueri, jazz duos, magic and theatre
• BFC Bund Finance Center: a Cretan lyra concert and giant puppets from Canada
• Ruihong Xintiandi Hall of the Sun and Tian An 1000 Trees: ballroom dance, magic shows and Brazilian samba.

On a tighter budget? A second round of discount tickets, at an average of half price, is due in late October, according to the Shanghai government’s programme announcement.

How can foreigners buy tickets?

Tickets are sold through venue channels and the big Chinese ticketing apps, including Damai, Maoyan, Meituan, Dianping and Piaoxingqiu. The Shanghai government’s guide to buying show tickets online also lists English-language options, SmartShanghai and 247 Tickets.

• Real-name tickets: Damai’s booking terms say tickets are not tied to a name unless the listing is marked real-name (实名制). If it is, book under the passport you will carry on the night
• Paying: our guide to paying in China with Alipay, Weixin Pay and foreign cards explains the set-up
• Language: the festival website has an English version, but it does not say which shows have English surtitles, so ask the venue
• Help: the festival centre is at No. 101 South Chengdu Road, Huangpu District. Email info@artsbird.com or call +86 21 5265 4008.

Just arrived? Make sure your address registration is sorted first, and find more ideas on Babylon Events.

Official sources

• Ministry of Culture and Tourism: 25th China Shanghai International Arts Festival opens (17 October 2026, in Chinese)
• China Shanghai International Arts Festival: official website
• Shanghai government: nearly 1,100 events packed into Shanghai arts festival
• Shanghai government: international performances come to public spaces (15 October 2026)
• Shanghai government: festival programme announcement (30 September 2026)
• Shanghai government: Shanghai Grand Opera House opening season
• Shanghai government: how to buy show tickets online
• Damai: ticket booking terms (in Chinese)

Sources last checked: Tuesday 20 October 2026.

Featured image: the concert hall of the Shanghai Oriental Art Center, one of the festival venues, on Saturday 3 October 2015 (archive photo, not the 2026 festival). Photo by N509FZ, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons, cropped.