Venice's dinner show
Venice's variety show, served with dinner
Singers, dancers, acrobats and contortionists share one Venice stage in the Italian tradition of avanspettacolo.
The Grand Show Magic plays on Saturdays year-round, with Fridays added in November and December. Check the booking calendar for the dates still open.
- Free cancellationCancel free up to 24 hours before your Avanspettacolo Venezia evening.
- Book now, pay laterReserve your seats now, pay nothing today, and settle your group's night later.
- Named for an Italian variety traditionNot a five-minute warm-up act: a full evening in the spirit of the avanspettacolo variety bill
- Three menus, not one set plateLand, seafood or vegetarian, each a full multi-course dinner with wine included
At a glance
- What it is
- A seated cabaret dinner show — dancers, singers, acrobats and contortionists around a multi-course Italian dinner, in the avanspettacolo variety tradition
- Where
- A theatre restaurant on the Venice mainland (Mestre/Marghera area), reached by road from Piazzale Roma — not on the lagoon
- How long
- About three and a half hours, welcome drink to the final bow
- Getting there
- Taxi or a booked transfer from Piazzale Roma or Tronchetto; a shuttle can be arranged for a fee if you ask ahead
Why book this evening
A stage act built to outlast the movie it opened for
Avanspettacolo — literally "before the show" — was the variety bill Italian theatres staged ahead of the film, from the 1930s into the 1950s. Comedians including Totò, Eduardo De Filippo and Aldo Fabrizi worked these stages before the cinema took the whole evening for itself. Avanspettacolo Venezia revives the format as the main event rather than a five-minute warm-up.
One dinner, three menus
The Gala Dinner runs starter, first course, main course, dessert and coffee, with a half bottle of wine and mineral water included per person. You choose Land (meat), Seafood or Vegetarian when you book.
A full variety bill, not one act
The Grand Show Magic mixes dancers, singers, live musicians, acrobats and contortionists through the evening — circus moments, ballet and ballroom numbers billed as suitable for all ages, not an adults-only cabaret.
On the mainland, not the lagoon
The theatre restaurant sits in the Mestre/Marghera area of the city on the mainland, reached by road from Piazzale Roma — worth knowing before you plan an evening around a lagoon crossing that doesn't happen.
The night, frame by frame
The night on the reel
Avanspettacolo took its name from what it was — the show staged before the film. Here the frames run the length of the dinner instead: six moments from the welcome drink to the final bow.
How the frames run
- 01Doors and the welcome drink
- 02Seated and the starter
- 03The dance numbers
- 04Acrobatics and contortion
- 05The singers
- 06The finale
The venue lists a round-trip transfer from Piazzale Roma as an extra, to request by email; ask it for the current terms. Dress is elegant: jeans, shorts, sportswear, ripped clothing, T-shirts, sneakers and flip-flops aren't admitted.
Dinner and the wine
The Gala Dinner is served, not buffet-style — courses arrive at the table timed to the acts running between them.
Three set menus
Choose Land (meat), Seafood or Vegetarian when you book; each runs starter, first course, main course, dessert and coffee.
Wine and water included
A half bottle of selected wine and mineral water per person come with the dinner — no extra charge at the table for either.
A served, seated dinner
This isn't a buffet: courses are brought to the table through the show, timed to the acts between them.
Flag dietary needs when you book
Menus are fixed once chosen, so note any allergy or dietary requirement at booking rather than at the table.
Check dates and seats
Pick a Saturday (or a November/December Friday), check what seating's left, and confirm the price in your currency — the reservation itself runs through GetYourGuide.
This is the per-person price before you pick a menu — land, seafood or vegetarian all confirm their final cost, in your currency, on the GetYourGuide checkout screen.
More Venice experiences
Other ways to spend an evening in Venice, booked the same way.
See all Venice eveningsAvanspettacolo vs Venice's other dinner evenings
| Evening | What it's built around | Good to know |
|---|---|---|
| Avanspettacolo Venezia (this site) | A seated cabaret dinner — dancers, singers, acrobats and a three-course Italian dinner, in the avanspettacolo variety tradition | From US$138 · mainland Venice, ~10 min from Piazzale Roma — Saturdays (+ Fridays Nov–Dec) |
| The Jolly Roger galleon dinner | An evening lagoon cruise with a multi-course dinner served aboard a tall ship past San Giorgio and the Lido | See venicegalleondinner.com |
| A palazzo opera evening | A chamber-scale opera or concert programme staged inside a Venetian palazzo | See venicepalazzoopera.com |
| A plain hotel or restaurant dinner | A meal with no stage show, no dancers and no live band | Doesn't compete with a variety evening — it's a different kind of night |
Getting there and the dress code
From Piazzale Roma or Tronchetto
The theatre restaurant sits on the Venice mainland, in the Mestre/Marghera area, roughly 10 minutes by road from Piazzale Roma — a taxi or a booked transfer covers it faster than working out a vaporetto-plus-bus route from the islands.
The shuttle, if you want one
The booking doesn't include transfers. The venue lists a round-trip transfer between Piazzale Roma and the mainland as an extra, to request by email, so ask it for the current terms and pickup point.
What to wear
The dress code is elegant. Jeans, shorts, sportswear, ripped clothing, T-shirts, sneakers and flip-flops aren't admitted, so plan for smart evening wear rather than sightseeing clothes.
Which nights it runs
The show plays Saturdays year-round, with Fridays added in November and December; a separate New Year's Eve gala replaces the regular programme on Dec 31. Check the exact date on the GetYourGuide listing before you plan the rest of the evening around it.
Questions before you book
Is Avanspettacolo Venezia on the lagoon, or in central Venice?
Neither — the theatre restaurant is on the Venice mainland, in the Mestre/Marghera area, reached by road from Piazzale Roma. There's no boat crossing involved.
What actually happens during the evening?
A welcome drink in the Foyer from 20:00, then a seated, multi-course Italian dinner in the Theatre Hall from 21:00 while the Grand Show Magic runs — dancers, singers, acrobats and contortionists between courses. The evening runs about three and a half hours.
What are the menu options?
Three set menus: Land (meat), Seafood or Vegetarian. Each is a full multi-course dinner — starter, first course, main, dessert, coffee — with a half bottle of wine and mineral water per person included.
Is there a dress code?
Yes, elegant. Jeans, shorts, sportswear, ripped clothing, T-shirts, sneakers and flip-flops aren't admitted.
Which nights does the show run?
Saturdays year-round, with Fridays added in November and December. A separate New Year's Eve gala replaces the regular show on 31 December — check the exact date on the GetYourGuide listing.
How do I get there from central Venice?
By taxi or a booked transfer, by road from Piazzale Roma. The booking doesn't include transfers; the venue lists a round-trip transfer from Piazzale Roma as an extra, to request by email. Private parking is included if you drive.
Is it suitable for children?
The venue bills the show as suitable for all ages, in a Cabaret/Musical style rather than an adults-only cabaret. If you're bringing children, the elegant dress code still applies to the whole party.
What is "avanspettacolo", exactly?
An Italian theatrical genre from the 1930s–1950s: variety acts staged before the main film at the cinema, mixing music, comedy, ballet and sketch performance. Comedians including Totò and Eduardo De Filippo got their start on avanspettacolo stages; this show revives the format as a full evening rather than a five-minute opener.
Read more about the evening
- Which booking, which night, what's included Avanspettacolo tickets: how to book What the dinner show booking includes, which nights it runs, how it compares with booking direct, and who should skip it, checked against the venue's pages. Read the guide →
- The word, the tradition and the night What is avanspettacolo? The show Where the word avanspettacolo comes from, what an Italian variety bill was, and what to expect, wear and plan for at the Venice show, checked against sources. Read the guide →
- Menus and the wine The dinner and the drinks at Avanspettacolo Venezia Three set menus, a multi-course structure timed to the acts, and what's actually poured — what to expect from the Gala Dinner itself, and what to sort out before the night rather than at the table. Read the guide →
- From Piazzale Roma Getting to Avanspettacolo Venezia and the shuttle option The venue sits on the mainland, not the lagoon — how far that actually is from Piazzale Roma, what a taxi or transfer costs in time rather than money, and what the optional shuttle covers. Read the guide →
- Which Venice evening Avanspettacolo vs the galleon dinner vs the palazzo opera Three very different Venice evenings, each built around a meal or a stage rather than sightseeing — what each one actually is, and who each one suits, so you're not choosing blind between three similar-sounding names. Read the guide →
- Cross-sell Venice evenings beyond Avanspettacolo Two more ways to spend a Venice evening around a performance, plus what's worth doing on foot or by public vaporetto if you'd rather not book anything else at all. Read the guide →
A cabaret dinner show in the century-old Italian avanspettacolo tradition — dancers, singers and acrobats around a three-course dinner, staged one night a week on the Venice mainland.
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