Shanghai Centre Theatre
Shanghai Centre Theatre
4.5
Tours & experiences
Explore different ways to experience this place.
What is Travelers’ Choice?
Tripadvisor gives a Travelers’ Choice award to accommodations, attractions and restaurants that consistently earn great reviews from travelers and are ranked within the top 10% of properties on Tripadvisor.
Top ways to experience Shanghai Centre Theatre and nearby attractions
Are you currently on your trip?
Help us find experiences available for you.
The area
Address
Neighborhood: Jing'an
The heart of this neighborhood is the Jing'an Temple, while the main artery of excitement and entertainment is West Nanjing Road. Large, flashy malls, luxe residential high-rises and trendy nightlife areas can be found along West Nanjing Road, but areas off the busy street have quiet cafes and independent boutiques.
How to get there
- Jing'an Temple • 9 min walk
Reach out directly
Best nearby
Restaurants
5,784 within 3 miles
Attractions
705 within 6 miles
Contribute
Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
4.5
97 reviews
Excellent
53
Very good
33
Average
9
Poor
2
Terrible
0
DipuKV
Pune, India3,402 contributions
May 2017 • Family
We enjoyed the acrobatic show on display at the Shanghai Centre Theatre. Lovely ambience, with its location at the Portman Ritz Carlton hotel, surrounded by the nice buildings of Nanjing West!
Written June 4, 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
566melanie
Brisbane, Australia18 contributions
Mar 2015 • Couples
If there's one experience I will treasure from my time in Shanghai, it's seeing the acrobats at the Shanghai Centre Theatre. I would disagree with others who believe the performances aren't on par with what you would see at an international show like Cirque du Soleil, the acrobats that we saw in Shanghai were excellent.
Getting to the theatre is easy, we took the metro to West Nanjing Road and followed the directions on the ticket provided by our hotel. It was at most a ten minute walk on flat, evenly paved footpaths. That might not seem important, but in high heels can be a godsend! The theatre is located two floors up, above the main driveway turnaround. Take the escalators up to the main lobby. We exchanged our hotel voucher for tickets at the desk which was painless and quick. There are lots of extremely clean bathroom facilities with western style toilets as well.
Tickets are in three sections, arranged by quality of view: the most expensive were front and centre, the next were in the front wings and the first row of the balcony, with the least expensive towards the back of the main seating area and the balcony. The theatre is pretty small, so there's no real need to book the most expensive tickets. We asked our hotel to book the middle price range and ended up with front row seats on one wing. They were worth every yuan.
It is very easy to become confused between the different acrobatic performances available in Shanghai. This is NOT the one with the motorbikes in a sphere, so if that's what you're after then go elsewhere. Very minimal props are used, but that's something we appreciated. Without spoiling the show, there are a number of acts, all with varying levels of intensity and acrobatic ability. They were all impressive and creative. Our favourites were those acts which surprised us.
In short, we enjoyed the entire show and would highly recommend it to those interested in an acrobatic performance.
Getting to the theatre is easy, we took the metro to West Nanjing Road and followed the directions on the ticket provided by our hotel. It was at most a ten minute walk on flat, evenly paved footpaths. That might not seem important, but in high heels can be a godsend! The theatre is located two floors up, above the main driveway turnaround. Take the escalators up to the main lobby. We exchanged our hotel voucher for tickets at the desk which was painless and quick. There are lots of extremely clean bathroom facilities with western style toilets as well.
Tickets are in three sections, arranged by quality of view: the most expensive were front and centre, the next were in the front wings and the first row of the balcony, with the least expensive towards the back of the main seating area and the balcony. The theatre is pretty small, so there's no real need to book the most expensive tickets. We asked our hotel to book the middle price range and ended up with front row seats on one wing. They were worth every yuan.
It is very easy to become confused between the different acrobatic performances available in Shanghai. This is NOT the one with the motorbikes in a sphere, so if that's what you're after then go elsewhere. Very minimal props are used, but that's something we appreciated. Without spoiling the show, there are a number of acts, all with varying levels of intensity and acrobatic ability. They were all impressive and creative. Our favourites were those acts which surprised us.
In short, we enjoyed the entire show and would highly recommend it to those interested in an acrobatic performance.
Written March 25, 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Sandra and Alan S
Edinburgh, UK8,056 contributions
Jul 2014 • Couples
We would not normally choose to go to an acrobatic show, but this was offered as part of our Tour and are we glad we went.
The show is a series of different performers with different skills, ranging from a troupe of unicyclig acrobats starting the show, through a girl spinning a single large hoop, to a large "traditional circus" performance with see-saws and human pyramids, via solo balancing performances (with champagne glasses stacked on head while standing on ladders), to juggling (while balanced on a rostrum) and a man juggling a large porcelain pot including throwing it into the air and catching it on the back of his neck.
There was an obligatory audience participation sketch, but done in mime and handled very well while setting up the audience member, but not making them look too foolish.
While the show was not faultless, this perhaps enhanced the show as it showed the difficulty of what was being tried.
The show lasted for just under an hour and a half and the time flew by. The Theatre was well laid out allowing good sight lines from well back and the seats were comfortable with plenty of legroom.
The show is a series of different performers with different skills, ranging from a troupe of unicyclig acrobats starting the show, through a girl spinning a single large hoop, to a large "traditional circus" performance with see-saws and human pyramids, via solo balancing performances (with champagne glasses stacked on head while standing on ladders), to juggling (while balanced on a rostrum) and a man juggling a large porcelain pot including throwing it into the air and catching it on the back of his neck.
There was an obligatory audience participation sketch, but done in mime and handled very well while setting up the audience member, but not making them look too foolish.
While the show was not faultless, this perhaps enhanced the show as it showed the difficulty of what was being tried.
The show lasted for just under an hour and a half and the time flew by. The Theatre was well laid out allowing good sight lines from well back and the seats were comfortable with plenty of legroom.
Written September 27, 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Sharad
Jaipur, India291 contributions
Sep 2019
If you miss it you don’t miss much. About one and a half hour show of skill and strength. Nothing great about it. The show is a fine act of acrobatic feats without any risk with comic acts to keep the audience entertained. Even the audience get to take part in the show. As animal acts are banned in china, no animal is in the show. There is nothing which reflects Chinese art or performance.
Written February 5, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
MARULA L
1 contribution
Jul 2015 • Family
After being in China for more than 6 years, I can guarantee it is not worth it.
First, the ticket office people are liars. They have the option of 120 RMB tickets, but when you arrive to buy them, they will tell you that ´are sold out´to force you to buy a more expensive ticket.
You will believe it, but you will realize that the theater is almost empty. It was a lie and you were cheated.
Once inside, the performance is mediocre and poor. A pantomime for foreigners.
First, the ticket office people are liars. They have the option of 120 RMB tickets, but when you arrive to buy them, they will tell you that ´are sold out´to force you to buy a more expensive ticket.
You will believe it, but you will realize that the theater is almost empty. It was a lie and you were cheated.
Once inside, the performance is mediocre and poor. A pantomime for foreigners.
Written July 12, 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Voyage43296
3 contributions
Jan 2019 • Couples
Thoroughly entertaining with at least twenty different acts ranging from Covent Garden style juggling to Circe de soleil acrobatics. The show caters to a western audience with a few gags along the way. Well worth a visit if you have a spare night up your sleeve.
Written January 12, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
dorothy96734
Kailua, HI66 contributions
Oct 2018
Depends on your expectations. If you are expecting something cultural you will be disappointed. The performers are incredible, the stunts amazing. Like watching America's Got Talent in person.
Written November 7, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
TAMAN1951
Liberty Lake, WA8,913 contributions
Nov 2018 • Couples
Most of the acts are pretty good.
A couple were a bit hokey like the magic act.
Some of the stuff quite typical.
Other acts were spectacular.
We especially liked the guy that could stand from a split without rolling or using any hand support. WOW !
Not a bad show all in all but admittedly not a must see.
A couple were a bit hokey like the magic act.
Some of the stuff quite typical.
Other acts were spectacular.
We especially liked the guy that could stand from a split without rolling or using any hand support. WOW !
Not a bad show all in all but admittedly not a must see.
Written November 3, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Jennifer V
Sydney, Australia169 contributions
Apr 2018 • Couples
Totally loved this show. One of the best ever seen. There was also some magic performances in between the acrobats. Show lasts for 1 1/2 hours with no intermission. No food or drink allowed in theatre. Prebook your tickets to get good seats.
Written May 8, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
John L
Bluffton, SC566 contributions
Mar 2017 • Couples
We attended the Shanghai Acrobatics show, but it was as much a variety show as an acrobats show.
The show certainly included acrobatics, but offered comedy relief between acrobats, and also juggling.
The feats of the acrobats are legendary, and some are hard to believe as they involve amazing degrees of strength and dexterity.
The comics combine some talent with slapstick. Think of it as a vaudeville performance.
The juggler is talented, but he is............ a juggler.
On balance, okay but no Cirque du Soleil.
The show certainly included acrobatics, but offered comedy relief between acrobats, and also juggling.
The feats of the acrobats are legendary, and some are hard to believe as they involve amazing degrees of strength and dexterity.
The comics combine some talent with slapstick. Think of it as a vaudeville performance.
The juggler is talented, but he is............ a juggler.
On balance, okay but no Cirque du Soleil.
Written March 14, 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Is the "Shanghai Portman Acrobatic Show" still running this theatre? I asked the staff and they said it not run for many years but could be translation issue. Current performances can be seen here:
- WeChat: shcentretheatre
Written April 1, 2024
How much are the tickets? It's not stated on their website.
Written November 7, 2018
Hello, how can we purchase the tickets for the Acrobatics show? Can't find anything online, thanks
Written June 27, 2018
I got Flight Centre travel agent to do it for me.
I just googled the theatre and you can order via email from that site.
Written June 27, 2018
Hello, how can we purchase the tickets for the Acrobatics show? Can't find anything online, thanks
Written June 27, 2018
Quanto dura più o meno lo spettacolo?grazie
How long is the show? Thanks
Written August 16, 2016
Showing results 1-5 of 5
*Likely to sell out: Based on Viator’s booking data and information from the provider from the past 30 days, it seems likely this experience will sell out through Viator, a Tripadvisor company.
Is this your Tripadvisor listing?
Own or manage this property? Claim your listing for free to respond to reviews, update your profile and much more.
Claim your listing