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Antwerp · Venue

Queen Elisabeth Hall

A 1,850–2,000-seat Antwerp concert hall shaped around symphonic sound, flexible staging and a long connection to the city zoo.

Upcoming shows
61
Address
20 Koningin Astridplein, 2018 Antwerpen
Next show
Fri, 20 Nov 2026
Official siteDirections
Queen Elisabeth Hall in Antwerp

About Queen Elisabeth Hall

Queen Elisabeth Hall is Antwerp’s 1,850–2,000-seat concert room, built within the Elisabeth Center beside Antwerp Zoo. Its defining feature is a gold-toned symphonic auditorium that also works as a flexible congress room, while serving as the home base for the Antwerp Symphony Orchestra. That pairing gives an evening here the scale of a major seated hall and the programme range of a city-centre presenter.

From zoo concerts to a new golden hall

The story begins in 1895, when the Royal Zoological Society of Antwerp began organising zoo concerts. Emiel Thielens built the site’s first concert hall, the Grote Feestzaal, in 1897; wartime damage and a 1947 fire ended that chapter. Architect Rie Haan then built a second hall in 1959 using elements from Expo ’58, and Queen Elisabeth opened the modern concert hall in 1960.

A full rebuild was chosen in 2011, with SimpsonHaugh, Kirkegaard Associates and Bureau Bouwtechniek shaping the present venue. Queen Mathilde reopened it on 25 November 2016. Its launch series comprised four sold-out Antwerp Symphony concerts; at the opening night, cellist Truls Mørk played Dvořák before the orchestra closed with Richard Strauss’s Ein Heldenleben under Edo de Waart.

What the room offers now

Classical orchestral music forms the centre of gravity, led by the resident Antwerp Symphony Orchestra, while the calendar also hosts rock and pop presentations, film concerts, musicals and gala events. Programming is shared among organisers, with ticket channels varying by promoter. The auditorium is taller, longer and narrower than its predecessor, with wavy wooden walls, movable acoustic canopies and a proscenium-free stage. The Atrium bar opens an hour before performances; concert-hall doors open 30 minutes before start time.

Sources

  1. The history of the Queen Elisabeth Hall — Queen Elisabeth Hall
  2. Foyer flambant neuf pour deFilharmonie — Crescendo Magazine
  3. Elisabeth Klassiek — Antwerp Symphony Orchestra
  4. About the Queen Elisabeth Hall — Queen Elisabeth Hall
  5. Practical information — Queen Elisabeth Hall
  6. Queen Elisabeth Hall programme — Queen Elisabeth Hall

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