2 Best Performing Arts Venues in Around the Duomo, Florence

This magnificent Art Deco theater, opened in 1922, has been transformed into a versatile cultural space with a bookstore, movie theater, and restaurant–bar. More than 25,000 books (there's an English-language section) fill the marble entrance and expansive ground floor. The upper galleries, with plush velvet theater chairs, are good places to take a break from sightseeing during the day and to watch international films in their original languages at night. A hidden restaurant and bar to the right of the entrance stays open after midnight (when the movies finish) and is a cozy setting for brunch, lunch, dinner, and drinks; its attached Piazza degli Strozzi patio is a popular aperitivo spot.

The British Institute of Florence runs English-language events; the programmer has a penchant for classic movies and the institute sometimes screens films. Also on offer here are weekly lectures, concerts, and a stunning library.