Theatre, Plays & Musicals in Chennai

Chennai has two theatre traditions that rarely share a stage. Tamil sabha theatre, built on comedy and family drama, plays to loyal weekend audiences at Vani Mahal and Sri Krishna Gana Sabha in T. Nagar and Narada Gana Sabha in Alwarpet, with troupes that have been performing for decades. English-language theatre goes back to The Madras Players, founded in 1955, and is staged at the Museum Theatre in Egmore, an 1896 hall with curved tiered seating, at the Sir Mutha Venkatasubba Rao Concert Hall and at the Alliance Française. Experimental Tamil work comes from groups such as Koothu-P-Pattarai, founded in 1977, and newer companies use black-box rooms like Medai in Alwarpet. This page lists plays, musicals, improv and children's theatre across Chennai, with language and venue for each.