Turkish Folk Dance Show Tickets in a Historic Bathhouse Istanbul

The show: Anatolia's dances in one evening

Turkey's folk dances differ from region to region, and this show brings the best of them onto one stage: the fast line dances of the Black Sea coast with their quivering shoulders, the heavy, proud steps of the east, the spoon dances of the Mediterranean, the wedding dances of central Anatolia and the shimmering solo of the oriental dancer. A company of professional dancers performs them in costumes embroidered by hand, changing dozens of times in 65 minutes, while musicians play live on drums, lutes and flutes.

The choreography links the regional pieces into a loose story inspired by the tales of a thousand and one nights, with video projections on the old walls and domes to set each scene. It is designed for an international audience, so you need no Turkish to follow it; the programme booklet explains each dance. Children are welcome, and the pace, colour and drumming hold their attention from the first number.

A 550-year-old bathhouse turned theatre

The venue is an Ottoman hammam built in the fifteenth century, soon after the conquest of the city, in the lanes of Sirkeci below Sultanahmet. After centuries as a public bath it was restored and reopened as a cultural centre, and the architecture is half the pleasure of the evening: you sit in the former hot room, a circular marble hall under a brick dome pierced with small star-shaped skylights, with the stage on the spot where bathers once lay on the heated stone.

Because the hall is round and compact, the seats rise around the stage on every side and nobody is far from the dancers; seats are allocated in the order bookings are received, so booking early means a better view. Before the show, take ten minutes in the foyer, where an exhibition on the whirling dervishes displays their tall felt hats, white robes and musical instruments, a reminder that the same stage hosts a Sufi ceremony on other evenings.

Sirkeci: getting there and making an evening of it

Sirkeci is the district at the foot of the historic peninsula, famous for its old railway station and its lanes of small restaurants, and it is one of the easiest places in Istanbul to reach: the Sirkeci stop of the T1 tram and the Marmaray station are a few minutes' walk away, and Hagia Sophia and the Blue Mosque are about ten minutes uphill on foot. From Taksim take the funicular and tram via Kabataş; from the Asian side the Marmaray from Üsküdar takes four minutes.

Our Istanbul team suggests an early dinner in one of the halal restaurants of Sirkeci or Sultanahmet before the 20:30 start, then a stroll along the Eminönü waterfront afterwards, when the Galata Bridge and the Süleymaniye are lit. The show runs on scheduled evenings all year and takes place indoors, so it is a good plan for a cold or rainy night.

Your ticket and the practical side

Book the date you want and we confirm your seats; your ticket arrives by email and is shown on your phone at the door. Doors open before the 20:30 start, and arriving about half an hour early gives time for the exhibition, the booklet and a good seat within your allocated section. The performance lasts 65 minutes without an interval, so plan dinner before or after rather than during.

The ticket includes the performance, the programme booklet and a bottle of water; other drinks and snacks are sold at the venue and no transport is included. Photography without flash is usually allowed at the final bows, but ask the staff on the night. The venue is a historic building with steps and no lift, so it is not suitable for wheelchair users. Adults and children from 13 pay the adult rate; ask us about younger children when you book.