Art and culture in Amstelveen
Just a short ride from Amsterdam, Amstelveen offers much when it comes to art and culture. From the open-air theatres in the Amsterdam Forest to the Museum Cobra, you can enjoy music, exhibitions and exciting shows just a step away from the hustle and bustle of the city.
Bostheater
Concealed between the trees in the middle of the Amsterdamse Bos, the Bostheater puts on a wide array of film screenings, concerts and open-air performances. Watch the sunset during the performance, with the last scene always played under the starry sky. The agenda also encompasses youth performances and the Boslab Theater Festival - a location theatre festival by a new generation of theatre makers, along with the Cinetree Forest Film Festival in the summer months.
Schouwburg Amstelveen
With two theatre stages and a cinema, Schouwburg Amstelveen is one of the largest regional theatres in the Netherlands. It annually programs more than 250 high-quality performances in the Large and Small Halls. The programming is broad; from cabaret to theatre, music, dance, youth performances and opera.
De Landing
De Landing (a branch of Schouwburg Amstelveen) is a cultural hotspot and breeding ground for students and up-and-coming theatre makers. Check out the programming for all genres of performing arts. Fun fact: the name for the building arose from the idea that after theatre students land at the Uilenstede campus for the first time, it often becomes their first home after leaving their parental home.
Museum Cobra
Museum Cobra is a must-see for modern art lovers, with changing exhibitions featuring the great names of the mid-20th-century CoBrA movement, such as Karel Appel, Constant, Corneille and Jan Sierhuis. There are also major temporary exhibitions of work by individual artists and their contemporaries from related movements, alongside temporary exhibitions of modern and contemporary art.
Museum Jan
Besides the Museum Cobra, Amstelveen has another impressive museum on offer. Right on Amsterdam’s doorstep, find Museum JAN (formerly Jan van der Togt), which specialises in glass art and Dutch design. Over the years, it has assembled a rich collection of modern work by the masters in this field, as well as other sculptures and paintings. The museum also holds a wide variety of changing exhibitions.
P60
To catch everything from gigs by smaller touring bands to ABBA tribute nights, keep an eye on what’s on at P60 in Amstelveen. The concert hall boasts superb acoustics and an intimate vibe, making it an ideal spot to discover new artists and up-and-coming local talent. The venue also hosts various club nights focusing on techno, electro and indie genres.
Post Modern Collection
You won’t find large art objects at Post Modern Collection. All the items you see, designer vases by Sebastiaan Straatsma, gold masks by Roosje van Donselaar and the multi-coloured jewellery boxes by Bernard Heesen & Nienke Sikkema, have one thing in common: their miniature size. Anyone curious to discover these tiny masterpieces can visit by appointment.
