The Adelaide Advertiser lists all performances and exhibitions in its entertainment pages. Tickets for theater and other entertainment events in Adelaide can be purchased from BASS ticket outlets (tel. 13 12 46 in South Australia, or 08/8400 2205) at the following locations: Festival Theatre, Adelaide Festival Centre, King William Road; Adelaide Symphony Orchestra, 91 Hindley St.; City Cross Lotteries, City Cross Arcade, Rundle Mall; Chemist Warehouse, Level 1, Adelaide Central Plaza (David Jones), 100 Rundle Mall; SA Travel & Visitor Centre, Ground Floor, 18 King William St.

The Performing Arts

The major concert hall is the Adelaide Festival Centre, King William Road (tel. 08/8216 8600 for general inquiries, or 08/8400 2205 for box office). The Festival Centre encompasses four auditoriums: the 1,978-seat Festival Theatre, the 612-seat Playhouse, the 1,000-seat Her Majesty's Theatre, and the 350-seat Space Centre. This is the place in Adelaide to see opera, ballet, drama, orchestral concerts, the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra, plays, and experimental drama.

The complex also includes an outdoor amphitheater used for jazz, rock 'n' roll, and country-music concerts; an art gallery; a bistro; a piano bar; and the Silver Jubilee Organ, the world's largest transportable concert-hall organ (built in Austria to commemorate Queen Elizabeth II's Silver Jubilee).

The Adelaide Repertory Festival presents 13 productions a year, ranging from drama to comedy, at the Arts Theatre, 53 Angus St. (tel. 08/8221 5644). For more information visit www.theatreguide.com.au.

The Bar & Club Scene

The popular Universal Wine Bar, 285 Rundle St. (tel. 08/8232 5000), is the perfect place to start an evening, with great atmosphere and good wines by the glass.

Most pubs are open from 11am to midnight. For all-age pubs, locals will point you toward the Austral, 205 Rundle St. (tel. 08/8223 4660), which has good stand-up comedy; the Exeter, 246 Rundle St. (tel. 08/8223 2623); the Lion, at the corner of Melbourne and Jerningham streets (tel. 08/8367 0222), with live entertainment every night; and the atmospheric British Hotel, 58 Finniss St. (tel. 08/8267 2188), in North Adelaide, where you can cook your own steak on the courtyard barbecue. Coopers Alehouse at the Earl, 316 Pulteney St., at Carrington Street (tel. 08/8223 6433), is a popular pub for after-work drinks and the official home of South Australia's Coopers beer. The Port Dock, 10 Todd St., Port Adelaide (tel. 08/8240 0187), was licensed as a pub in 1864 and brews its own beers.

You'll find most of the dance clubs on Hindley Street, and there are also a few on Gouger Street, but the biggest club -- with 10 bars across three floors -- is HQ, at 1 North Terrace (tel. 08/7221 1245; open Wed-Sat 9pm until late). For adult entertainment (clubs with the word strip in the name) also head to Hindley Street. Adelaide's most famous gay & lesbian night spot is the Mars Bar, 120 Gouger St. (tel. 08/8231 9639). For information on gay and lesbian options, pick up a copy of Blaze, South Australia's only newspaper specifically for the gay and lesbian community (blaze.gaynewsnetwork.com.au).

Trying Your Luck at the Casino

Right next to the Adelaide Hyatt, and dwarfed by the old railway station containing it, is the Adelaide Casino on North Terrace (tel. 08/8212 2811). The casino is open Sunday through Thursday from 10am to 4am and Friday and Saturday from 10am to 6am and has several dining options.

Note: This information was accurate when it was published, but can change without notice. Please be sure to confirm all rates and details directly with the companies in question before planning your trip.