Royal Theater Carré — Attraction in Amsterdam

Koninklijk Theater Carré: A Grand Experience, Polished to Perfection

Koninklijk Theater Carré truly lives up to its "Royal" designation, offering an experience that blends historic grandeur with modern comfort, all thanks to its impressive facilities and exceptionally well-trained staff. My recent visit solidified its place as one of Amsterdam's premier entertainment venues.

The facilities at Carré are, for the most part, outstanding. The iconic building itself is a sight to behold, exuding a timeless elegance that transports you the moment you step inside. The main auditorium is a marvel of design; even from the higher tiers, sightlines are generally excellent, and the acoustics are remarkably clear.  Seating is comfortable. The public areas, including the foyers and bars, are spacious and beautifully maintained, offering ample room for pre-show drinks and intermissions without feeling overly crowded. Toilets  are clean. Accessibility is good.

Where Carré truly shines, however, is with its staff. From the moment of arrival, every interaction was marked by genuine warmth and efficiency. The ushers are professional, courteous, and highly knowledgeable, guiding patrons to their seats with a friendly smile. Bar and concession staff are swift and efficient, managing queues with remarkable speed and maintaining a polite demeanor even during peak times. The ticket office personnel are equally helpful, providing clear information and assisting with any queries. There's a palpable sense of pride among the employees.

In conclusion, Koninklijk Theater Carré offers a near-perfect blend of historical charm, excellent performance spaces, and a staff that is both professional and genuinely welcoming. It's a testament to Dutch hospitality and a must-visit for anyone seeking a memorable cultural outing...

Whoah! Novastar? In Carré? That's what we've been waiting for. After his recent performance in Paradiso was destroyed by a disco-deaf sound technician, this must be IT. This will be the summit of enjoyment, seeing and hearing musical genius Zweegers, the man who accompanies his deeply moving musical compositions with his most delicate voice, in Carré, acoustic walhalla of the theater world.

Not!!

Voorfokzeek. Carré? Where you can hear a pin drop on stage, a finger touch the strings of an instrument, a soft breath between two vocal chords. No, no .. nothing of that. The perfect acoustics of Carré's classic theater hall are invaded by an alien noise coming from a soundsystem that, at 85-90 decibel in closed confines, grinds every musical detail into a indiscernable bland mishmash of reverberating echoes that ring inside your skull. Writing this 12 hrs later my ears are still beeping.

Joost's voice was nowhere near what I had expected .. hoped for. If it weren't sad, it would have been funny to witness how he tried to overpower the volume of his band and the sound setup by shouting into the microphone, which then, at a pitch of 90 decibels, makes healthy eardrums cringe. Did anyone say AC/DC? Joost seemed oblivious. But, as he had said on stage when someone shouted a comment, he wore earpods.

On the way there my wife said "we have never been in Carré", to which I joked "there's always a last time for everything". And indeed, this is the last time I'll spend hard-earned cash to see Novastar live and the last time I go see a musical band in Carré.

Is it me? Probably. The rest of the crowd, all also disco-deaf apparantly, gave a...

For no reason at all, a group of people (which payed very expensive tickets) was blocked at the entrance for the evening part of the program 'No Intermission' , on 29 oktober 2022. The programma was announced to be from 12 h till midnight. But people that whether had gone out to eat, to smoke, or to catch some air, were stopped when trying to go back in to see the rest of the program. And people who just arrived...waving their expensive tickets....hellas....also stayed out. Portiers said the 'laws of the evening had JUST be changed' and nobody could get (back) in, as was the case on the Friday 28 October. Where were this changes informed??? Nowhere. According to portiers ' they' ( direction? Marina? producer? God?) just invented this new 'law' at around 21:00 h. ABSURD LACK OF RESPECT iN RELATION TO THE PUBLIC, and thus FAKE INFORMATION ON THE SITE of Carré. The theater should be sued for this, and sure give the money back to the people who could no get in. This kind of high commercialisation combined with a total lock of respect towards the public is the death of performance art. Where are the 'beautiful' social statements proclaimed by Marina A. on Friday evening?? 'let's love our next, be embracing, nice to each other, etc" What a blunder. What lie, what fake, what sad. Wat een belachelijk, arm, low prestatie...