Erkel Theatre, Opera house and theatre in Budapest District VIII, Hungary

The Erkel Theatre is an opera house and theatre building in Budapest District VIII featuring a main auditorium that seats around 1800 spectators. The venue is the largest permanent theatre in Hungary and serves as a centre for significant artistic performances.

The theatre opened on 7 December 1911 as the Népopera, built in nine months to a design by Dezső Jakab, Marcell Komor and Géza Márkus. After the First World War it was taken over by the city, and in 1917 Gábor Faludi modernized it, cut seating to 2400 and renamed it Városi Színház. In 1951 it became the secondary stage of the Hungarian State Opera House, and in 1953 it was renamed after the composer Ferenc Erkel.

Since the 2025/2026 season the Erkel Theatre has operated as an independent musical theatre under director Vajk Szente, with the aim of becoming the country's leading home for musicals. Its opening production was "Hello, Erkel!", followed by A trón and Elisabeth. The house plays in repertory, and Erkel360 arena shows seat the audience on the stage itself.

The Erkel Theatre stands on II. János Pál pápa tér in District VIII, on the Pest side of Budapest. It works on a repertory system, so different productions alternate within the same week; check the programme before choosing a date. The 1819-seat auditorium is the largest permanent stone theatre in Hungary, so seats are usually available even for popular musicals.

The 1911 opening night began with Ferenc Erkel's Hunyadi László overture, conducted by the first director, Márkus Dezső, brother of the architect Géza Márkus. The theatre was renamed after Erkel in 1953. Its first season closed with almost the whole Wagner output, including the Ring cycle with singers from Dessau.