This themed collection paints a colourful picture of the history of the performing arts. Music, theatre, dance and circus are particularly well represented. A smaller part is dedicated to cabaret, opera, operetta, musical, mime and puppetry. The theatre collection is one of the largest in Europe and contains about 250,000 objects.
Collecting areas
Built with the collection of the Toneelmuseum and later the Theater Instituut Nederland, the theatre collection has grown over the past century to become one of the largest in Europe.
The music collection of the Allard Pierson covers several centuries of music: from the Toonkunst Collection to the Dutch Jazz Archive and the collection of the former National Pop Institute.
The international circus collection is one of the largest in Europe. The collection is an important source for research into the social, cultural and artistic significance of the circus over the centuries.
