theater vs venue

theater

noun
  • A place or building, consisting of a stage and seating, in which an audience gathers to watch plays, musical performances, public ceremonies, and so on. 

  • A conspicuous but unproductive display of action. 

  • Any place rising by steps like the seats of a theater. 

  • An operating theatre or locale for human experimentation. 

  • A cinema. 

  • Drama or performance as a profession or art form. 

  • A region where a particular action takes place; a specific field of action, usually with reference to war. 

  • A lecture theatre. 

venue

noun
  • A theater, auditorium, arena, or other area designated for sporting or entertainment events. 

  • A stadium or similar building in which a sporting competition is held. 

  • A neighborhood or near place; the place or county in which anything is alleged to have happened; also, the place where an action is laid, or the district from which a jury comes. 

  • The place where something happens. 

How often have the words theater and venue occurred in a corpus of books? (source: Google Ngram Viewer )