Five days remain before the opening of the 7th Nicosia International Festival, with the public able to get an early taste of the event from Thursday, 10 September. The festival opens officially on Saturday, 12 September, with two productions at the Nicosia Municipal Theatre.
Preview events from Thursday
Theroina will bring part of its wine cellar to the Municipal Theatre square, which has been transformed into an open-air bar and meeting point for artists and audiences for the duration of the festival. The bar opens on Thursday, 10 September at 7pm and will operate every evening before and after performances.
Alongside this, the Municipal Garden extends up to the theatre's balcony through "Jungle on the Balcony", a plant installation curated by set designer Giorgos Giannou. The dense garden of real plants, combined with the open-air bar, refreshes the appearance of the historic building and offers audiences a new way of experiencing the Municipal Theatre. The balcony garden was created in collaboration with the Solomou Garden Centre and S.K Optimus plant nurseries.
Official opening on Saturday
The Nicosia International Festival officially opens on Saturday, 12 September, with two productions.
At 6.30pm, in the outdoor area of the Municipal Theatre, the festival will unveil a telephone booth housing "(+357)", a visual art installation and sound performance by Marios Kakoullis. Organisers describe it as an individual, emotionally charged experience that connects the present with the past through the stories of people from Cyprus. The booth will remain on site for the duration of the festival, allowing audiences to listen to the stories it holds.
At 8pm, the Nicosia Municipal Theatre opens its doors for the multi-award-winning production "Goodbye, Lindita" by Mario Banushi, which has been successfully staged internationally. Described by organisers as a wordless performance that "speaks deeply to the hearts of audiences," the production has seen strong ticket demand: Zone A tickets are almost sold out for both performance dates, with a few seats remaining in Zone B and more available in the remaining zones.
Background
Now in its seventh edition, the Nicosia International Festival was established in 2019 and has grown into a platform bringing together contemporary artistic work from Europe, the Eastern Mediterranean and Cyprus. It is organised by Nicosia for Art Ltd and based at the Nicosia Municipal Theatre, under the artistic direction of Paris Erotokritou. This year's programme runs until 1 November, spanning theatre, dance, music, performance art and film screenings.
Tickets and information
The full festival programme is available on the official festival website. Tickets can be purchased in advance through more.com or at the box office of the Nicosia Municipal Theatre, open Monday to Friday, 10am to 1pm.
Nicosia International Festival
6 Mouseiou Street, 1097, Nicosia
Tel: +357 22797979 (Monday–Friday, 9.30am–2pm)
