Returning for its fifth edition, the Nicosia International Festival will present a rich autumn and winter agenda of theatre, music and contemporary dance performances, as well as a rich parallel programme focusing on local talent, Nicosia’s multiculturalism and emerging artists.
The festival kicks off on October 10 with the opening of the photography exhibition Face forward …Into My Home, co-organised by the festival with the National Museum of Contemporary Art in Athens, focusing on the stories of people who left their homeland, trying to rebuild their lives in Cyprus. The exhibition will take place at the Nicosia Municipal Theatre and the opening night will be complemented by an African Fashion Party.
This year’s programme highlights the festival’s collaboration with the Pina Bausch Foundation (Germany), Sadler’s Wells Theatre (England) and the Festival d’Avignon (France), which will bring to Cyprus the productions Rite of Spring choreographed by Pina Bausch and the theatrical performance Katarina and the Beauty of Killing Fascists, directed by the artistic director of the Festival d’Avignon, Tiago Rodrigues. Running until the spring of 2025, the festival will present a diverse series of remarkable cultural performances, enriching Nicosia’s bid for the 2030 European Capital of Culture.
Children and young people
Three new productions for children will be presented, starting with Miav Volan J’Enan Geron (Once Upon a Time) on November 16, a co-production of the Nicosia International Festival and Alpha Cyprus based on ALPHA Podcasts and the book Cypriot Fairy Tales by Nearchos Clerides.
The festival will again present the remarkable Cypriot production Still! A Statue that Turned the World to close the 2024 programme on December 31. The creative team of Still! also brings to the stage of the Nicosia Municipal Theatre on February 8, its new production The Doll of Franz Kafka directed by Kostas Silvestrou. On May 17, the festival will host the Cypriot director Marios Kakoullis and the children’s theatre performance Ba_Boom_ which deals with the conditions of war through the eyes of children.
#Under30
Alongside artists of international renown, the festival aims to present Cypriot artists, both established and young. This year it repeats the #UNDER30 programme, which is exclusively addressed to Cypriot artists under 30 years old. This year includes the presentation of the new recordings by Nama Dama, Alexa Michael and Zina Melekki, while choreographer – dancer Alexandros M Kyriazis will present his new work Jimmy & Freddie.
#ThePoet programme
This year the festival will also take over the Davila Bastion for two nights organising two poetry nights around the sculpture The Poet by the Greek sculptor Costas Varotsos. On October 11, it will collaborate with the Poetry Moves International Festival to present works for poetry, piano and cello with the participation of Varotsos. On October 13, the festival will team up with the Cyprus Academy of Sciences, Letters and Arts to present the poetry concert Poetry of Invasion and Displacement.
Contemporary dance
Works by the great choreographer Pina Baucus, who is considered the reformer of contemporary dance of the 20th century, will be presented in collaboration with the Pina Bausch Foundation and Sadler’s Wells Theatre. The triptych Rite of Spring/PHILIPS 836 887 DSY/Homage to the Ancestors will take the Nicosia stage on October 28, after being presented at theatres in New York and Tokyo.
Theatre
More international productions will follow. Artistic director of the Festival d’Avignon Tiago Rodrigues will present the theatrical performance Katarina and the Beauty of Killing Fascists on December 10 and 11 while on November 19, a documentary theatre performance by the Onassis Cultural Centre will be presented under the direction of Dimitris Babilis.
On December 18, Leandro Taliotis will participate in the festival for the first time with his timely personal reading of Shakespeare’s Richard II. A raw, aggressive and contemporary performance that deals with the human arrogance that accompanies the administration of power.
Music
Following the successful return of the award-winning Cuban band Septeto Santiaguero (2022), this year the festival presents the explosive Maykel Blanco and his band Maykel Blanco Y Su Salsa Mayor on October 23. Then, on November 5, the internationally acclaimed Greek composer Stavros Gasparatos will present his new work Expanded Piano I and introduce a ‘hybrid’ instrument. Also part of the music programme is a performance by the Avantgarde Cultural Organisation and the Cypriot-born pianist Elena Xydia. With the use of technology and the stage direction of Paschalis Mantis, a piano and a pianist will be reproduced holographically and appear in duplicate.
Parallel Programme: Art exhibitions
The festival will also collaborate this year with the European Parliament to host the art exhibition Art in Democracy, which has been organised in Brussels and Strasbourg, at the Municipal Hall of Eleftheria Square next November. The exact opening date and duration of the exhibition and related educational programmes will be announced shortly.
The public art action OTHONI will run from November 16 to December 22 showcasing a series of video artworks from Smart Nicosia screens in central points of avenues and streets of the city. Finally, a series of parallel actions will take place throughout the next months, from supporting local, traditional festivals such as the Antama Festival, a short film screening of Press and Information Office on the legends and traditions from Cyprus and Nicosia-themed theatre workshops for children with the support of the Leventis Municipal Museum of Nicosia, making sure the festival is meeting ground for all ages, interests and backgrounds.
5th Nicosia International Festival
Music, theatre, art, dance performances and exhibitions. October 10 – Spring of 2025. Nicosia Municipal Theatre, Nicosia. www.soldoutticketbox.com. Tel: 22-797979
