From 5th to 10th May 2026, the POLIS TEATRO FESTIVAL returns to Ravenna, a festival that has always explored fundamental and topical issues.
Identity, censorship, female pleasure and the political nature of the body, loneliness, nostalgia and community are some of the key themes that feature prominently in the programme for POLIS 2026.
This 9th edition is dedicated to a NORDIC FOCUS centred on contemporary theatre from the Baltic and Scandinavian countries.
The Festival will take place across Ravenna’s main cultural venues (Teatro Rasi, Artificerie Almagià, MAR – Ravenna Art Museum, Via Zirardini Open-Air Gallery and the Teatro Socjale in Piangipane) with over 30 events and guests from Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Finland, Sweden, Norway and Denmark.
The festival’s visual identity was created by artist-activist Gianluca Costantini, who this year presents an image of Greta Thunberg, climate activist and icon of our time, depicted in the northern sky alongside the bear she seeks to protect.
Costantini himself will open the festival with his project Shieldmaiden, on display at the Via Zirardini Open-Air Gallery from 28th April to 19th May.
Among the headline performances is Tremolo by Laura Kutkaité, one of Lithuania’s most internationally renowned artists, who will explore the theme of female creativity – a central focus of the festival – alongside other productions such as Asja Lacis by Carullo or Materiale per Medea by Agata Tomšič.
The festival programme will also feature international meetings and debates with artists, critics and scholars, as well as educational activities and participatory projects developed throughout the year, the result of numerous collaborations with local, national and international organisations.
The POLIS Teatro Festival is directed by ErosAntEros (Davide Sacco and Agata Tomšič) and is supported by the Municipality of Ravenna, the Ministry of Culture and the Emilia-Romagna Region, with the contribution of the Fondazione del Monte di Bologna e Ravenna.
