ArtCargo Performing Arts Festival to debut in Nicosia with 43 performances

Nicosia, Cyprus. The ArtCargo Performing Arts Festival will make its first appearance in Nicosia from October 16 to 25, presenting nine productions and 43 performances by artists from nine countries in public spaces across the capital.

The 2026 programme will include large-scale outdoor spectacles, site-specific works and collaborations with Cypriot artists, communities and creative initiatives.

Related: Mind, Body & Spirit Festival in Cyprus marks 25 years of growth from small gathering to participatory event

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Festival programme

ArtCargo will transform streets, squares and parks into performance spaces, with works designed to create encounters and collective experiences for passers-by.

Participating artists will come from Cyprus, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden, Finland, Argentina, Catalonia and Japan. The programme includes a new media art project featuring choreography by Panos Malactos, Soft Spot by contemporary circus group OLO Company, and Soka Tira Osoa by French company Basinga, a tightrope performance accompanied by live rock music.

Previous edition and international network

The festival’s first edition was held in Limassol in 2025. During the two-week event, a clown intervention took place amid traffic on Anexartisias Street, while Eventi Verticali staged an aerial performance above the Kean Factory.

OPU Collective and Tony Clifton Circus held a public conversation on inclusivity and accessibility, while Fabio Gelato created a festival flavour, 70 kilograms of which were consumed. The programme attracted nearly 40,000 people.

ArtCargo also joined the Mediterranean Season coordinated by Lieux Publics in Marseille, an international network focused on public-space arts. The connection is intended to bring international work to Cyprus and create pathways for Cypriot artists, collaborations and projects to enter the international festival circuit.

Youth programme

The festival’s Youth Programme is supported by VF Foundation, a Cyprus-based cultural foundation. Under its Art Without Borders initiative, the foundation will bring 11-year-old Japanese trickline athlete Kanon Ito to Nicosia.

Ito, ranked world No. 1 in women’s freestyle tricklining for 2025/2026, will give three live performances and lead a masterclass for young people.

Signature installation

ArtCargo’s signature installation will be created by Cypriot choreographer Malactos and Parametric Deepis, with support from Valis, an American technology company with Cypriot roots.

Combining choreography, water and projection, the large-scale public artwork will be presented over five evenings in central Nicosia and will explore the theme of “many people, one motion.”