Athens and Epidaurus Festival 2022 Program is Announced 

The full program for the highly anticipated Athens and Epidaurus Festival 2022, was announced yesterday, Monday, March 28- with the Greek capital’s annual summer event once again featuring a great range of music, theatre, dance, performances, cinema, workshops, panel discussions and parties. 

With 67 productions and 1900 artists from around the globe, the Festival is set to kick off on June 1 and run right through to August 20, 2022. 

The Athens and Epidaurus Festival is a highlight of the Greek summer calendar and one of the oldest continuously running festivals in Europe. Spanning 66 years, the Festival has welcomed some of the greatest music, dance, and theatre artists of the international and local scene, in collaboration with the most prestigious Greek and international organisations, attracting large audiences from around the world.

Insights Greece - Athens and Epidaurus Festival 2022 Program is Announced 
Performances will take place at the Odeon of Herodes Atticus

Greek and international productions, partnerships and shows by foreign artists will be included in the 2022 program, which will be staged at the Odeon of Herodes Atticus, Ancient Theatre of Epidaurus, the little theatre of Ancient Epidaurus, and Peiraios 260, announced Artistic Director of the Festival, Katerina Evangelatos. 

“Today was a special day for us all, as we succeeded in meeting each other again in person after two years of unprecedented difficulties and challenges, to share with you everything that we have prepared, to remember remarkable events from the past and dream for the future that is ahead,” said Evangelatos as she presented the new program to the ministers of Culture and Sports, friends and partners of the Festival, various artists and the Press. 

Some of the highlights include the big Greek National Opera production Rigoletto, Giuseppe Verdi’s dark masterpiece, which will be conducted by Lukas Karytinos and directed by Artistic Director Katerina Evangelatos; as well as Tosca, which is an opera classic that will be performed by prominent Greek and international soloists and has been chosen as the Festival’s huge season finale. 

Music performances will include a concert by famous Greek singer George Dalaras; works by Beethoven, Rimsky Kosakov will be performed by the Thessaloniki State Symphony Orchestra along with Zoi Tsokanou and Daniel Lozakovich; Dimitris Papadimitriou, arguably one of the greatest contemporary Greek composers, will present a selection of songs from his rich body of work; and Maria Farantouri will invite audiences to enjoy a magical evening in memory of the late Mikis Theodorakis, as a tribute to his invaluable legacy.

For those lucky enough to be in Athens over the summer, make sure that you check out the annual Festival, which truly is a magical experience. 

Ticket booking for all venues will begin online on Friday, May 14th, at 13:00, for performances scheduled to take place in June, July, and August. 

Book your tickets at:

aefestival.gr | tickets.aefestival.gr | ticketservices.gr and the Public stores.

Images by Thomas Daskalakis ©

Athens’ Historic Odeon of Herodes Atticus

Athens’ famous Odeon of Herodes Atticus has been staging musicals and theatrical performances for over two thousand years.

Set on the southwest slope of the Acropolis, it’s one of the Greek capital’s most striking historic monuments and one of the world’s most stunning open-air theatres.

Insights Greece - Athens’ Historic Odeon of Herodes Atticus
One of the world’s oldest functioning theatres

Featuring a three-story stone front wall, the theatre wasn’t always open-air; the original façade of arches was closed in by a wooden and tiled roof and was known as the most prestigious Roman-era theatre in ancient Athens and a landmark of the city, even in ancient times.

The roof burnt down around a century after it was built and its condition declined over the centuries, however, performances and public events still took place- even during the German occupation. 

Herodion was renovated in 1950, with the audience seats and the stage being restored using Pentelic marble; taking the capacity to around 5,000.  

Since its renovation, Herodion became the main venue of the Athens Festival, which runs from May through October each year and it has also hosted some of the world’s leading performers – from home-grown legends including Mikis Theodorakis, Manos Hatzidakis, Maria Callas and Nana Mouskouri to international stars such as Luciano Pavarotti, Andrea Bocelli and Frank Sinatra and pop icons Diana Ross, Liza Minnelli, Elton John and Sting.  

Insights Greece - Athens’ Historic Odeon of Herodes Atticus
Renovated in 1950

Today you can attend the Athens and Epidaurus Festival, a range of musical events and classical tragedies at Herodion. Under the Athenian-lit sky, you will be able to enjoy a fabulous acoustic performance. Events are held from May through to early October when the theatre is open and if you are in Athens during this time- and there is a performance taking place – we highly recommend you book yourself a ticket as it will definitely be a cultural experience you will never forget! 

Getting there

The Herodes Atticus theatre is located at the base of the southwestern slope of the Acropolis, on Dionysiou Areopagitou Street. It is around a 750m walk (10 minutes) from the Acropolis metro station (red line). 

Tip: Photos (with or without flash) or video recording by phone or other devices (without prior permission) are not permitted during a performance.

Main Image by Eric Domas ©

Athens and Epidaurus Festival to Open in June

The Greek capital’s annual Athens and Epidaurus Festival will reopen to live audiences on June 1, with over 80 productions scheduled to take place over four months. 

With an emphasis on Greek artists (50 are Greek productions) the popular event (amongst both locals and international visitors) will conclude in October 2021. 

Insights Greece - Athens and Epidaurus Festival to Open in June

Taking place across Athens, venues will include the Pireos 260 building with performances including theatre, music, dance, and visual arts. This year, there will be an addition to the program, Cycle 1821, which is set to commemorate the centennial of Greece’s War of Independence from the Ottoman Empire. 

The Ancient Theatre of Epidaurus will premier 10 productions over three days a week (Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays) from June to August. Here, German theatre director Thomas Ostermeier and the Schaubühne will present a version of ‘Oedipus Rex’ by Maja Zade. Several Greek directors, independently or collaborating, will also present their ancient drama. 

At the Small Theater of Ancient Epidaurus, four Greek authors will each present a commissioned modern version of an ancient tragedy for the ‘Contemporary Ancients’ cycle, while other new performances will also take place. 

The Athens Festival’s main venue, the Odeon of Herod Atticus (Irodio), will host distinguished international musicians such as Brian Eno with his brother Roger Eno, pianist Zubin Mehta with the Maggio Musicale Orchestra of Florence, violinist Pinchas Zuckerman and the Monteverdi Choir accompanied by the English Baroque Soloists, in a performance conducted by Sir John Eliot Gardiner.

In terms of Greek performances, the Athens Festival will also include the National Opera, Eleftheria Arvanitaki, and Lena Platonos with Nalyssa Green, among others.