Program for "Theater of the World" festival takes shape

The curators for the "Theater der Welt" festival are presented in Chemnitz. The largest German festival for international, contemporary performing arts will take place from June 18 to July 5, 2026, as announced by the Saxon State Ministry of Culture and Tourism. The event travels through Germany every three years - Frankfurt am Main and Offenbach last hosted the event in 2023. In Chemnitz, the festival directly follows on from the Capital of Culture year.

Nine curators from Australia, Canada, Colombia, Argentina, South Africa, Greece, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, India, Senegal and China will take over the artistic direction. According to the information provided, they will select and finalize around 40 productions for the programme on site.

Saxon Culture Minister Barbara Klepsch (CDU) sees the festival as an opportunity to use art to make different perspectives on social issues visible. As in the Capital of Culture year, "Theater der Welt" should also contribute to overcoming cultural and social boundaries and thus tie in with the new phase in the Capital of Culture region, Klepsch continued.