Midnight Express is the brainchild of film critic Akis Kapranos who, inspired by nostalgia for the magical midnight screenings at Alphaville and Cine Dexamenis, set out to revive them. It is a cinematic journey for older audiences to reminisce, for younger ones to share the experience, and for everyone to celebrate a common passion: the
Once upon a time, and a long while ago… Join us on a journey through the neighbourhoods of the world, carried by music and storytelling. Two musicians and a storyteller climb onto their magical carpet and take us from Mexico to China, and from the frozen North to the scorching desert, alongside love-struck princes and
As part of the 2026 Philosophy Festival / European Dialogues organised by the French Institute of Greece, the public spaces of Athens are transformed into an open platform for historical memory and reflection. The This is Athens City Festival hosts the outdoor photography exhibition Look at Ukraine by Oleksandr Glyadyelov. The artist’s powerful photographs, presented
The This is Athens City Festival is serving up a back-to-back cultural double bill at the National Museum of Contemporary Art (EMST). One booking gets you into two consecutive guided tours, exploring the legacies of two Greek artists who put their personal seal on modernist art. 17:00 | Jani Christou: Enantiodromia Curator Kostis Zouliatis introduces
Parko Eleftherias is being transformed into a sprawling open-air hub of energy and well-being for this year’s This is Athens City Festival. At Fitness Sessions, movement is a celebration; here, exercise isn't about competition—it’s about self-care, community, and recharging your batteries right in the heart of the city. Set within one of Athens’ most refreshing
The magic of the big screen comes to the lawns of Eleftherias Park, celebrating some of the finest moments of Greek cinema. For four consecutive nights, the park transforms into a refreshing open-air screening venue, inviting audiences to surrender to the charm of the seventh art. Beneath the Athenian sky, with screenings beginning daily at
Ermou Street will come alive with rhythm, colour and vintage style as Athens marks World Lindy Hop Day. On Tuesday 26 May, from 9 pm to 11 pm, Lindy Hop groups and swing enthusiasts from across the city will gather at 148 Ermou Street for a huge open-air celebration, open to all. Lindy Hop, the
As part of the 2026 Philosophy Festival / European Dialogues organised by the French Institute of Greece, the public spaces of Athens are transformed into an open platform for historical memory and reflection. The This is Athens City Festival hosts the outdoor photography exhibition Look at Ukraine by Oleksandr Glyadyelov. The artist’s powerful photographs, presented
Cooling Havens, an innovative European project of the City of Athens, invites you to an immersive walk through Ano Patisia, in one of Athens’ most vibrant neighbourhoods. Newly created cooling points serve as the starting point for rediscovering our relationship with water, public space, and the urban environment. Exploring traces of the city’s past, contemporary infrastructure and everyday
An abandoned piano, long-silent in a dusty Athenian corner, finds its voice once more. Pianist and performer Melachrinos Velentzas presents Rebirth, blending performance, installation, and collective ritual in some of the city’s most emblematic spaces. Through a musical ceremony, Velentzas resuscitates an instrument that has endured years of stillness. It is a powerful parallel between
A garden of fairy tales! Georgia Chaikali, Marina Dakanali and Ioanna Rigas weave a world made of words, sounds and images. A form of storytelling that is not just speech, but experience—rhythm, breath, glances. Alongside them, music becomes a living presence: voice, percussion and santouri create a vivid sonic landscape that carries the audience away.
The historic Dexameni Square, with its old-school Athenian charm and the cool breeze of Lycabettus lingering in the air, becomes the stage for a major musical takeover headlined by Papazó. Vassilis Papazotos, songwriter, music producer, and medical doctor, brings the vibrant energy and effortless connection that made his viral music videos and unexpected collaborations a
During the This is Athens City Festival, photos and video footage may be captured for marketing and publicity purposes, to be used on the Festival’s website and social media channels and/or in third-party publications.
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