Bologna Portici Festival

The second edition of the Bologna Portici Festival arrives in June, with previews on 17 and 18 May 

The event celebrating the Porticoes, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, returns from 4 to 9 June: six days of music, performances, shows and guided tours to discover unseen masterpieces, between porticos and towers, the two urban elements that make the city of Bologna unique.

The heritage, historical and architectural legacy once again meet the creativity of the present in a programme that mixes entertainment and the rediscovery of history. A festival that involves the urban fabric of the city from the centre to the outskirts: starting from the large stage in Piazza Maggiore, which will host musical evenings before welcoming the 'world's most beautiful cinema', continuing along the cultural district of Via Zamboni, which starts at the foot of the Two towers and winds its way to the Pinacoteca Nazionale, under the porticoes of Europe's oldest university, amidst Renaissance columns, 18th century arches and palaces that are treasure troves of beauty and history.
Outside the city centre, we continue to Piazza della Pace, where we will dance to the rhythm of Filuzzi, Bolognese-style ballroom dancing; and then the Certosa Monumental Cemetery complex, one of the most majestic in Europe in terms of the quantity and quality of sculptures present, which is preparing to host a new, highly suggestive performance. Finally, proceeding westwards, the new arcades of the Treno della Barca (Barca Train), which will become an intercultural and intergenerational meeting place. 

The celebrations will already begin on 17 and 18 May with a two-day conference dedicated to the themes of heritage protection and international comparison with other European cities that guard world heritage sites, and the eagerly awaited laying of the Unesco plaques testifying to the recognition. 

Visit us again to keep up to date on the entire programme.

Official website ->