Festival
KAVALA
The Philippi Festival is one of the most important and longest-running cultural institutions in the country, hosting top performances and productions every summer.
Today, the Philippi Festival is constantly evolving, investing in creativity, extroversion, and dialogue with contemporary reality. It remains a vibrant meeting place between history and the present, where art serves as a field of transformation, reflection, and collective experience.
INFORMATION – PRESALE
They are provided by the Visitor Information Center (formerly EOT) in the Central Square (tel. 2510 620566).
By car
The Ancient Theater of Philippi is located at the 16th km of the Kavala-Drama provincial road, immediately after the village of Krinides.
WHERE TO PARK
Free and unlimited parking in the parking lot and on the surrounding streets of the Ancient Theater.
BY BUS
The intercity bus service of Kavala usually operates return routes for all performances (tel. 2510 22229).
THE PROGRAM OF THE 69th PHILIPPI FESTIVAL
This year’s theme for the 69th Philippi Festival is Metamorphosis—that special momentum that gives things a different form. By focusing on classical works (e.g., Ovid’s Metamorphoses) and original works, it will create a unique network of activities: performances, site-specific presentations, concerts and musical compositions, workshops, visual installations, and experiences (e.g., performances at sea).
At the same time, as every year, it will host the most important productions of the summer at the Ancient Theater, as well as two concerts that will mark the beginning and end of the Festival’s events. And, of course, its own proposals, new original productions, will be presented at various locations throughout the city (Karnagio, Old Pumping Station, Halil Bey Mosque, former Lord building, etc.). He will once again emphasize extroversion and will seek to have his performances, after premiering in Kavala, travel to other festivals in Greece and abroad, while organizing, in collaboration with foreign institutions, two special residencies that will culminate in performances.
«Metamorphosis»
The Philippi Festival, one of the country’s most important and longest-running cultural institutions, returns for its 69th year under the artistic direction of Eva Oikonomou Vamvaka, artistic director of the Kavala Municipal Regional Theater, Eva Oikonomou Vamvaka, offering high-quality entertainment to the residents and visitors of Kavala. From July 8 to September 6, 2026, the public will have the opportunity to attend the summer’s most significant performances and concerts, as well as new productions by the Kavala Municipal Regional Theater, which keep the flame of artistic creation alive. With the Ancient Theater of Philippi always at its heart—where two productions by the Kavala Municipal Regional Theater will be presented this year—and while continuing the tradition of site-specific performances that “bring to life” unique corners of the city, it presents a comprehensive and multifaceted program once again this year.
This year, he places at the heart of his inspiration the concept of “Transformation,” calling on Art to have a beneficial effect on our souls and to transform them, and it designs for its audience a completely unique journey that aligns with the years and the history of the institution itself, which is also transforming and changing. The 69th Philippi Festival will present five original productions, which for the first time venture beyond the narrow confines of the theater, as they include music, opera, shadow theater, and visual installations, while also featuring special collaborations with major institutions (the Megaron Concert Hall and Camerata Junior, the Greek National Opera, and others).
Finally, for the 10th year, it will host, from August 24 to September 3, the Ancient Drama Workshop, where three renowned directors/actors will guide a group of eighteen young performers on paths of experimentation and creativity.
