From today, October 2nd to 11th, preceded by two events on September 29th and 30th, Lugano will once again host the FIT Festival 2026 , now in its thirty-fifth edition. This year, the International Festival of Contemporary Theatre and Performance offers a program built around over thirty performances, a film, public meetings with artists, and a series of parallel initiatives that expand the relationship between the stage, the public, and the region.
Thirteen countries are represented: Argentina, Ivory Coast, Egypt, France, Germany, Italy, Lebanon, Mexico, Palestine, Spain, South Africa, Switzerland, and Tunisia. Theater, dance, performance, and film will be presented in various venues around the city, from the LAC to the Foce, from the Teatrostudio to the Cinema Iride.
The theme running through the 2026 edition looks at a present marked by conflict, polarization, and profound transformations. The organizers' stated starting point is a reflection on the speed with which contemporary reality seems to produce new forms of violence and simplification, often transforming public debate into a conflicting and radicalized representation.
In this context, theater is called upon to fulfill a unique function: not only to imagine alternative worlds, but also to gather testimonies, interrogate sources, and question accepted wisdom. The spectator, the festival program suggests, is invited to step out of a passive position and assume that of a witness.
Tonight – October 2nd – the festival kicks off with two different offerings. At 6:00 PM at the Foce, Swiss artist Boris Nikitin , together with South African artist Tšeliso Monaheng , presents KIDS . The work follows a group of young people born after apartheid as they traverse a city during a night filled with tension and uncertainty. The result is a portrait of a generation caught between vulnerability, anger, and the search for new perspectives.
That same evening, at 9:00 PM on the LAC Stage, Khalil Hentati 's AÏCHOUCHA arrives , a work born from memories of his grandmother Aïcha. Family memories become musical and artistic material here, through a reinterpretation of Tunisian tradition performed with contemporary instruments and languages.
Wild trails and the comparison with the new generations
Among the projects developed directly by FIT is CHECKPOINT UTOPIA , the working title of the new work by Ticino artist Alan Alpenfelt . Running on October 3 and 4 and then from October 7 to 11 at Teatrostudio LAC, the show represents the outcome of the second year of Sentieri Selvaggi , a three-year co-creation project dedicated to young people.
The language of video games becomes a tool for describing the transition from childhood to adolescence and adulthood. Interaction with a group of young people allows us to explore themes such as dreams, expectations, disillusionment, and the value placed on the only "life" available.
The underlying idea is to question the relationship between growth and possibility, in a historical period in which the future often appears more uncertain than open.
A night dedicated to resistance
Tomorrow, October 3rd, the Foce will host a double program, titled NIGHT OF RESISTANCE . Two works, different in language and provenance, share a common reflection on forms of oppression and the possibilities of responding through the body.
At 8:30 pm , JUST ONE TILE , an autobiographical solo by Egyptian artist Islam Elarabi , will be performed . The work explores themes of resistance, rebellion, and belonging, constructing a narrative in which strength and fragility coexist. At its core, the desire for freedom of an often underrepresented community also emerges.
At 9:00 PM, BLACK by Ivorian performer Oulouy will follow , a work that intertwines dance and current events to address violence and emancipation. The show focuses on the experience of the Afro-European community and uses movement as a tool for political and personal affirmation.
Economic crises, nostalgia and new systems of power
The FIT Festival 2026 program continues on October 4th at 8:30 pm on the LAC Stage with THAT'S TWISTED by French director Baptiste Cazaux . The show draws on the 2008 economic crisis and the nihilism of pop culture to observe a present marked simultaneously by nostalgia and uncertainty.
On October 8th, again at 8:30 pm on the LAC Stage, it will be the turn of PLAY by Argentine artist Matías Umpierrez . The work explores the relationship between power and consciousness within a reality perceived as chaotic and fragmented. Through the symbolic dismantling of an archive of hate, the performance questions the structures that sustain identity and the very perception of reality.
On October 9th at 8:30 pm at Foce, Spanish director Sergi Casero Nieto returns to the festival with NO PARES (SIGUE, SIGUE) . The work focuses on the consequences of neoliberal productivity and techno-capitalism on bodies, raising the question of what alternatives can be imagined to the dominant models of life.
Archives, Palestine and Freedom of Speech
October 10th will be one of the most exciting days of the festival. At 6:00 PM, the Iride Cinema will screen A FIDAI FILM by Palestinian director Kamal Aljafari.
The film draws on the 1982 looting of Palestinian archives to construct a counter-narrative dedicated to memory and resistance. Through experimental language, the work interrogates the role of colonial archives and the relationship between identity, images, and the possibility of a future.
The screening is organized in collaboration with LUX Art House and anticipates the Lugano Human Rights Film Festival.
At 8:30 pm, the LAC Stage will host FOUR WALLS AND A ROOF by the Lebanese duo Rabih Mroué and Lina Majdalanie . The show evokes the trial of Bertolt Brecht to develop a reflection on censorship, exile, and freedom of speech.
The dialogue between past and present thus leads to questioning the boundaries of contemporary democracy and the conditions under which freedom of expression can be exercised.
Flamenco, krump and punk sensibility for the closing
On October 11th, at 8:30 pm on the LAC Stage, the festival will conclude with LOS INESCALABLES ALPES, BUSCANDO A CURRITO by Andalusian choreographer Maria Suarez del Mar, known as La Chachi.
The work explores different languages, bringing together flamenco, krump, and punk sensibilities. Music and dance accompany a persistent, physical, and intense exploration, constructed through a hybrid choreographic language.
Young & Kids: Contemporary meets the younger generations
Alongside the main programme, the FIT Festival confirms the YOUNG & KIDS section , dedicated to the new generations and hosted at the Foce.
On October 4th at 4:00 pm , THE BREAD MAN and THE APPLE MAN by the Caproni brothers will be performed . On October 6th at 9:30 am , BELLA, BELLISSIMA! by ArteVOX / Accademia Perduta will be performed , while on October 8th at 10:00 am it will be the turn of GALASSIA ANNIKA by the Kronoteatro company.
The section offers contemporary languages designed for a young audience, maintaining the connection with the artistic lines that run through the entire event.
The festival beyond the shows
A significant portion of the 2026 FIT Festival will also take place outside the theater. Several initiatives will return, seeking to broaden access to culture and create opportunities for participation.
Among these is Keep FIT with Radio , a youth radio station that follows the festival on the move. The Biglietto sospeso initiative also continues , through which it is possible to donate a cultural experience to those who lack the financial resources necessary to purchase a ticket.
There's also space for Restez FIT!, a project dedicated to the cultural participation of older people through an intergenerational tandem.
Also making its debut is Watch&Talk , a new program supported by Pro Helvetia, the Swiss Arts Council , which will bring a group of emerging artists to Lugano. Participants will follow the entire festival and take part in a workshop with the Franco-Algerian choreographer Laurence Yadi.
In addition to these events, there are meetings with the artists after the shows, designed to continue the discussion beyond the performance.
Laterale, three filmed meetings with the international scene
Among the new features of this edition is also Laterale , a video editorial project developed in collaboration with the LAC.
Room 4 will be transformed into a cinema to host three interviews dedicated to three figures from the international contemporary scene: Łukasz Twarkowski , Caroline Guiela Nguyen and Trajal Harrell.
The initiative expands the festival's editorial dimension and aims to create a space for in-depth exploration of artists and creative processes.
Free zone and six hours of electronic music
ZONA FRANCA is also back , created in collaboration with La Soleggiata , with DJ sets and musical events that accompany the festival evenings.
On October 10th, from 10:00 PM to 4:00 AM at Studio Foce, there's a special evening with the Piedmontese collective Ivreatronic . Born out of electronic music parties initially held in an old cellar in Ivrea, the project has evolved over time into a traveling venture capable of moving between clubs, festivals, and unconventional spaces.
Foresta, Leonar, and Enea Pascal will arrive in Lugano for a long musical session that will round out the day on October 10th.
Season tickets and tickets
There are several options available to follow the FIT Festival 2026.
ABO LAC+ , which includes FIT and LAC season, is offered at CHF 199. All information is available on www.luganolac.ch.
The PASS FIT 5 , costing CHF 65, allows access to five shows.
The PASS FIT GIOVANI , dedicated to those under 25 and offered at CHF 50, also allows you to attend five shows.
Information on season tickets is available on the website www.fitfestival.ch.
Tickets can be purchased through the LAC ticket office, by calling +41 (0)58 866 42 22 or online at www.luganolac.ch.
For groups, both school and non-school, it is possible to contact the FIT office directly on +41 (0)91 225 67 61 or write to info@fitfestival.ch.
With its thirty-fifth edition, the 2026 FIT Festival confirms a program that connects diverse geographies, generations, and languages. Ten days in which contemporary theater is used not so much to offer definitive answers, but to navigate the contradictions of a complex era and leave new questions open.
FIT International Festival of Theater and the contemporary scene
Via al Forte 2, 6900 Lugano
Tel. +41 91 225 67 61
press@fitfestival.ch
www.fitfestival.ch
