Festival Y - Closing Session "Are We Connected?"
Festival Y closes in Covilhã with a reflection session on cultural networks in Portugal's interior. The meeting takes place at Orfeão da Covilhã on June 4, 2026, as part of the COMUM project's satellite activities.
The Festival Y, organised by the Quarta Parede company, closes its 2026 edition with the reflection session "Estamos em Rede?" (Are We Connected?), scheduled for 4 June 2026 at Orfeão da Covilhã. The meeting wraps up a journey that stretched from March to June across the Covilhã and Castelo Branco territories, with multidisciplinary programming spanning new circus, dance, theatre and music.
The closing session is part of the satellite activities of the COMUM project and proposes an open conversation on the state of cultural networks in Portugal's interior. Programmers, artists, researchers and the public are invited to share experiences and debate the future of artistic circulation beyond the major urban centres.
Festival Y was created to put the Beira interior on the map of contemporary performing arts, presenting Portuguese and international creators on stages such as the Cine-Teatro Avenida (Castelo Branco) and various venues in Covilhã. The 2026 edition featured names such as João Paulo Santos with Pa(i)ysage[n]s and Basque choreographer Matxalen Bilbao with Hustu; Elogio al Vacío, both at Cine-Teatro Avenida.
Orfeão da Covilhã, founded in 1945, is one of the most emblematic cultural institutions of this mountain city, with a historic auditorium that has hosted theatre, music and cinema for generations. Hosting the Festival Y closing session reinforces this association's role as a meeting point between tradition and contemporary creation.
Entry to the session is free with prior registration. For visitors passing through the Serra da Estrela, this is a rare opportunity to take part in an informed debate on culture and territory, in a venue with deep local identity.
