by InTrieste
Trieste will celebrate Ferragosto this year with a five-day program of concerts, theater, film screenings and family events, from Wednesday, August 13, through Sunday, August 17, as part of the city’s summer festival, Trieste Estate.
The festivities open on August 13 at the garden of the Sartorio Museum with “Caio Chagas e Michele Pasini,” a Brazilian music performance that blends tradition with contemporary arrangements. Chagas, a guitarist and vocalist from Fortaleza who has lived in Italy for eight years, and Pasini, a percussionist who has studied rhythms around the world, will present a repertoire inspired by Brazil’s landscapes, colors and social realities. That same evening, Piazza Verdi will host “I ’60 Ruggenti – Di nuovo insieme,” a celebration of 1960s and ’70s hits.
On August 14, the Winckelmann Museum garden will feature the New Era Quartet performing sevdalinke, traditional Bosnian songs reinterpreted through a classical lens. Later, pianist Alessio de Franzoni and vocalist Marnit will present “Movies in Concert” at the Sartorio Museum garden, offering intimate renditions of iconic film scores. Piazza Verdi will host “Banda Berimbau & Teko Sodré,” an Afro-Brazilian music ensemble led by Salvador de Bahia–born Teko Sodré.
The evening will culminate in the debut Trieste Drone Show at 11:15 p.m., when 500 illuminated drones will perform over the Bacino San Giusto in place of the city’s traditional fireworks display. The event, supported by the Friuli Venezia Giulia region and PromoTurismoFVG, will be visible from along the Rive and Piazza Unità d’Italia.
On Ferragosto, August 15, the Dadadù International Children’s Theater Festival will open with Quel diavolo d’Arlecchino, a puppet and mask performance by Paolo Rech. Later that evening, the Winckelmann Museum garden will screen the 1911 silent film L’Inferno, accompanied by a live saxophone and electronics score from Marco Castelli. Piazza Verdi will host “Tracce di Tango divagazioni,” an Argentine tango concert with choreographed dance.
Children’s theater returns on August 16 with Ovo sam jal / Questo sono io!, a dance-based performance exploring individuality and togetherness. That night, local band To Loo Loose will perform Celtic-inspired rock in Piazza Verdi.
The program concludes on August 17. “WaterProof – La Teca,” a ticketed theatrical production at the Winckelmann Museum garden, will offer a darkly comic reflection on marine pollution, set aboard a fishing boat trawling for plastic. The Sartorio Museum garden will host “Confini del tango,” a musical conversation tracing the tango’s roots from Africa to modern Latin America. The festival’s final act, “Big Bang Band,” will bring classic rock and prog hits to Piazza Verdi, alongside a preview of the group’s planned 2026 international music contest.
All open-air concerts and performances in Piazza Verdi and the museum gardens are free unless otherwise indicated.
