Festival Verdi 2026 Explores 'Mondi Lontani' in Parma and Busseto

The XXVI edition of Festival Verdi will take place in Parma and Busseto from 1 to 25 October 2026 under the theme 'Mondi Lontani' (Distant Worlds). The programme draws on Giuseppe Verdi's own tendency to set his operas in far-flung settings, spanning Inca Peru, Ancient Egypt and biblical Babylon, and examines nineteenth-century exoticism together with the encounters between different cultures and peoples. Organisers frame the edition around the idea that Verdi, though permanently associated with Busseto, Parma and the Emilian countryside, looked well beyond Italy in his choice of subjects, religions and conflicts. The festival positions this geographical reach as a way of addressing emotions that remain close to contemporary audiences. A stated aim is to consider how contact between different worlds can produce change. The 2026 edition thus combines performance with reflection on cultural exchange, using Verdi's non-Italian settings as its organising principle.