CostellAzioni – L'Aquila Identity Festival

A widespread festival across the villages of L'Aquila

CostellAzioni – L'Aquila Identity Festival is a flagship initiative of L'Aquila Italian Capital of Culture 2026. Promoted by the Municipality of L'Aquila, the festival turns the entire municipal area into one large, decentralized stage: rather than concentrating events in the historic centre, it creates a network that reaches all 27 villages of the Abruzzo capital, giving voice and visibility to towns, hamlets, and communities often left on the fringes of cultural programming.

The L'Aquila "multiverse"

The project is guided by the vision of L'Aquila as a "multiverse": a constellation of identities, landscapes, and traditions that form a single living organism. Over twenty local organizations and associations collaborated with citizens to design the project, acting as a true social and cultural catalyst supported by the extraordinary urban redevelopment programme of the Prime Minister's Office. The festival kicks off in April 2026 with the reopening of the Teatro San Filippo Neri, a Baroque jewel in the historic centre, and continues until October 24, 2026.

32 events in 27 villages

The programme features 32 appointments — 30 widespread events and two major special events — distributed between June and October. The offering is intentionally multidisciplinary, spanning:

• theatre performances and dialect plays, from "Tovaglia di Trilussa" to "Io sono Abruzzo" by Federico Perrotta;
• music concerts ranging from classical and folk to rock and singer-songwriter performances, including I Camaleonti and the rock of Massimo Priviero;
• performing arts, street circus, puppet theatre, and workshops for children and families;
• excursions, guided walks, and outdoor activities among mountains, springs, and trails;
• folk traditions, such as rural re-enactments like corn husking and the transhumance mountain grazing.

The two major special events

The heart of the festival lies in two visually striking events. The first, on June 28 in Bagno, is a sunset concert on the shores of Lake San Raniero, featuring Abruzzo singer-songwriter Setak, winner of the 2024 Targa Tenco for best dialect album. The second, on July 29 in San Vittorino, blends theatre, music, and local history in the evocative setting of the Amiternum Archaeological Park. A third major event is planned for the end of the year.

A heritage that unites the territory

From village squares to sanctuaries, and from natural theatres to the C.A.S.E. projects, CostellAzioni tells the plural story of L'Aquila and the inland Abruzzo region, celebrating oral history, landscapes, and community. All events are free and open to the public, with mandatory booking for limited-capacity events via the official festival website.