The summer cultural festival in Leverano, in the heart of Salento
Leverano Summer is the cultural festival with which the Municipality of Leverano, in the province of Lecce, accompanies residents and visitors throughout the beautiful season. From June to September, the calendar fills with open-air concerts, theatrical shows, film screenings, book presentations, and family-oriented evenings, transforming squares and historic courtyards into open-air stages. Over the years, the event has changed its name—from "Estate Leveranese" to "Leverano d'Estate" and finally to the current "Leverano Summer"—but it has maintained the same vocation: to enhance the territory through culture and engage all age groups.
The beating heart of the events is the cloister of the Convento Santa Maria delle Grazie, a 16th-century jewel whose arches offer an intimate and evocative setting for evening shows. The festival then spreads into the squares of the historic center—starting with Piazza Roma—and into green spaces like Parco Patula Cupa, bringing culture closer to the citizens and restoring life to the most beautiful corners of the town. Leverano, dominated by the 13th-century Torre Federiciana and surrounded by vineyards and olive groves, is, after all, one of the iconic villages of Salento wine, a land of Negroamaro and Malvasia.
The strength of Leverano Summer lies in collaboration: the Municipal Administration works together with associations, cultural entities, and local businesses to build a varied and participatory program. Live music, brilliant and experimental theater, cinema under the stars, meetings with authors, children's events, and dance evenings alternate week after week, with a quality that has given the event resonance beyond regional borders over the years.
Whether you are passing through on vacation on the nearby Ionian coast or looking for quality evenings in the Lecce hinterland, Leverano Summer is the best way to experience the town when the sun goes down and the historic center lights up with music and words.
Leverano Summer 2026 kicks off on June 18, 2026, and continues throughout the summer until September. The program, born from the collaboration between the municipal administration, associations, and local cultural entities, offers open-air concerts, theatrical performances, cinema under the stars, book presentations, and evenings dedicated to families, with initiatives designed to involve all age groups.
As per tradition, the heart of the festival is the cloister of the Convento Santa Maria delle Grazie, flanked by the squares of the historic center. Most events are free of charge, subject to availability.
The complete 2026 program for Leverano Summer was published by the Municipality of Leverano on June 18, 2026, and can be downloaded from the municipal website in the "Manifestazioni ed Eventi" section.
The festival, which runs from June to September, is divided into several sections:
Details of the evenings, including dates, times, and artists, can be consulted in the official program published by the Municipality.
Events take place mainly in the cloister of the Convento Santa Maria delle Grazie and in the squares of the historic center of Leverano (LE), including Piazza Roma, as well as in spaces like Parco Patula Cupa.
Leverano is located in Salento, about 25 km from Lecce. By car, it can be reached via the SS 101 Lecce–Gallipoli road. The Leverano railway station is served by the Ferrovie del Sud Est with connections from Lecce and Gallipoli.
Most events are free of charge, subject to availability. The full program is published every year on the Municipality of Leverano website in the "Manifestazioni ed Eventi" section. Info: Municipality of Leverano, tel. +39 0832 923411.
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Convento Santa Maria delle Grazie e centro storico
Convento Santa Maria delle Grazie, 73045 Leverano