Play in the City – Festival of Ludic Culture
The Modena festival that puts play at the center as an educational and cultural lever
About Play in the City
A festival that uses play as an educational tool
Play in the City – Festival of Ludic Culture is the event that brings a vision of play as a tool for growth, creativity, and participation to the heart of Modena, in Emilia-Romagna. Not just a board game fair, but a widespread event that blends fun and reflection, designed for schools, families, young people, and cultural operators. The festival stems from Modena's gaming experience: the same network that has enlivened the city with the Play festival for over fifteen years has given life to this new autumn event, more intimate and rooted in the historic center.
Where it takes place
The festival unfolds in some of the most evocative locations in the center of Modena. The heart of the event is the Fondazione Collegio San Carlo, on Via San Carlo, with its historic spaces and the Church of San Carlo; activities also extend to the Department of Law of the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, on Via San Geminiano. This distributed choice makes play an opportunity to rediscover the city's heritage sites, in dialogue with university life and the local educational fabric.
What you'll find
- Game tables and demonstrations: over two hundred titles to try, from classics to the latest award-winning games, often presented by the authors themselves.
- Workshops for children, young people, and adults, dedicated to play as a learning experience.
- Professional training courses for teachers, educators, and cultural operators, organized into thematic strands (play and science, learning, legality, game design, psychology, digital play).
- Exhibitions and installations that tell the story and evolution of ludic culture.
- Meetings and round tables with designers, researchers, and guests from the world of sports and education.
A network of institutions
Play in the City is the result of broad collaboration: organization is handled by Ludo Labo together with the Municipality of Modena, the Fondazione Collegio San Carlo, the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Modenafiere, and the Provincial Table for Good Play of the AUSL of Modena. The 2025 edition involved dozens of exhibitors, including universities, research institutes, gaming associations, museums, and libraries, attracting nearly seven thousand visitors.
When it takes place
The festival is held in November, coinciding with the International Children's Day, the Science Month, and International Games Month @ Your Library: a calendar that emphasizes its educational vocation and the international dimension of play as a universal language.
Play in the City — edition 2026
Play in the City 2026
After its debut in 2025, Play in the City returns to Modena from November 20 to 22, 2026, confirmed within the official Modena City of Festivals 2026 program. The festival reintroduces its widespread format in the historic center, with the Fondazione Collegio San Carlo as the main venue, to bring audiences of all ages closer to the culture of play in an active and participatory way.
For 2026, game tables with hundreds of titles, workshops for children and young people, training courses for teachers and educators, exhibitions, and meetings with authors and researchers are expected. The detailed program, including times, guests, and booking information, will be published on the official website playinthecity.it in the weeks leading up to the event.
Programme Play in the City 2026
The detailed program for the 2026 edition will be announced by the organizers in the weeks preceding the event and published on playinthecity.it.
Based on the inaugural edition, the usual structure of the festival includes:
- an opening evening with a round table discussion;
- professional training courses for teachers, educators, and cultural operators, organized into thematic strands (play and science, learning, legality, game design, psychology, digital play);
- public game tables with demonstrations and new releases presented by authors;
- workshops for children, young people, and families;
- exhibitions dedicated to the history and culture of play.
Highlights Play in the City 2026
Confirmed edition in the Modena City of Festivals 2026 program, at the Fondazione Collegio San Carlo, with play as an educational tool for schools, families, and young people.
Prices Play in the City 2026
Practical information — Play in the City
How to get there
Modena is easily reachable by train: from the train station, the historic center, where the Fondazione Collegio San Carlo (Via San Carlo 5) is located, is just a few minutes' walk or a short bus ride away. By car, the highway exit is Modena Nord (A1 and A22); it is advisable to park in the peripheral parking lots around the center, which is largely pedestrianized.
Main venues
- Fondazione Collegio San Carlo and Church of San Carlo, Via San Carlo
- Department of Law (Unimore), Via San Geminiano 3
Admission
Festival activities are free to enter. Some workshops and training courses may require booking: it is recommended to consult the official website playinthecity.it for times, bookings, and the updated program.
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Where does it take place — Play in the City
Fondazione Collegio San Carlo
Via San Carlo 5, 41121 Modena