Ireland’s national celebration of the arts and ageing, the Bealtaine Festival, has revealed its highly anticipated 2026 programme, which kicks off on May 1st.
The Age & Opportunity initiative brings together artists, communities and audiences for a full month of arts, entertainment and community. From the start of the month, events unfold nationwide in arts centres and community spaces, alongside online workshops and screenings, ensuring audiences everywhere can take part. The 2026 programme continues the festival’s exploration of its ‘Lust for Life’ theme, inspired by the iconic anthem by Iggy Pop – the theme reframes ageing as a time of energy, reinvention, and creative possibility.
Bealtaine Festival is proudly funded by the Arts Council and the HSE, supported by communities nationwide and a vast network of accomplished local and national bodies.
Following a month of nationwide activity, the festival reaches its flagship finale from May 28th to 30th, taking over the Project Arts Centre in Dublin. Across these three days and nights, audiences can experience a rich mix of performance, visual arts, music, film, literature, and dance. This weekend forms the centrepiece of the festival, bringing artists and audiences together for a celebratory conclusion to the month’s festivities.
The 2026 programme features, amongst other things, National Arts in Nursing Homes Day (in partnership with Nursing Homes Ireland), artist talks, film screenings and retrospectives, visual art exhibitions, writing and memoir workshops, dance and drumming sessions, and filmmaking masterclasses throughout May.
Some of the Bealtaine 2026 Flagship Programme highlights will include ‘The Big Bealtaine Tea Party’, a joyful intergenerational gathering at the Irish Museum of Modern Art (IMMA); the nationwide Dawn & Dusk Chorus, where voices rise at sunrise and sunset in towns, villages and cities nationwide, celebrating the festival’s Lust for Life theme through song; ‘Won’t Be Told’ by Tumble Circus, a rebellious circus adventure packed with wild acrobatics, absurd juggling and irreverent comedy, touring venues nationwide throughout May.
At the launch, Dr Tara Byrne, Arts Programme Manager and Artistic Director of Bealtaine Festival at Age & Opportunity, said that the 2026 programme was ‘one of our most dynamic festivals yet’.
“We are presenting a wide-ranging programme that positions the festival as a landmark moment in Ireland’s cultural calendar. From nationally resonant traditions like the Dawn & Dusk Chorus to a flagship weekend packed with unmissable performances and some of Ireland’s most significant artists, Bealtaine Festival continues to challenge the perceptions of ageing while celebrating the extraordinary creative contribution of older artists and communities. These are events that demand attention and we are proud to see the festival growing in scale, confidence and impact each year.”
Bealtaine Festival is an initiative of Age & Opportunity, funded by the Arts Council and the HSE. Age & Opportunity is the national organisation working to enable the best quality of life for us all as we age. Alongside Project Arts Centre, the festival partners with premier venues including Temple Bar Gallery + Studios, the Irish Film Institute, the National Photographic Archive, and Photo Museum Ireland.
To find out more about the 2026 Bealtaine Festival and to book your tickets, visit www.bealtaine.ie.
