4 Best Performing Arts in Krakow, Poland

Misteria Paschalia Festival

Stare Miasto Fodor's choice

Dedicated to early music (Medieval, Renaissance, and Baroque), the festival is held each year from the last Monday of Lent to Easter Monday. The program is built around the Easter theme and attracts an impressive lineup of famous contributors: Jordi Savall and his Hespèrion XXI; Marc Minkowski with Musiciens de Louvre-Grenoble; Fabio Biondi and Europa Galante. Tickets, available online and from Cultural Information Point, should be booked well in advance.

"Divine Comedy" Theatre Festival

Over the last decade, crowds of people storming the venues of the "Divine Comedy" festival have been the testament to the fact that drama theater in Poland is alive and well; and indeed, it is very much loved. Each December theater groups from all over Poland compete in the "Inferno" competition for prizes, but the festival is also a showcase of the best, most exciting, intriguing, and sometimes controversial plays of the year from all over the country. Most performances are hosted at the Łaźnia Nowa Theatre, and they typically sell out far in advance.

Music In Old Kraków

The best thing about this classical music event is that it takes you on a tour of historical interiors: churches, synagogues, halls, rooms, and courtyards you do not see every day. The festival fills the second half of August with classical music, offering one or two concerts daily for two weeks. The program is varied, from heavyweights like Bach to his lesser-known contemporaries. If you are lucky, you may catch a performance of an international star like Jordi Savall.

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Sacrum Profanum Festival

Stare Miasto

Held every autumn, usually in October, the festival is dedicated to performing modern classics. In previous years, festival stars have included Sigur Rós, Kronos Quartet, Aphex Twin, Steve Reich, and Kraftwerk.