Galway International Arts Festival returns this July with two weeks of theatre, opera, dance, circus, music, visual art and talks across the city.

This year’s programme is big in every sense, with world premieres, major outdoor and indoor performances, a packed Heineken® Big Top line-up, and a visual arts programme that stretches from Galway city to Connemara. Expect a Galway debut from Patti Smith Quartet, an Irish exclusive from The Flaming Lips, Druid’s return to The Shaughraun, a new spectacle from NoFit State, and free exhibitions led by sculptor Sean Henry.

Here are 12 highlights to have on your list.

Performing Arts

Carnation

Date: 10 to 26 July
Time: 8pm. Matinees Saturday 11, 18 and 25 July at 1pm. Sunday 12, 19 and 26 July 1pm show only. No shows Tuesday 14 and Monday 20 July.
Venue: Nimmo’s Pier, Claddagh Quay, NoFit State Big Top

The brand-new show from NoFit State arrives in Galway with a rush of world-class circus, live music and large-scale spectacle. Known for work that thrills, surprises and mesmerises, NoFit State returns with a show made for anyone who loves their festival moments big, physical and unforgettable.

 Tickets: €25 to €37.50.

Colossus

Date: 21 to 26 July
Time: 7pm
Venue: Black Box Theatre

Fifty dancers move as one in the Irish debut of Colossus by Stephanie Lake, one of Australia’s most electrifying choreographers. Thrilling and powerful, this is dance on a huge scale, built around precision, energy and the force of collective movement.

 Tickets: €25 to €37.50.

The Shaughraun

Date: 13 to 25 July
Time: 7pm. Previews 3, 4, 13 and 14 July at 7pm. Matinees 18, 23 and 25 July at 2pm. No show Sunday 19 July.
Venue: Town Hall Theatre

Druid returns to The Shaughraun for the first time since 1982. Written by Dion Boucicault in 1874, the play captures a restless, divided Ireland and opens Druid’s 2026 season, Strange Country: Ireland in America.

Tickets: €27 to €36.

Testament

Date: 24 to 26 July 2026
Time: 8pm
Venue: Bailey Allen Hall, University of Galway

Adapted from Colm Tóibín’s The Testament of Mary, this provocative chamber opera is composed by Tarik O’Regan and unfolds in the final years of Mary, mother of Jesus. Intimate and powerful, it is described as a meditation on memory, grief and truth.

Tickets: €32 to €40.

Music

Patti Smith Quartet

Date: Wednesday 15 July
Time: Doors 7pm, show 8pm
Venue: Heineken® Big Top, Fisheries Field

The iconic Patti Smith’s live performances are known for emotional power, spontaneity and artistic vitality. Her Galway debut promises an electrifying and enthralling  night at the Heineken® Big Top.

Tickets: €70.70 including booking fee, standing. Under 18s must be accompanied by an adult over 25.

The Flaming Lips

Date: Thursday 16 July 2026Time: Doors 7pm, show 8pmVenue: Heineken® Big Top, Fisheries Field

Renowned for staging one of the most extraordinary live shows in the world, The Flaming Lips bring dazzling colour, euphoric sound and unbridled joy to Galway for a 2026 Irish exclusive.

Tickets: €65.20 including booking fee, standing. Under 18s must be accompanied by an adult over 25.

Sophie Ellis-Bextor

Date: Wednesday 22 July 2026Time: Doors 7pm, show 8pmVenue: Heineken® Big Top, Fisheries Field

Following her spectacular Galway concert earlier this year, Sophie Ellis-Bextor makes her much-anticipated return. Expect an electric, joyful and murderously fun live show.

Tickets: €54.35 including booking fee, standing. Under 18s must be accompanied by an adult over 25.

Bell X1

Date: Saturday 25 July 2026Time: Doors 7pm, show 8pmVenue: Heineken® Big Top, Fisheries Field

Bell X1 are set to bring their soaring melodies and sharp lyrics to the Big Top. Known for their musical range and fearless experimentation, they remain one of the most distinctive acts on the Irish live circuit.

Tickets: €49.20 including booking fee, standing. Under 18s must be accompanied by an adult over 25.

Visual Arts

Sean Henry: Presence

Date: 13 to 26 July 2026
Time: 11am to 6pm. Late opening to 8pm Thursday to Saturday.
Venues: Festival Gallery, William Street; Eyre Square; Middle Arch, Claddagh Quay; Middle

Internationally renowned sculptor Sean Henry leads the visual arts programme with Presence. His monumental figures transform the everyday into something uncanny and deeply human, exploring the isolation, resilience and emotional texture of modern life.

Tickets: Free.

Dolores Lyne: Rebel Kin: To the Letter

Date: 13 to 26 July 2026Time: 11am to 6pm. Late opening to 8pm Thursday to Saturday.Venue: Festival Printworks Gallery

A deeply personal reflection on the Irish Civil War, Rebel Kin: To the Letter is drawn from letters written by a young man on the run, documenting life in hiding during the War of Independence, the Civil War and their aftermath.

Tickets: Free.

Ireland at Venice: Assembly

Date: 13 to 26 July
Time: 11am to 6pm. Late openings to 8pm Thursday to Saturday.
Venue: O’Donoghue Theatre, University of Galway

Assembly, Ireland’s Pavilion from the Venice Biennale of Architecture, explores how architecture can bring people together. Inspired by Ireland’s Citizens’ Assembly, the multi-sensory pavilion invites visitors into a space shaped by collective voices, combining Irish beech, woven textiles, music, poetry and voices from participants and makers.

Tickets: Free. 

Aleana Egan: A Maritime Child

Date: 11 to 26 July
Time: 12 noon to 6pm
Venue: Interface Inagh, Lough Inagh Valley, Recess, Connemara. Allow approximately one hour to drive from Galway City.

Set at Interface Inagh in the Lough Inagh Valley, A Maritime Child responds to the layered history and atmosphere of the site. Drawing on themes of adaptation, repair and reuse, Aleana Egan’s exhibition reflects the building’s past as a salmon hatchery and creates a dialogue between site, history and environment.

Tickets: Free.

For the full Galway International Arts Festival programme, visit giaf.ie.