From July onwards, the city will embrace a diverse summer programme with a focus on celebrating music in outdoor settings.
Returning festivals will highlight various aspects of Minho culture: the Castro-Galaico Festival (10–12 July), with musical acts rooted in Celtic, Castro, and Galician traditions; Sons do Noroeste (23–25 July), showcasing three days of music from Northern Portugal and Galicia; and Este Oeste, which reflects Braga’s eclectic sonic identity along the banks of the River Este. Rounding off the month is Extremo, an experimental project held in Falperra on 26 July, co-produced with the municipality of Guimarães and focused on experimental electronic music, featuring artists such as William Basinski.
Other artistic choices stand out, bringing art and culture to the city’s public spaces. This is the case of the Vaudeville Rendez-Vous contemporary circus festival, whose programme takes in the main cities of Minho – from Braga to Guimarães, Barcelos and Vila Nova de Famalicão. Mimarte. Inaugurated on 31 May, the Forma da Vizinhança art and architecture festival will also continue to programme recurring activations in the pavilions designed by the invited architects, from July to November, featuring artists Zabra, Frame Coletivo, A Recolectora, Soraia Gomes Teixeira, and Landra.
Unlikely artistic venues such as first-generation shopping centres will also host activities. Shopyard Summer School, taking place from 18 to 25 July, will invite 30 young people from 17 nationalities to rethink the use of these spaces, in collaboration with studios OITOO (Porto), BUREAU (Lisbon/Geneva), and OUEST (Brussels).
Among Braga’s cultural highlights is the White Night of Braga (Noite Branca), from 5 to 7 September, featuring special Braga 25 commissions. Arruada #3, a Clube Raiz project, brings percussion groups together in a city-wide procession and musical communion, including performances by the Orquestra de Dispositivos Eletrónicos and Outra Voz (Guimarães), for a fusion of sonic worlds.
Also in September, Braga 25 will present, as part of the Cinex programme, the cine-concert “Naquele Dia em Lisboa” by Matthew Herbert and Daniel Blaufuks. This unique film – a temporal expansion of images from 1940 discarded by Oscar-winning cinematographer Eugen Schüfftan – is paired with a live musical score by Herbert, offering an immersive blend of cinema, music, and time. The premiere takes place at Theatro Circo.
Mediation programmes will continue to be a major focus throughout the next quarter, including guided tours of Braga 25 projects (organised by the Mediation Programme and Destino4All), as well as night tours of Theatro Circo.
Co-productions, premieres, and the final quarter of 2025
Among the final quarter’s highlights is the Semibreve Festival, a leading event in exploratory music and media arts, running from 23 to 26 October. Celebrating its 14th edition, this year’s line-up includes Actress & Suzanne Ciani, Ava Rasti, aya, among others, with the full programme to be revealed soon.
From 14 to 23 November, the city hosts another edition of Utopia Braga, under the theme “All literature is a utopia”. As in previous years, the literary festival will feature readings, book launches, courses, workshops, concerts, performances, and children’s activities, with the complete programme to be announced shortly.
The year will close with several high-profile premieres. Marco Martins will present a new production at Theatro Circo in late 2025. Part of the Cenários programme and co-produced with Teatro Nacional Dona Maria II, the play “A Vida Secreta dos Velhos”, which premiered at the Avignon Festival, will be staged at this historic Braga venue. Also featured in the Braga 25 calendar is the National Ballet Company, performing three works by Hofesh Shechter, Olga Roriz/Wellenkamp, and Ohad Naharin.