The Classical Performances
at the Greek Theatre.
Every spring, since 1914, the Greek Theatre of Siracusa does what it was built for. INDA brings tragedies and comedies to the stage where they have been performed for 2,500 years. The world's oldest classical theatre festival still in operation.
The Greek Theatre of Siracusa
Built in the 5th century BC on the southern slope of the Temenite hill, the Greek Theatre of Siracusa is one of the largest and best-preserved theatres of the ancient world. Cavea diameter: 138.6 metres. Original capacity: at least 15,000 spectators. It was in Siracusa that Aeschylus, invited by the tyrant Hiero I, restaged The Persians — the tragedy that had premiered in Athens in 472 BC, the oldest theatrical text in the Western tradition for which we know both the date and place of first performance.
Rebuilt by Hiero II in the 3rd century BC, the theatre was partly dismantled in the 16th century when the Spanish used its upper stone steps for the fortifications of Ortigia. Yet the cavea carved into solid rock is still in use — a unique case worldwide: an ancient Greek theatre where performances have continued since the 5th century BC.
The history from 1914
In 1914 Count Mario Tommaso Gargallo founded the Classical Performances at the Greek Theatre of Siracusa. The inaugural production was Aeschylus's Agamemnon, with Duilio Cambellotti as set designer — a debut that marked the beginning of the world's longest-running classical theatre festival.
The festival grew over the decades. In the 1930s and 1950s it attracted the great names of Italian theatre; subsequent editions expanded the repertoire to Sophocles, Euripides and Aristophanes. In 1998 the INDA Foundation (National Institute of Ancient Drama) was established and has managed the programming and production ever since. Today the Classical Performances are the oldest ancient theatre festival in the world still in operation.
The INDA festival
The National Institute of Ancient Drama, founded in 1925, is based in Siracusa. Each year it selects three or four productions — Greek tragedies and a comedy — entrusted to directors and performers of international standing. The season runs from May to July.
An evening at the Greek Theatre begins at sunset. The performance comes alive as the first stars appear. It is a sensory experience as much as a cultural one: the sea breeze rising from the coast, the scent of the Mediterranean maquis, the open sky above the stone cavea. No indoor theatre can replicate this atmosphere.
Tickets and seating
Tickets for the Classical Performances are available on the official INDA website (indafondazione.org). Main categories are stalls, cavea and upper tiers, with indicative prices from €30 to €70 per production.
Practical tip: book early. The most popular evenings — especially weekends — sell out weeks in advance. For acoustics, the best seats are in the central cavea. For a panoramic view of the full stage and sky, the upper tiers.
Getting to the theatre
From PhotoGuest (Corso Gelone 7) to the Greek Theatre: 950 metres on foot, 12 minutes. Head up Corso Gelone to Viale Paolo Orsi and enter through the Neapolis Archaeological Park. The route is flat, well lit and safe even after the show.
Edition archive
Recent seasons of the Classical Performances at the Greek Theatre of Siracusa.
- Electra — Sophocles
- Oedipus at Colonus — Sophocles
- Lysistrata — Aristophanes
- Iliad — from Homer
- Ajax — Sophocles
- Phaedra — Euripides
- Miles Gloriosus — Plautus
- Prometheus Bound — Aeschylus
- Medea — Euripides
- Peace — Aristophanes
- Agamemnon — Aeschylus
- Oedipus Rex — Sophocles
- Iphigenia in Tauris — Euripides
- Libation Bearers / Eumenides — Aeschylus
- Clouds — Aristophanes
- Bacchae — Euripides
- Helen — Euripides
- Trojan Women — Euripides
- Lysistrata — Aristophanes
- Oedipus at Colonus — Sophocles
- Heracles — Euripides
- Knights — Aristophanes
- Seven Against Thebes — Aeschylus
- Phoenician Women — Euripides
- Frogs — Aristophanes
Past editions remain in the festival archive. For the complete history of every season since 1914, the INDA website holds programmes, casts and production materials.
And this year, what's on stage?
The 61st INDA season, "Sconfinamenti": five productions between the Greek Theatre and the Latomia del Paradiso, with programme, cast, dates and tickets.
See the 2026 season12 minutes from the theatre,
on foot.
From PhotoGuest to the Greek Theatre: 950 metres. Availability during the Classical Performances fills up quickly — book your festival nights early.
Check availability →