The Athens Epidaurus Festival invites emerging artists to submit proposals for GEN 260, as part of the 2027 Artistic Programme.
GEN 260 is an initiative of the artistic direction that aims to give a public platform to young directors who are at the end of their studies or have recently graduated from recognised directing schools, in Greece or abroad, and to function as a “hive” for the youngest generation of performing arts artists.
A mini festival within the Festival, GEN 260 launched in June 2026 at Peiraios 260, with the support of NEON Organization for Culture and Development. It is designed as an open, evolving framework for showcasing young creators of stage practice, with further synergies within and beyond the Athens Epidaurus Festival, in Greece and internationally.
GEN 260 is a bridge between the completion of directing studies and the start of a professional path, as well as a meeting point with professionals in the field. At the same time, it seeks to bring the audience in contact with the vibrant creativity and the distinct, personal directorial vision of young artists.

WHO CAN APPLY
The Open Call is addressed to young directors, final students and graduates of recognized schools specializing in directing in Greece (Theatre Department of the School of Fine Arts A.U., Drama School of the National Theater) as well as corresponding schools abroad. Those interested may have completed their studies within the last three years.
Proposals are encouraged for performances that:

• Have been presented as part of directing studies, as a graduation project or as coursework
• Have already been developed to a significant extent and are subject to further artistic development
• Have flexible staging and production requirements and can be realized with limited resources.

Proposals may concern new original works, adaptations, or works that have already been presented as part of studies.
Particular importance is given to proposals that:

• Explore new forms of stage expression and dramaturgy.
• Engage in dialogue with contemporary society and the issues of the human being and the era.

Works are recommended to run for no more than70 minutes.

LANGUAGE
Applications may be submitted in Greek or English.
Works may be presented in Greek or English.

SUBMISSION OF APPLICATIONS
Submissions are exclusively accepted through the official online form of the Athens Epidaurus Festival.
The application includes:

• Contact details
• Short bio (up to 150 words)
• Summary of the proposal (up to 250 words)
• Visual material supporting the proposal, as a PDF
• Audiovisual material supporting the proposal, as a video
• An excerpt of the text, applied for new original works or adaptations, as a PDF (optional)
• Credits and creative team of the proposal (up to 200 words)

During the evaluation process, additional information or material may be requested, as well as proof of studies—either a certificate of enrollment or final-year students or a diploma for graduates.
Questions regarding the submission process should be addressed exclusively to gen260@aefestival.gr.

TIMELINE
Application deadline: Tuesday 27 October 2026, 14:00 (EET / UTC+2)
Announcement of results: January 2027

VENUE
The selected GEN 260 works will be presented at Peiraios 260, as part of the 2027 Artistic Programme of the Athens Epidaurus Festival.

TERMS
Submission of the application form constitutes acceptance of the following terms and conditions:

• Submission of a proposal does not constitute acceptance into the Athens Epidaurus Festival programme.
• Proposed works must not have been previously commercialy presented in Greece.
• The Athens Epidaurus Festival reserves the right to request additional information or material during the evaluation process.
• The Festival’s Artistic Directorate is under no obligation to provide feedback or justification regarding proposals that are not selected.
• The financial terms of the selected proposals, as well as the relevant technical parameters of the presentation, will be communicated to the selected artists and finalised during the production process of GEN 260 2027.