Festival IMAGO 2026 – France

What to expect in 2026

Festival IMAGO 2026 is the sixth edition of the French festival dedicated to inclusive artistic creation and to artists in situations of disability. The festival brings together live performance, theatre, dance, circus, music, puppetry, cinema, exhibitions, poetry, object theatre, clowning, LSF performances, professional meetings and other cultural activities. Its central artistic approach is to place artists with disabilities at the heart of artistic creation rather than treating accessibility only as an additional service.

The festival is particularly distinctive because it is not concentrated in one theatre or one city. Its programme is distributed through a large network of cultural venues, theatres, cinemas, libraries, museums and other partner spaces, mainly across Île-de-France and Nouvelle-Aquitaine, with cinema programming also extending into other parts of France.

Visitors can expect a programme designed around different artistic forms and audiences. Some productions focus directly on disability, while others simply include artists with disabilities within wider contemporary artistic practices. This creates a programme covering subjects such as identity, relationships, bodies, perception, society, imagination and human experience.

The festival also has a professional dimension. Its Plateaux IMAGO initiative helps programmers discover companies and developing projects involving artists with disabilities, while the wider festival creates opportunities for cultural venues, artists, audiences and professional networks to meet.

Event dates

Festival IMAGO 2026 runs from September 9 to December 27, 2026. The official festival website identifies this as the sixth edition and presents the programme across several months.

Because individual productions take place at different venues, visitors should check the specific event page for the exact performance time, venue, duration, age recommendation, accessibility provisions and booking arrangements.

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Venue & performance locations

Festival IMAGO does not have a single permanent festival site. Instead, the 2026 edition takes place across a broad network of cultural venues, particularly in Île-de-France and Nouvelle-Aquitaine. The official partners list includes theatres, cinemas, libraries, cultural centres, museums and other specialist venues.

Important participating locations include:

• Theatres and performance venues across Paris and the surrounding Île-de-France departments.
• Cultural centres such as Visages du Monde in Cergy-Pontoise.
• Cinema venues presenting the festival’s dedicated film programme.
• Libraries and media libraries hosting performances, exhibitions and cultural activities.
• Museums and visual-art spaces presenting exhibitions.
• Nouvelle-Aquitaine venues, particularly around Bordeaux through the festival’s partnership network.
• Specialist venues working with inclusive and accessible artistic practices.

The official partners list includes venues such as Halle Saint Pierre in Paris, Le Cube in the Val-d’Oise, Théâtre Le Colombier in Ville-d’Avray, Théâtre Eurydice in Plaisir, Théâtre Simone Signoret in Conflans-Sainte-Honorine, Théâtre du Cristal, IVT International Visual Theater and TNBA in Bordeaux.

Since each venue has its own seating, transport and accessibility arrangements, visitors should use the individual event listing rather than assuming that facilities are identical across the festival.

Full programme

The 2026 programme covers a particularly broad range of disciplines. The official programme categories include theatre, dance, cinema, circus, music, exhibitions, professional meetings, storytelling, LSF dance, LSF theatre, puppetry, chansigne, object theatre, poetry, clowning, LSF performances and unconventional guided visits.

The programme currently includes productions and projects such as:

• Monsieur Patate by Compagnie Bancale, a circus work built around Karim Randé’s personal experience and the use of specially developed prostheses.
• Sourdre, a dance project involving Zoé Besmond de Senneville.
• Blocks, a dance production.
• Bal magnétique, combining dance and a participatory atmosphere.
• À force 2, a dance performance.
• Roues Libres, a theatre production.
• Resto Dingo, a theatre-clown work.
• Les Fables de Marie de France, presented as LSF theatre.
• H2H (Human to Human), combining circus and theatre.
• Ysengrin, a theatrical production incorporating sign language and music.
• Une chose vraie, a theatre production.
• Livré pour vous, a production presented at IVT International Visual Theater.
• La vie de Lise, Crip Camp: La révolution des éclopés, Mon inséparable and Blue Heron within the cinema programme.
• Art brut Ressourcé – La “S” Grand Atelier, D’autres voix, La beauté en moi, Faune et flore and the exhibition dedicated to Camille Laudière.

The official programme remains searchable by discipline, accessibility provision, department and audience type, allowing visitors to build a personalised itinerary.

Featured productions & performers

The 2026 programme features artists and companies working across different forms of inclusive creation. Rather than relying on one headliner, Festival IMAGO builds its programme around a large group of artists and companies.

Compagnie Bancale presents Monsieur Patate, created around Karim Randé and Pablo Valarcher. The work explores physical ability, prostheses, performance and the relationship between the body and circus practice. Karim Randé’s experience of amputation becomes material for an acrobatic performance that questions conventional perceptions of disability.

Ysengrin brings together Isabelle Florido or Célia Darnoux, Aurore Corominas, Laurent Besson and Sylvain Guichard, with Nicolas Fagart directing and Maxime Dupuis responsible for musical composition. The production incorporates French Sign Language within its artistic structure.

Livré pour vous is presented by Cie Le Compost and combines theatre with an accessible approach through French Sign Language. Its official event page lists the production as suitable for a broad public with an age recommendation and identifies accessibility arrangements at the venue.

Other artists and companies appear across dance, theatre, music, circus, visual arts and cinema, creating a programme in which no single artistic discipline dominates.

Shows & performances

The live-performance programme covers both established and emerging approaches to inclusive theatre and contemporary performance. Theatre productions are accompanied by dance, circus, music, puppetry, clowning and hybrid forms, allowing visitors to choose events according to their preferred artistic style.

The programme includes performances for adults as well as younger audiences. Individual event pages identify whether a production is intended for everyone, younger audiences, school groups or particular age ranges.

Several productions are also designed around specific accessibility formats. These can include LSF, audiodescription, surtitles, Bettear assisted listening, Relax sessions, vibrating vests and other systems depending on the venue and production.

This makes the festival useful for visitors who want to experience inclusive artistic practices directly rather than simply attending an event about disability or accessibility.

Performance schedule

There is no single daily festival timetable because the programme is spread across numerous venues. Instead, each production has its own performance schedule and booking information.

The official programme can be filtered by:

• Artistic discipline
• Accessibility provision
• French department
• Audience type
• Performance or exhibition format

Individual event pages provide the venue, address, performance time, duration, age guidance, telephone contact, booking information and available accessibility services.

For example, the official listing for Une chose vraie provides its performance time, duration, venue, audience recommendation, ticket range and accessibility information directly on the event page.

Visitors should therefore plan around individual productions rather than attempting to follow a single festival-wide timetable.

Ticket types

Festival IMAGO does not use one universal ticket price. Admission is set according to the individual production and host venue.

Examples from officially published 2026 event pages include:

• Standard event tickets: Ysengrin is listed at $7–$16, converted from the published €6–€14 range.
• Theatre tickets: Une chose vraie is listed at $9–$21, converted from the published €8–€18 range.
• IVT performance tickets: Livré pour vous is listed at $13–$31, converted from the published €11–€27 range.
• Free events: the festival’s inauguration at the Nautilus was officially announced as free and open to everyone.

The conversions use approximately €1 = $1.13, reflecting the late-September 2026 EUR/USD reference range.

Because prices are determined by the host venue and production, visitors should always check the individual event page before booking.

Ticket release & booking

Booking is handled through the individual event or venue information shown on the official Festival IMAGO programme. The festival website provides the event description and a Réserver booking option when online reservations are available.

This decentralized approach means there is no single ticket format covering every performance. Some events may use online booking, while others may require visitors to contact the host venue directly.

Before purchasing, visitors should check:

• Venue: Confirm the exact location.
• Performance time: Individual productions have their own schedules.
• Age guidance: Some shows have specific audience recommendations.
• Accessibility: Check the accessibility symbols attached to the event.
• Booking method: Follow the reservation link supplied by the official listing.
• Venue contact: Use the telephone or other contact details shown on the event page if assistance is required.

VIP & premium seating

Festival IMAGO is not presented as a VIP-oriented commercial festival and the official website does not advertise a general VIP pass, premium seating package or festival-wide collector programme.

The festival instead emphasizes artistic discovery, inclusion, accessibility and relationships between artists, cultural venues and audiences. Its professional activities are aimed primarily at programmers, cultural professionals and organizations interested in inclusive artistic creation.

Some individual theatres may operate their own seating categories or hospitality arrangements, but these should be treated as venue-specific rather than Festival IMAGO-wide benefits.

For professional visitors, the Plateaux IMAGO initiative is particularly relevant because it provides opportunities to discover companies and projects and supports the circulation of inclusive performing arts.

Event rules

Because Festival IMAGO takes place across independent partner venues, visitors must follow the rules of the specific theatre, cinema, museum, library or cultural centre hosting each event.

Standard expectations include arriving in accordance with the venue’s admission procedures, respecting performers and other audience members, following staff instructions and observing any venue-specific restrictions concerning photography, recording, food, bags and movement.

Accessibility arrangements can also involve advance reservation. For example, some events specify accessibility on reservation or provide dedicated arrangements for people with reduced mobility. Visitors should read the individual event information carefully before attending.

How to get there

There is no single transport route for Festival IMAGO because the event is distributed across numerous French cities and departments.

The principal festival territory is Île-de-France, with additional activity in Nouvelle-Aquitaine and cinema programming in other parts of France. The official venue network includes Paris, Cergy-Pontoise, Bordeaux, Ville-d’Avray, Plaisir, Conflans-Sainte-Honorine, Guyancourt, Montreuil, Les Lilas, Meaux, Taverny and many other locations.

The most reliable approach is to select a performance first and then use the address displayed on its official Festival IMAGO page. This is especially important for visitors attending several productions because different events can take place in different municipalities.

Public transport & parking

Public transport is particularly useful for the Île-de-France portion of the festival because many participating venues are located in Paris and surrounding departments.

Individual event pages provide the exact venue address and contact information, allowing visitors to plan using the local transport network. Because the festival does not operate from one centralized site, parking arrangements also differ considerably between venues.

Visitors travelling by car should check the host venue’s parking information before departure rather than assuming that festival parking is available. For exhibitions and performances in central Paris, public transport may be more practical, while suburban venues can have different parking arrangements.

Accommodation areas

There is no single official Festival IMAGO accommodation area or festival hotel because the programme is geographically distributed.

For visitors attending several events in the Île-de-France programme, accommodation in central Paris can provide access to many venues, while Cergy-Pontoise and the Val-d’Oise may be more convenient for visitors concentrating on the northern and western parts of the programme.

Visitors focusing on Nouvelle-Aquitaine can consider Bordeaux as their main base because the festival has developed a partnership network there through the Glob Théâtre.

The festival does not currently publish a single official hotel list, so accommodation should be selected according to the particular performances on your itinerary.

Dining & refreshments

Festival IMAGO does not publish a single festival-wide dining programme because performances are hosted by numerous independent cultural venues.

Visitors can therefore expect food and refreshments to depend on the individual theatre, cinema, cultural centre or surrounding neighbourhood. Some venues may have cafés or nearby restaurants, while others are located within urban areas where visitors can use local restaurants and cafés before or after performances.

For a multi-event visit, it is sensible to check the location of each performance in advance and allow sufficient travel time between venues, especially when attending productions in different municipalities.

Accessibility

Accessibility is one of the defining elements of Festival IMAGO. The official festival accessibility page explains that partner venues can provide different measures depending on the event and location. These include wheelchair access, French Sign Language, audiodescription, surtitles, subtitles for deaf and hard-of-hearing audiences, magnetic loops, Bettear assisted listening, Relax sessions, vibrating vests and the Souffleurs d’Images service.

The festival uses accessibility pictograms on individual event pages so visitors can identify available provisions before booking. The exact services differ from one production to another, so visitors should not assume that every event provides the same facilities.

The festival also works with organizations including Accès Culture, Souffleurs de Sens and Retour d’image. Souffleurs d’Images can provide personalized assistance for blind or visually impaired visitors, while Retour d’image contributes to the cinema programme and accessible film practices.

Best performances to attend

Rather than having one official ranking of performances, Festival IMAGO offers different experiences depending on the visitor’s interests.

For circus: Monsieur Patate by Compagnie Bancale is a notable option because it places prostheses, physical performance and personal experience directly into an acrobatic circus form.

For theatre and LSF: Ysengrin combines theatre, French Sign Language, music and voice, creating a multidisciplinary performance structure.

For accessible theatre: Livré pour vous is an option for visitors interested in theatre with French Sign Language accessibility.

For cinema: The programme includes films such as Crip Camp: La révolution des éclopés, La vie de Lise, Mon inséparable and Blue Heron, allowing visitors to explore disability and representation through cinema.

For exhibitions: Art brut Ressourcé – La “S” Grand Atelier, D’autres voix, La beauté en moi, Faune et flore and the Camille Laudière exhibition provide visual-art alternatives to the live-performance programme.

Previous year’s highlights

Festival IMAGO is a biennial event that has been developing since 2016. Previous editions have brought together theatre, dance, music, puppetry, cinema, exhibitions, professional meetings and other artistic forms connected with inclusive creation. The official archive includes previous editions covering the festival’s development over the years.

The previous major edition expanded the festival’s national dimension through a partnership with the Glob Théâtre in Bordeaux. The organizer described this development as an important step in extending the festival beyond its historic Île-de-France base.

The artistic programme has also become more diverse in terms of participating artists and companies. Previous programming included international work such as Hamlet by Peruvian company Teatro La Plaza, presented at L’Azimut, demonstrating the festival’s interest in artistic projects from beyond France.

The professional Plateaux IMAGO initiative has also contributed to the development of later festival programmes. The most recent professional edition selected around twenty companies to present developing projects, supporting the discovery and circulation of inclusive performing arts.

Official tickets

Official booking information is available through the Festival IMAGO website and the individual pages for each performance, exhibition or cinema event. Because the festival uses many partner venues, the reservation process and ticket price can differ from one event to another.

Visitors should use the official event listing to confirm the venue, performance time, ticket range, age recommendation, booking link and accessibility arrangements before purchasing.

The festival’s official website is also the best source for programme updates, new performances, venue information and changes to individual event schedules.