MIF is back. Gather your friends and family, find your joy and Dream Differently this summer.
Factory International has announced the 2025 edition of the Manchester International Festival (MIF) is back from Thursday 3 July to Sunday 20 July 2025, the first under new Creative Director Low Kee Hong.
Working with partners across the city and the world to build on the MIF legacy, the wide-ranging, multi-artform programme of groundbreaking world premieres will inspire fresh perspectives, challenge conventional thought and invite audiences to ‘dream differently’ - envision new possibilities, brighter futures and utopian spaces. Presenting some of the most exciting creative minds of our generation, the programme champions indigenous artists and creators from the Global South, expanding the Festival’s renowned international impact as well as fostering deep connections with local artists and communities in the North West of England.
Blackhaine, Eric Cantona, Edgar Davids, Juliet Ellis, FAFSWAG, Andy Field and Becky Darlington, Ryan Gander, John Grant, Shilpa Gupta, Germaine Kruip, Juan Mata, Amir Nizar Nuabi, Ntombizodwa Nyoni, Orchestral Qawwali Project, Paul Pfieffer Keiken, The Royal Ballet, Hans Ulrich Obrist, Rosabel Tan, Ella Toone, Venture Arts, Jonathan Watkins, Ed Watson, Josh Willdigg and Santiago Yahuarcani are just some of the names who will be contributing to this extraordinary bi-annual celebration of creativity in 2025.
The Festival celebrates Manchester as a global hub of creative innovation, presenting work throughout the city and taking over venues across Manchester, including Aviva Studios, HOME, and the Royal Exchange, and this year the Festival is venturing further out than ever before with new work being presented in Rochdale and Wigan.
On the opening weekend hundreds of participants will join puppeteers in THE HERDS to parade animals made in Manchester through the city streets and beyond to open the festival. 160 young people will participate in a schools showcase taking over Festival Square and 489 school children from across all 10 boroughs of Greater Manchester will work alongside artists to create The Inheritance.
For the first time ever, the festival will be partnering with The Royal Ballet to present a stage version of Christopher Isherwood’s acclaimed novel A Single Man at Aviva Studios, with former Royal Ballet Principal Edward Watson performing the central role.
One of the other most-notable events on the lineup is Football City, Art United created by an ambitious group of artists and footballers, led by former Manchester United star Juan Mata, which aims to expand the worlds of art and football, and the cultural contributions they both make, through sculptures, sound installations, and animations.
There will also be three specific weekends of community activations curated and hosted by MIF’s Neighbourhood Organisers and the heart of MIF, Festival Square returns with a free programme of live music and performances outside Aviva Studios, and this year also flowing indoors to the Social.
Tickets for MIF25 on sale now to Factory International members and on general sale 10am 19 March.
MIF25 runs Thursday 3 July to Sunday 20 July 2025 - Full line up available HERE