Athens Festival 2020: Live Greek Performances

Athens is buzzing again. Summer cinemas have opened and bars and cafes are carefully welcoming locals and visitors with the brightest of smiles. Big summertime concerts are still up for discussion, giving rise to rooftop karaoke nights and spontaneous jams all over the city. The Athens & Epidaurus Festival however is too big to fall. The Odeon of Herodes Atticus may stand proud and awe-inspiring all on its own, but really, what it craves most are performances and a cheering crowd. This year, due to obvious reasons, the festival is simply a Fragment of itself, as mentioned in the official 2020 title, and has a shorter than usual programme, but a highly anticipated premiere. In 2020, it's all about live classical concerts and Greek performances letting rip below the Acropolis. Even if it's all Greek to you, the latter remain one of the most memorable nights out in Athens, even for the scenery alone.

• Catch a tribute to the great composer Thanos Mikroutsikos with an essential crash course in entechno, Greece's answer to fado, on July 15 &16.
• Get to know one of the most respected punk rock Greek singer Giannis Aggelakas, who along with celist Nikos Veliotis, will deliver a loving, minimal, psychedelic performance of their new album on July 30 & 31.
• Last but not least, Monika, one of the most-talked about Greek singers of the last decade will debut her new album on July 20 & 21.