The festival is founded with the aim of reclaiming streets as spaces for meeting, memory, coexistence, and collective creation. Over four days, the city will host up to 30 artistic experiences for all audiences, including street theater, circus, live music, dance, film, workshops, urban routes, and participatory installations.
The head of the department, Miriam Benítez, emphasized that ‘Calles Vivas’ is a commitment to a “public, accessible, and open culture for everyone,” aiming to fill Alcorcón with “music and joy” while also celebrating neighborhood pride and local identity.
Under the slogan ‘Todo esto era campo’ (All This Was Fields), the program offers an artistic and emotional journey through the memory of Alcorcón, recalling that the city was built not only with bricks but also with family stories, shared squares, and neighborhood movements. The festival updates the spirit of festivals that viewed the street as a political and poetic stage with a contemporary, multidisciplinary approach.
The inaugural program will kick off on Thursday, June 18, at 8:00 PM with an opening parade from Calle Mayor to Plaza de España. At 8:45 PM, a collective proclamation will take place in Plaza de España, followed at 9:00 PM by the performance ‘Possê’ by Sound de Secà, blending percussion, dance, theater, and voice.
Activities will unfold in various locations across Alcorcón, including Plaza de España, Plaza Reyes de España, Plaza Hispanidad, Parque de La Ribota, Parque de Los Castillos, Pinar del Rocío, Parque Abogados de Atocha, Calle Pablo Picasso, Calle Mayor 42, and Las Retamas station. Participating companies include La FAM, Eunoia Kolektiva, Eléctrico 28, L’Horta Teatre, and Xip Xap, with musical performances by El Nido, Sínkope, Bewis de la Rosa, and Variedades Azafrán.
The festival will also feature urban walks and guided tours, such as ‘Alcorcón psicogeográfico’ with Julio Monteverde on Friday, June 19, in Parque Mayarí; ‘Alcorcón de las piscinas’ with Jorge Dioni on Saturday, June 20, at Las Retamas train station; and ‘Alcorcón antirracista’ with Lucía Mbomio at the Auditorium of Parque de Los Castillos.
Citizens will play an active role through collective creation workshops and meeting spaces. On Saturday, June 20, the documentary ‘Ellas en la ciudad’ (They in the City) will be screened, followed by a discussion with the Clara Campoamor Association of Alcorcón. The closing event will include popular activities in Pinar del Rocío, such as a communal paella and a concert by Bewis de la Rosa.
The City Council asserts that the festival's main objective is to champion public space as a venue for coexistence and democratic construction, offering “live music, interactive theater, and about thirty artistic experiences” to welcome summer and celebrate the city and the memory of those who built it.
