Dream Differently - Manchester International Festival 2025
14 Jul 2025
Manchester International Festival 2025 takes over the city with diverse programme across Greater Manchester
From 3–20 July, Factory International’s Manchester International Festival (MIF25) invites audiences to “dream differently” with a city-wide celebration of boundary-pushing art. Events span Greater Mancheste including Rochdale and Wigan and feature world premieres, community showcases, and global voices.
The University proudly supports MIF25, with THE HERDS opening the festival through a powerful climate-focused puppet procession. Don’t miss Festival Square for free performances and The Beginning of Knowledge at the Whitworth, showcasing Indigenous artist Santiago Yahuarcani. Explore the full programme and join the celebration of creativity, hope, and new futures.
Creative Director at Factory International and member of the Creative Manchester Research Platform Advisory Board, Low Kee Hong says: 'It has been an incredible journey building the MIF25 programme with such a diverse range of artists from around the world whose voices are ever more critical in these challenging times. They encourage us to lean into visions of other possible futures, encounter cosmologies unfamiliar to our own, and enter into worlds that propose a re-enchantment of dreaming to rediscover our ability for joy, hope and belief in each other and our communities to build these tomorrows we want to be part of.'