Sagunt a Escena brings theatre and participatory dance to the Roman Theatre
The Sagunt a Escena festival presents the comedy 'Original Greek' at the Roman Theatre this Thursday, alongside the participatory show 'Bailarina a la carta' in Mossén Vicent Gil Tamarit square.
The Sagunt a Escena festival (Sagunto's summer theatre festival) continues this week with a new double bill of theatre and dance, taking over the Roman Theatre and Mossén Vicent Gil Tamarit square with two shows carrying a distinctly Valencian stamp. The main event is this Thursday, 6 August, at 10.30pm, at the Roman Theatre itself, with a performance of 'Original Greek', a comedy written by Juli Disla and Eva Mir and performed by Toni Agustí and Marina Alegre. The production reaches the festival through a collaboration with the Valencia Provincial Council's theatre department.
The play is the first production by the Valencian company Marina Toniovic, founded by its two lead actors. The story follows a couple who travel to Athens on holiday and, during their stay, end up questioning both their relationship and the way they relate to the places they visit. Through humour, the piece tackles current issues such as tourism, gentrification and consumption, themes that run through the whole story.
The 6 August programme starts earlier, at 8pm, in Mossén Vicent Gil Tamarit square, with 'Bailarina a la carta' (Dancer on demand), a show by Sagunto-born dancer, choreographer and stage director Ángela Verdugo. The performance marks 20 years of her company, La Siamesa, and stands out for its participatory format: the audience itself chooses the music pieces the performance is built around, meaning every show turns out different and unrepeatable.
The programme forms part of an edition of Sagunt a Escena that, as confirmed by Sagunto town hall, marks its 43rd edition in 2026, a track record that makes it one of the most established summer cultural events on the municipal calendar. The very venue hosting 'Original Greek', the Roman Theatre, carries a notable history of its own: a rehabilitation project by architects Giorgio Grassi and Manuel Portaceli, carried out between 1990 and 1994, was ruled contrary to heritage law by Spain's Supreme Court in three separate rulings, in 2000, 2003 and 2008, an episode that shaped the debate for years over how to intervene in the archaeological site without undermining its value.
For local audiences, the double bill combines two very different formats, scripted comedy and participatory dance, on the same day and across two of the city's landmark venues: the Roman Theatre archaeological site and the neighbourhood square of Mossén Vicent Gil Tamarit. The pairing reaffirms Sagunt a Escena's aim of spreading its programme between the Roman venue and smaller neighbourhood spaces, in an edition that also coincides with the 20th anniversary of La Siamesa on stage.
According to El Periódico de Aquí and Valencia Plaza, with additional background from Sagunto town hall and Wikipedia on the Roman Theatre.