10 Events Not to Be Missed in Venice in February 2026

Beyond Carnival, which this year celebrates the Olympic spirit of Milan-Cortina, what are the things to do in Venice in February 2026? There are many alternatives to the grand spectacle on the Arsenale Water Show and the parades of allegorical floats—one of the most eagerly awaited events in the city—in every corner of the lagoon and the mainland. Music, cinema, opera, art, photography: there really is something for everyone.

The second month of the year is ideal for immersing yourself in the magic of Carnival, spending a weekend of vacation and relaxation in one of Italy's most beautiful cities of art, or enjoying exhibitions, concerts, and shows in Venetian splendor. February has always been a month full of unmissable events, with plenty to see and savor in all the municipalities and islands.

In addition to visits and tours of the city's landmarks, Venice offers endless things to do for those in search of culture and entertainment. It may not be Milan, the capital of concerts featuring the coolest international bands, but it guarantees plenty of live music, as well as interesting exhibitions in precious museums and galleries and historic theaters offering plays full of emotion and vitality.

It is precisely in the period between Christmas and the historic Carnival that the Lagoon dresses up and shows its best side, offering unique and intriguing evenings and intense moments to be enjoyed to the fullest. Here are 10 spectacular events that characterize the month of February: everything worthwhile in Venice, accessible even at reasonable prices, can be found here.

Candiani Groove is back at the Candiani Cultural Center. The international music festival brings ancient traditions and contemporary soundscapes to the center of Mestre. The first of seven events in 2026 features Tengerton, the Mongolian quartet that brings the sounds of the steppe and the Gobi Desert to life. Their name is a play on words meaning "sounds and tones of the air," evoking the union between spirit and nature.

The ensemble performs a traditional form of Mongolian singing, harmonic throat singing, accompanied by the notes of the morin khuur, one of the most important musical instruments in Central Asia: a stringed instrument similar to the violin, whose sound closely resembles the whinnying of a horse. Hypnotic music that excites and harmonizes mind and body. Tickets cost €15, with various discounts available.

When: February 8
Where: Centro Culturale Candiani (Mestre)

On the occasion of the Venice Carnival and the sixtieth anniversary of his death, the Palazzetto Bru Zane is organizing a series of cine-concerts dedicated to the brilliant comedian with the impassive expression. Curated by Marco Bellano, there are three programs and, as in the silent film era, the images are accompanied by musical commentary on the piano by Gabriele Dal Santo, who has selected and arranged pieces by nineteenth-century composers.

The first soundtrack is for One Week and The Neighbors, short films from 1920 written and directed by Keaton and Eddie Cline. The second is for The Electric House from 1922 and The Balloonatic from 1923. The third focuses on the masterpiece Sherlock Jr., the ingenious medium-length film from 1924 that changed the history of cinema. Tickets cost between €5 and €10, with the option of a season ticket for the three film concerts at €24.

When: February 6, 7 and 8 
Where: Palazzetto Bru Zane

The 2026 edition of Carnival will be held from January 31 to February 17, with a program that combines history, art, and sports in homage to the Olympic year. Olympus - The Origins of the Game "refers to mythology and the harmony of body and mind, but also to Venice in centuries past, where Carnival was a great stage for competitions, acrobatic shows, and tests of collective skill, which anticipated the spirit of the modern Olympics," explain the organizers.

The full program is truly rich and satisfies every taste. Worth mentioning are the Arsenale Water Show (the show in Darsena Grande inspired by the epic history of the Olympic Games), the Official Dinner Show Il canto di Ambrosia in the halls of Ca' Vendramin Calergi, the Venice Carnival Street Show (an art festival spread across various fields, municipal centers, and islands in the lagoon), and the parades of allegorical floats in Pellestrina, Lido, Marghera, Mestre, and Zelarino.

When: until February 17 
Where: different locations

The work by the maestro from Busseto returns to the stage at La Fenice in the historic production that inaugurated the theater in 2004 after it was rebuilt following a fire in 1996. The staging, by Canadian director Robert Carsen, with sets and costumes by Patrick Kinmonth and choreography by Philippe Giraudeau, brings Verdi's masterpiece to life even after all this time.

Conductor Stefano Ranzani is responsible for the musical direction. The cast includes Rosa Feola (Violetta Valéry), Stefan Pop (Alfredo Germont), Roberto Frontali (Giorgio Germont), Barbara Massaro (Annina), Paolo Antognetti (Gastone, Viscount of Letorières), William Corrò (Marquis d'Obigny), Mattia Denti (Doctor Grenvil), Armando Gabba (Baron Douphol), and Carlotta Vichi (Flora Bervoix). There are five performances scheduled, with tickets ranging from €120 to €340.

February 8, 11, 13, 15 and 17, Teatro La Fenice

For the Incroci in musica festival, Veneto Jazz brings the London-based collective dedicated to the preservation and promotion of Uyghur musical traditions to the Auditorium Santa Margherita. Led by singer Rahima Mahmut and composed of Ahmet Ozan Baysal (baglama), Dilzat Turdi (vocals and dap), Li Cheong (ghijek), and Kamil Abbas (tanbur), the ensemble performs folk songs and maqam pieces from traditional Arabic music.

Composer and performer Rahima Mahmut sets the poems of classics such as Fuzuli and Nava'i and persecuted Uyghur writers to music in order to preserve and celebrate the culture and music of her people. The result is a spiritual journey that offers the audience the opportunity to experience the depth and beauty of a little-known musical heritage. The ticket price (single unnumbered seat) is €17.

When: February 13,
Where: Auditorium Santa Margherita - Emanuele Severino

Playwright Marina Carr, considered one of the most incisive and original voices in contemporary Irish theater, reinterprets Goldoni's masterpiece in a powerful and contemporary version, directed by the talented Caitríona McLaughlin. The production, by the Teatro Stabile del Veneto - Teatro Nazionale with the Abbey Theatre - National Theatre of Ireland, features sets and costumes by Katie Davenport, lighting by Paul Keogan, and music by Anna Mullarkey.

The cast includes Gaja Masciale (Mirandolina), Alex Cendron (the father), Denis Fasolo (Fiori), Riccardo Gamba (Rip), Margherita Mannino (Ethel), Giancarlo Previati (the great-grandfather), Massimo Scola (Fabrizio), Andrea Tich (Alba), and Sandra Toffolatti (the mother). Tickets for this "classic with a contemporary twist" – the story "of a young woman and the price she pays for saying no" – range from €11 to €39, depending on the section.

February 13, 14 and 15, Teatro Goldoni

The second event of Candiani Groove in 2026 features the French-Syrian flutist, singer, and composer, accompanied for the occasion by double bassist Alexandre Perrot. The show, Quest of the Invisible, like the album that won the Victoires du Jazz 2019 award, creates a dialogue between different cultures and languages at the crossroads between non-Western mystical music and modal jazz. Jalal's songs oscillate between silence and contemplation, repetition and hypnotic trance, in a continuous search to connect with the invisible.

Composed of air and space, the repertoire of the musician, born in the Parisian suburbs to Syrian parents, draws on jazz and Sufi traditions, infusing her improvisations with a divine breath. "Her style is uniquely universal, while her lucid vision of our contemporary problems infuses her compositions with intensity and beauty", said Colin Bass, producer and longtime bassist for Camel. Tickets cost €15, with various discounts available.

When: February 15
Where: Centro Culturale Candiani (Mestre)

One of the most brilliant chamber music ensembles of the new European generation arrives at La Fenice for two performances. Founded in Cologne in 2019, the trio consists of German violinist Judith Stapf, Catalan cellist Arnau Rovira i Bascompte, and Italian pianist Marco Sanna. Their name comes from an Esperanto word meaning simply ear, emphasizing the essential importance of listening.

In their three albums, the musicians have paid tribute to American composer Amy Beach, Croatian and Swedish composers Dora Pejačević and Amanda Röntgen-Maier, and Czech composer Antonín Dvořák with their violin, cello, and piano. The program for the Venetian concerts includes Gabriel Fauré's Trio op. 120, Benjamin Britten's Introduction and Allegro, and Dora Pejačević's Trio op. 29. Tickets cost €40.

When: February 18 and 19
Where: Teatro La Fenice - Sale Apollinee

After Robert Mapplethorpe - The Classical Forms, Le Stanze della Fotografia presents another highly anticipated exhibition: a major exhibition dedicated to one of the absolute masters of 20th-century photography. During his long career, the king of fashion photography—famous for his Vogue covers—portrayed glamorous figures such as Salvador Dalí, Marlene Dietrich, Ingrid Bergman, Truman Capote, Jane Fonda, and Diane von Furstenberg.

Curated by Anne Morin in collaboration with Denis Curti, the Venetian exhibition (until July 5) goes beyond fashion photography and offers a new interpretation of his work with over 300 pieces, including color photographs, vintage prints, drawings, and documents. Much of this material is on display for the first time in Italy. Full price tickets cost €15.50, with discounts available for students and families, bringing the price down to €8.50.

When: From February 21 
When: Le Stanze della Fotografia (Isola di San Giorgio Maggiore) 

From December 13 to February 22, Palazzo Diedo is hosting an ice installation by one of Germany's leading artists. Created for the Milan-Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, Eisfeld II is a 100-square-meter ice rink set up in the frescoed hall on the first floor of the ancient 18th-century building in the Cannaregio district. Accompanying the public is a soundtrack that invites visitors to "experience an alienating sensory experience while in an enclosed space."

"The two light boxes Enjoy / Survive I & II, located at either end of the rink, invite visitors to reflect on the delicate balance between pleasure and survival, transforming the skating experience into a sensory and conceptual meditation," explain the organizers. A full-price ticket to visit the installation costs €12 and includes skate rental and access to the spaces of Palazzo Diedo with its frescoes on the main floor and site-specific works by other contemporary artists in the collection.

When: Until February 22
Where: Palazzo Diedo - Berggruen Arts & Culture