Where It All Began.
17–18 October 2026Limassol Municipal Garden, Cyprus
For two unforgettable days, the Limassol Municipal Garden became a gathering place for creativity, cultural exchange and shared experiences. Children, families, artists, performers and volunteers came together to celebrate imagination and the connections that make a community stronger. The inaugural edition of A Stage for the Future — organised by the Cypriots–Chinese Women & Children Association — was the first chapter of everything that follows.
Photograph from 2026
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Different Traditions. One Shared Stage.
Music, movement and tradition brought different cultures into conversation. From Chinese drums and lion and dragon dances to local performances and artistic expression, the festival created moments where people could discover something new and celebrate what brings us together.
Music on the stage
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Tradition in the garden
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Where Imagination Took the Lead.
Paintbrushes, colors, materials and curious hands transformed ordinary moments into creative adventures. Children were invited not simply to watch, but to participate, experiment and make something of their own.
Workshops
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Painting
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Making something new
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What follows is a historical record of what took place in this edition — not an upcoming programme. Times are shown as they were published.
As it happened
The Programme, Part by Part.
The programme of this edition, kept as it ran — the ceremony and the speakers who opened it, the performances, the workshops and the activities that filled the days.
The Ceremony & Speeches
How the days opened, and the words that opened them.
10:00
Doors opened
The gates of Limassol Municipal Garden opened and the first families arrived for the opening morning.
- Ms Lulu Tang
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11:30
Welcome and opening words
- Ms Lulu Tang · President & Founder, Cypriots-Chinese Women & Children Association
- Mr Kyriakos Xidias
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11:30
Words from the Mayor of Amathounta
- Mr Kyriakos Xidias · Mayor of Amathounta
- Ms Clea Papaellina
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11:30
Words from the Deputy Minister of Culture
- Ms Clea Papaellina · Deputy Minister of Culture
- Mr Yang Yun Dong
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11:30
Words from the Ambassador of the People's Republic of China
- Mr Yang Yun Dong · Ambassador of the People's Republic of China in Cyprus
Cultural Performances
Chinese and Cypriot music, dance and theatre, shared across the same stages and garden paths.
11:05
Elegant guzheng and cello performance
Chinese music with cello accompaniment.
12:00
Chinese drums, lion and dragon dance
Drums, lion and dragon dance brought the main stage and the garden paths to life.
12:30
Cheerleading performance
A young cheerleading team took the stage.
Chinese and Cypriot culture side by side
Traditional dance, folk music, storytelling and local craft shared the same garden.
Live music and cultural storytelling
Performances ran from morning into the evening across the stages and garden paths.
Workshops & Experiences
Sessions that anyone could join, running through both days.
10:00–11:00
Mindfulness and Chinese medicine experience
A guided mindfulness session with a short introduction to the ideas behind Chinese medicine.
11:00–11:30
Yoga kids
A playful, short yoga session made for younger children.
11:30–12:00
Yoga
A calm session on the garden lawn, open to grown-ups and children alike.
13:00–15:00
Tai chi experience lesson
A slow, open lesson in tai chi, with simple movements anyone could follow.
15:30–16:30
Lilibu story time
Story time with Lilibu, the festival's own character.
The Children's Programme
Where the youngest artists made the festival their own.
Children's art exhibitions
Curated displays of original works by young artists.
The Children's Art Forest
A gallery among the trees, where young artists' original works came to life outdoors.
Wishing tree
Hundreds of colourful ribbons, each one carrying a wish for the future.
Collaborative painting area
Children joined a colour team and painted together on a shared canvas.
After the Curtain.
More than 400 young artists
Hundreds of different visions and one shared belief — that a better future begins with imagination.
One garden, many communities
Families, schools, volunteers and partners from across Cyprus and China spent the weekend together.
Two days, one garden, endless moments
The first edition closed with the archive fuller, the stage louder and the promise of more to come.
With thanks · 2026
Thank You.
A festival is made by many hands. Our sincere thanks go to every person and every group who gave their time, their work and their heart to this edition.
The children and families
who painted, performed, played and filled the garden.
The performers and cultural groups
who brought Chinese and Cypriot traditions to the same stage.
The workshop leaders
who gave their time and their craft to everyone who joined.
The teachers and schools
who brought their students and their artwork to the festival.
The volunteers
who worked through both days so that all of it could happen.
Our partners and supporters
whose belief carried the inaugural edition.
Everyone who visited
the families and friends who made the first edition worth remembering.
A Stage for the Future is a project of the Cypriots–Chinese Women & Children Association (CWCA). Our thanks begin with the association and its team, who imagined this stage and built it.
