Don’t just like it, live it!

Wednesday 13 May 2026, 20:30

The Spot Geneva presents Black Star (Talib Kweli and Yasiin Bey) at the Alhambra. This legendary conscious hip-hop duo celebrates three decades of collaboration with an intense and generous performance. Expect incisive lyrics, masterful flows, and raw energy, combining Yasiin Bey’s poetic and activist voice with Talib Kweli’s sharp wordplay. This concert promises to champion the values of authentic and committed hip-hop.

Wednesday 13 May, 18:30

Alice Botelho, born in Geneva in 2000, graduated from the Swiss Literature Institute in Biel and gained attention for theatrical adaptations of Nelly Arcan and a Bachelor thesis noted for its photographic prose.

This award ceremony includes readings of extracts from her debut novel Folie entre mes doigts and a discussion of the book’s themes: memory, image, and the interplay of color and contrast that shapes her narrative voice. She will reflect on creative process and form.

In French.

Wednesday 13 May, 19:00

Two young Geneva-based artists, Boucle and Martin Costaz, share delicate, poetic songcraft blending soft pop, folk and intimate lyricism. Recognized through the La Lentille showcase at the Voix de Fête festival, they explore quiet textures and close harmonies, balancing fragile melodies with vibrant moments. The programme favors intimacy and attentive listening, creating a warm, contemplative atmosphere. Presented in collaboration with the Voix de Fête festival and organised by the Culture and Communication Department (SCC).

In French.

Wednesday 13 May, 21:00

Lucio Castro’s 2025 film observes Adnan, a young art student who arrives in New York for a summer internship at a gallery where an unconventional older artist he once met exhibits. As past and present interleave, encounters—artistic and erotic—fracture his everyday reality. Castro’s camera favors intimate textures and quiet surrealism, blending raw tenderness with a serene, Dada-tinged lyricism. Presented at ACID, Cannes 2025, the film probes desire, memory and the unstable architecture of romantic longing.

Video discussion with the director Lucio Castro.

In English, Spanish – French subtitles.

12 & 13 May

Olivier Hamant’s lecture delves into the shortcomings of traditional measurement and evaluation tools in capturing the complexity of artistic and collective processes. Drawing inspiration from living systems, it suggests alternative approaches that are slower, more flexible, and aligned with relational dynamics and unseen transformations, as part of a collaboration between MAH and least.

In French.

Wednesday 13 May, 19:00

Ensemble Sinfonietta Bern performs the spellbinding soundtrack of Hayao Miyazaki’s Spirited Away, weaving Joe Hisaishi’s luminous orchestration into a live cinematic experience. The music underscores themes of courage, resilience and the uncanny as the film’s enigmatic spirit world unfolds. Delicate solos and sweeping textures evoke the film’s emotional arcs, while the ensemble’s intimate dynamics reveal hidden details of the score. The result is a transporting sonic journey that balances wonder, melancholia and communal memory.

Wednesday 13 May 2026, 20:30

The Spot Geneva presents Black Star (Talib Kweli and Yasiin Bey) at the Alhambra. This legendary conscious hip-hop duo celebrates three decades of collaboration with an intense and generous performance. Expect incisive lyrics, masterful flows, and raw energy, combining Yasiin Bey’s poetic and activist voice with Talib Kweli’s sharp wordplay. This concert promises to champion the values of authentic and committed hip-hop.

Wednesday 13 May, 18:30

Alice Botelho, born in Geneva in 2000, graduated from the Swiss Literature Institute in Biel and gained attention for theatrical adaptations of Nelly Arcan and a Bachelor thesis noted for its photographic prose.

This award ceremony includes readings of extracts from her debut novel Folie entre mes doigts and a discussion of the book’s themes: memory, image, and the interplay of color and contrast that shapes her narrative voice. She will reflect on creative process and form.

In French.

Wednesday 13 May, 19:00

Two young Geneva-based artists, Boucle and Martin Costaz, share delicate, poetic songcraft blending soft pop, folk and intimate lyricism. Recognized through the La Lentille showcase at the Voix de Fête festival, they explore quiet textures and close harmonies, balancing fragile melodies with vibrant moments. The programme favors intimacy and attentive listening, creating a warm, contemplative atmosphere. Presented in collaboration with the Voix de Fête festival and organised by the Culture and Communication Department (SCC).

In French.

Wednesday 13 May, 21:00

Lucio Castro’s 2025 film observes Adnan, a young art student who arrives in New York for a summer internship at a gallery where an unconventional older artist he once met exhibits. As past and present interleave, encounters—artistic and erotic—fracture his everyday reality. Castro’s camera favors intimate textures and quiet surrealism, blending raw tenderness with a serene, Dada-tinged lyricism. Presented at ACID, Cannes 2025, the film probes desire, memory and the unstable architecture of romantic longing.

Video discussion with the director Lucio Castro.

In English, Spanish – French subtitles.

12 & 13 May

Olivier Hamant’s lecture delves into the shortcomings of traditional measurement and evaluation tools in capturing the complexity of artistic and collective processes. Drawing inspiration from living systems, it suggests alternative approaches that are slower, more flexible, and aligned with relational dynamics and unseen transformations, as part of a collaboration between MAH and least.

In French.

Wednesday 13 May, 19:00

Ensemble Sinfonietta Bern performs the spellbinding soundtrack of Hayao Miyazaki’s Spirited Away, weaving Joe Hisaishi’s luminous orchestration into a live cinematic experience. The music underscores themes of courage, resilience and the uncanny as the film’s enigmatic spirit world unfolds. Delicate solos and sweeping textures evoke the film’s emotional arcs, while the ensemble’s intimate dynamics reveal hidden details of the score. The result is a transporting sonic journey that balances wonder, melancholia and communal memory.

Wednesday 13 May 2026, 20:30

The Spot Geneva presents Black Star (Talib Kweli and Yasiin Bey) at the Alhambra. This legendary conscious hip-hop duo celebrates three decades of collaboration with an intense and generous performance. Expect incisive lyrics, masterful flows, and raw energy, combining Yasiin Bey’s poetic and activist voice with Talib Kweli’s sharp wordplay. This concert promises to champion the values of authentic and committed hip-hop.

Wednesday 13 May, 18:30

Alice Botelho, born in Geneva in 2000, graduated from the Swiss Literature Institute in Biel and gained attention for theatrical adaptations of Nelly Arcan and a Bachelor thesis noted for its photographic prose.

This award ceremony includes readings of extracts from her debut novel Folie entre mes doigts and a discussion of the book’s themes: memory, image, and the interplay of color and contrast that shapes her narrative voice. She will reflect on creative process and form.

In French.

Wednesday 13 May, 19:00

Two young Geneva-based artists, Boucle and Martin Costaz, share delicate, poetic songcraft blending soft pop, folk and intimate lyricism. Recognized through the La Lentille showcase at the Voix de Fête festival, they explore quiet textures and close harmonies, balancing fragile melodies with vibrant moments. The programme favors intimacy and attentive listening, creating a warm, contemplative atmosphere. Presented in collaboration with the Voix de Fête festival and organised by the Culture and Communication Department (SCC).

In French.

Wednesday 13 May, 21:00

Lucio Castro’s 2025 film observes Adnan, a young art student who arrives in New York for a summer internship at a gallery where an unconventional older artist he once met exhibits. As past and present interleave, encounters—artistic and erotic—fracture his everyday reality. Castro’s camera favors intimate textures and quiet surrealism, blending raw tenderness with a serene, Dada-tinged lyricism. Presented at ACID, Cannes 2025, the film probes desire, memory and the unstable architecture of romantic longing.

Video discussion with the director Lucio Castro.

In English, Spanish – French subtitles.

12 & 13 May

Olivier Hamant’s lecture delves into the shortcomings of traditional measurement and evaluation tools in capturing the complexity of artistic and collective processes. Drawing inspiration from living systems, it suggests alternative approaches that are slower, more flexible, and aligned with relational dynamics and unseen transformations, as part of a collaboration between MAH and least.

In French.

Wednesday 13 May, 19:00

Ensemble Sinfonietta Bern performs the spellbinding soundtrack of Hayao Miyazaki’s Spirited Away, weaving Joe Hisaishi’s luminous orchestration into a live cinematic experience. The music underscores themes of courage, resilience and the uncanny as the film’s enigmatic spirit world unfolds. Delicate solos and sweeping textures evoke the film’s emotional arcs, while the ensemble’s intimate dynamics reveal hidden details of the score. The result is a transporting sonic journey that balances wonder, melancholia and communal memory.

15 – 16 May

Nina Cachelin’s debut stand-up blends sharp observational comedy and playful improvisation to probe success, careers and what it means to live a fulfilled life. With a wry, candid voice and quick theatrical instincts, she turns everyday anxieties into comic scenes that build into evocative reflections on ambition and self-worth. Expect intimate storytelling, spontaneous audience riffs and warm, slightly offbeat humour that reveals as much as it laughs.

In French.

15 & 16 May, 21:00

Thibaud Agoston offers a frank, intimate stand-up that navigates love, friendship, sexuality and loss through the frame of a recent breakup. In this third and most personal show he mixes sharp observation and self-deprecating humour to transform sadness into laugh-out-loud moments. A leading figure of Swiss stand-up, Agoston brings experience from radio and televised columns and major comedy festivals to a compact, emotionally charged hour on stage.

In French.

Saturday 16 May, 20:00

Led by artistic director Amal Guermazi, Mazzika Orchestra & Guests offers an orchestral journey through the musical heritage of the Orient and the Maghreb. Soloists and virtuoso musicians reawaken timeless songs with lush orchestral arrangements that balance fidelity and contemporary flair. The music moves between intimate passages and sweeping climaxes, evoking nostalgia, warmth and communal memory. The performance unfolds as a sensory voyage, where orchestral colour and vocal expressiveness invite listening, feeling and shared celebration.

Saturday 16 May, 14:00

Paint a giant yellow floor mural together. Run through hopscotch squares, curl along an earthworm, spin on Twister rings and trace a snail’s spiral as children add bright colors and playful shapes. Little brushes, big sweeps, laughing voices and splashes of paint bring the design to life. This hands-on activity invites families to create patterns, step into games, and discover how simple marks can become a shared artwork full of movement and color.

Kids ages 0 and up.

Saturday 16 May, 18:30

Five students from eMa’s PréPro course present a series of thirty-minute sets that map emerging musical voices. Performers include Matilde De Quarti (vocals, acoustic guitar) with cello and piano textures, Léa Gamba (guitar, vocals and loopers), an electronic set by ELIA (piano, machines) with guests, and the bands burn the calendar and Concorde blending indie rock, electro and alternative sounds. The first edition foregrounds original songs, inventive covers and intimate sonic exploration, moving between fragile balladry and charged, rhythmic grooves.

16 – 23 May

The Gonet Geneva Open is a premier ATP 250 tennis tournament held at the Parc des Eaux-Vives. It draws some of the world’s top players for a week of clay-court battles, transforming Geneva into a vibrant hub for international tennis.

Wednesday 13 May 2026, 20:30

The Spot Geneva presents Black Star (Talib Kweli and Yasiin Bey) at the Alhambra. This legendary conscious hip-hop duo celebrates three decades of collaboration with an intense and generous performance. Expect incisive lyrics, masterful flows, and raw energy, combining Yasiin Bey’s poetic and activist voice with Talib Kweli’s sharp wordplay. This concert promises to champion the values of authentic and committed hip-hop.

Wednesday 13 May, 18:30

Alice Botelho, born in Geneva in 2000, graduated from the Swiss Literature Institute in Biel and gained attention for theatrical adaptations of Nelly Arcan and a Bachelor thesis noted for its photographic prose.

This award ceremony includes readings of extracts from her debut novel Folie entre mes doigts and a discussion of the book’s themes: memory, image, and the interplay of color and contrast that shapes her narrative voice. She will reflect on creative process and form.

In French.

Wednesday 13 May, 19:00

Two young Geneva-based artists, Boucle and Martin Costaz, share delicate, poetic songcraft blending soft pop, folk and intimate lyricism. Recognized through the La Lentille showcase at the Voix de Fête festival, they explore quiet textures and close harmonies, balancing fragile melodies with vibrant moments. The programme favors intimacy and attentive listening, creating a warm, contemplative atmosphere. Presented in collaboration with the Voix de Fête festival and organised by the Culture and Communication Department (SCC).

In French.

Wednesday 13 May, 21:00

Lucio Castro’s 2025 film observes Adnan, a young art student who arrives in New York for a summer internship at a gallery where an unconventional older artist he once met exhibits. As past and present interleave, encounters—artistic and erotic—fracture his everyday reality. Castro’s camera favors intimate textures and quiet surrealism, blending raw tenderness with a serene, Dada-tinged lyricism. Presented at ACID, Cannes 2025, the film probes desire, memory and the unstable architecture of romantic longing.

Video discussion with the director Lucio Castro.

In English, Spanish – French subtitles.

12 & 13 May

Olivier Hamant’s lecture delves into the shortcomings of traditional measurement and evaluation tools in capturing the complexity of artistic and collective processes. Drawing inspiration from living systems, it suggests alternative approaches that are slower, more flexible, and aligned with relational dynamics and unseen transformations, as part of a collaboration between MAH and least.

In French.

Wednesday 13 May, 19:00

Ensemble Sinfonietta Bern performs the spellbinding soundtrack of Hayao Miyazaki’s Spirited Away, weaving Joe Hisaishi’s luminous orchestration into a live cinematic experience. The music underscores themes of courage, resilience and the uncanny as the film’s enigmatic spirit world unfolds. Delicate solos and sweeping textures evoke the film’s emotional arcs, while the ensemble’s intimate dynamics reveal hidden details of the score. The result is a transporting sonic journey that balances wonder, melancholia and communal memory.

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CoolBytes

Celebrating Geneva’s vibrant heartbeat and the stories shaping culture today

Writer, interviewer, collector of conversations. Alain Elkann has sat across from presidents, cardinals, artists, and Nobel Prize winners — thousands of conversations spanning decades — and never once posed a question he wasn't willing to abandon. I met him at his home in Geneva to talk a bit about everything: the craft of the interview, the future of books, why common sense might be the most underrated virtue of our time, and the advice that has stayed with him since childhood.
Chef Florian Le Bouhec shares his favorite Geneva spots — from his go-to café for inspiration to the cultural discoveries that spark his creativity.

Geneva Classics

Visiting for the first time? A quick guide to the city’s top attractions.

The MEG is a renowned museum dedicated to the exploration and presentation of cultural diversity from around the world. Located in the heart of Geneva, it houses an extensive collection of over 80,000 objects, including artifacts, textiles, and artworks that highlight the rich traditions and histories of various communities. The museum emphasizes interactive and immersive exhibitions, engaging visitors with contemporary issues related to culture and identity.

Cool fact: The e-MEG app serves as a digital twin of the permanent exhibition, providing an audio guide and detailed descriptions along with photographs of all displayed objects.

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– CLOSED FOR RENOVATION –

Since its opening in 1994, the MAMCO Geneva (Musée d’art moderne et contemporain)  has staged 450 exhibitions with works dating from the 1960s to the present day. Mamco’s holdings include works by Christo, Martin Kippenberger, Jenny Holzer, Dan Flavin, Sarkis, Franz Erhard Walther and Sylvie Fleury, among many others.

Cool fact: The MAMCO is the epicenter of the “Nuit des Bains”, held three times a year.  During this event, the district around the museum is transformed into a large gallery and attracts thousands of art lovers and sightseers each night.

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With a collection of 27,000 items from Switzerland, Europe and the Middle and Far East, and a witness to twelve centuries of ceramic art from the Middle Ages to modern times, the Ariana is one of Europe’s great museums specializing in glass and ceramics.

Cool fact: On the first Sunday of each month, the Ariana Museum opens its temporary exhibitions to the public.

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