In Dublin, Halloween will take on the scale of a major spectacle this year. On 26 October 2026, Irish company Macnas will bring Fiáin to the streets of the north-eastern city centre: a parade in which monumental theatre, music and imagination lend a new dimension to public space. Announced as part of the Bram Stoker Festival, the event will be free.
Macnas brings the wild spirit of the west to Dublin
Fiáin, a creation inspired by the elements and Irish imagination
The title is pronounced roughly “fee-awn”. Macnas presents Fiáin as a celebration of the wild: that of western Ireland’s landscapes, but also of the energy that flows between artists and audiences when the street becomes a stage. This is not simply a procession of Halloween costumes. It is a work of visual theatre, with monumental forms, movement and a musical score in service of a narrative.
The production will first be presented in Galway on 25 October at 5.30pm, before travelling to Dublin the following day. Two cities, two evenings, and the same way of shifting the boundaries between the everyday and the marvellous. For visitors, that encounter is precisely the appeal: discovering living Irish art beyond the theatre, in the heart of the city.
A Galway company transforming streets since 1986
Founded in Galway in 1986, Macnas works at the intersection of parades, theatre, installations and performance. Its world is also built around a community of artists, technicians and volunteers. Throughout the year, the company runs activities with residents, local groups and educational institutions.
This collective dimension gives its processions a special place in the life of the cities that host them. The event invites spectators to see façades, crossroads and vistas differently: for one evening, the places along the route become the setting for a shared story.
A Halloween event in Bram Stoker’s Dublin
The parade joins four days of gothic discoveries
The Bram Stoker Festival will take place from 23 to 26 October 2026. Its programme combines street performance, theatre, cinema, storytelling, candlelit tours and family activities. Macnas’s return to the north-eastern city centre places the parade close to the streets where the author of Dracula lived.
When planning a stay, it is best to consider each event separately: the free parade does not mean that all festival events are free or accessible without a ticket. The most suitable activities will also depend on participants’ ages and their appetite for unsettling atmospheres.
How to see the Macnas parade in Dublin in 2026
The route and timings to know
The parade is due to set off on Monday 26 October at 7pm local time, from North Great George’s Street. It will travel along Great Denmark Street, Gardiner Place, Mountjoy Square, Gardiner Street and Seán McDermott Street. The organiser asks visitors to arrive from 6.45pm, and not earlier. Allow around 20 minutes for the parade to pass a given viewing point.
Free access, with bookable provisions
No ticket is required for general access. Dedicated spaces for wheelchair users and spectators requiring a calmer environment will be available in limited numbers, by booking from 7 October at noon. The performance takes place outdoors: suitable clothing and hearing protection for those sensitive to noise are recommended. No seating or toilets will be provided along the route. Check for any transport disruption before travelling.
Information checked on 6 October 2026 with the Bram Stoker Festival, Macnas for Fiáin, the Macnas company and DublinTown. Programme subject to change.
Archive photo: Macnas performers during Port na bPúcaí in Galway on 29 October 2017; this image does not show Fiáin 2026. Credit: Joeykavanagh / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0; resized and compressed.
