What’s on this week: 23 to 29 October

The Hindu festival of lights is celebrated by Indians the world over, and everyone is invited to the Atomium for the 10th edition of the open-air Brussels Diwali Festival. At the biggest Diwali party in Europe, you can dance to folk and Bollywood music, sample authentic regional dishes and enjoy live music, including a headline DJ set. There’s also plenty to entertain the kids and a firework display lighting up the site each evening at 21.00. Free entrance for children under 12. 24-25 October 12.00-22.00 (Saturday until 23.00), Place de l’Atomium 1

Calling all geeks, Comic Con Brussels occupies Tour & Taxis this weekend. The mass celebration of geek culture is an extravaganza of comics, cosplay, gaming, films, manga, collectibles, anime, TV series, merchandise and more. It also boasts a rollcall of star guests, including David Harbour, Matt Smith, Miranda Otto and Bam Margera. Don’t miss the event’s famous cosplay parade. 24-25 October, Avenue du Port 86C  

The Brussels international film festival for children and teens is an autumn half-term staple. This year, Filem’on 20th anniversary celebrations include a focus on Irish animation in honour of the country’s current EU council presidency. A highlight is a film concert (pictured), or Ceolchoirm Scannáin as it’s called in Gaelic, on the opening day that provides a live electro-acoustic soundscape to a series of animated films. The programme is brimming with imaginative films, inspiring fiction and captivating documentaries from every part of the globe. There’s also workshops and multi-day film courses. Prices are extremely democratic. 25 October to 7 November, across Brussels

It’s all Latino Halloween vibes in the Marolles with Día de Muertos providing grinning skulls, colourful costumes, parades, themed workshops, screenings, storytelling, cemetery walk and talks and concerts. There’s plenty of kids and family activities to keep los niños entertained as well as older revellers. Don’t miss, two performances of the show Coucou la mort  (6+) on Saturday and the finale grand parade that evening, which leaves from the intersection of Boulevard du Midi and Rue des Tanneurs at 19.00 before arriving at Place du Jeu de Balles at 20.30. A surprise concert follows in the square. Food trucks will keep everyone fuelled during the celebrations. 26 October to 1 November, across the Marolles

The flagship for LGBTQ+ cinema in the capital, Pink Screens, has selected a record 170 films to celebrate its 25th anniversary. Its short and feature film programme prioritises films that shift perspectives, spark discussions and challenge assumptions to explore the loves, joys, struggles, bodies, desires and contradictions of queer lives. In addition to performances, readings and artistic projects, two exhibitions also mark the occasion: one in the cellars of Cinéma Galeries, the other at LaVallée. Extending this anniversary edition is a special programme at Cinematek that focuses on queer cinema of the 1970s throughout November. 28 October to 7 November, multiple venues

To mark the 30th anniversary of the specialist publishing house, the Brussels Comic Strip Museum presents the exhibition Mangatopia: 30 Years of Manga from Kana! For the first time in the Belgian capital, historical and artistic artefacts are brought together in a single show for this immersion into the world of manga with exclusive accounts from leading mangaka and key figures from the scene. Until 17 May, Rue des Sables 20

Brussels Airlines’ travelling contemporary African art exhibition AfriConnections makes its fifth and final stop at Tour & Taxis. The itinerant show brings together works by 15 artists from across Africa and celebrates the richness and diversity of contemporary African art. The Belgian halt follows stops in Kinshasa, Abidjan, Yaoundé and Dakar. Free admission. Until 30 October, Gare Maritime, Rue Picard 11

Wordcraft Collective (28 October) and the Irish Theatre Group (29 October) each present the play Dead Man House, a one-man show that invites audiences to meet Martin, an Irish traveller who will break hearts and mend them, invoke tears of sadness and laughter, while also showing great craic. The local cultural players partner with the Council of the EU 2026, Culture Ireland and EFACIS ‘Performing Ireland’ Project to stage this play by Martin Beanz Warde. 28 October 19.00-20.15, Pianofabriek, Rue du Fort 35 (Saint-Gilles); 29 October 19.30-20.45, Warehouse Studio Theatre, Rue Waelhaem 69A (Schaerbeek)

Charity gala concert A Voice from Ireland celebrates the enduring ties between the Emerald Isle and Europe at an exclusive evening of music at Bozar. Internationally acclaimed Irish tenor Emmet Cahill performs alongside renowned uilleann piper Mark Redmond, the Brussels Philharmonic Orchestra and the Brussels Philharmonic Chorus under the direction of David Navarro-Turres. Singing familiar Irish melodies, as well as extracts from operas and musicals on themes of exile, separation, resilience and hope, the charity concert is organised by the Association Femmes d'Europe and is part of the Official Programme of the Irish Presidency of the Council of the European Union.  27 October 20.00-22.00, Rue Ravenstein 23

The Kaleidoscope project brings Irish and Northern Irish authors together to explore a different theme. For the third instalment, the Passa Porta bookshop hosts a panel discussion on ‘Faith, Spirituality and Art’ between writer in residence Jan Carson, Colin Walsh, Louise Nealon and Martin Doyle. 28 October, 20.00-21.30, Rue Antoine Dansaert 146

Book now Brussels Cello Festival celebrates its fifth edition with eight concerts by a top flight of musicians including new Queen Elisabeth cello winner Ettore Pagano (pictured) at Flagey. The 23-year-old Italian cellist shares the stage with Marie Hallynck, while other highlights are Victor Julien-Laferrière, winner of the 2017 Queen Elisabeth Cello Competition, performing with the Brussels Philharmonic on the opening night, a Saturday evening gala with ensembles of up to 12 cellos, and a closing concert for all the family, From Bach to Harry Potter. 30 October to 1 November, Place Sainte-Croix (Ixelles)

OUTSIDE BRUSSELS

An international reference for digital culture, the KIKK Festival in Namur is celebrating 15 years of showcasing new creative technologies. For this anniversary edition, the festival has invited some of the artists it has long admired. “We deliberately chose not to impose a theme. And yet, a common thread gradually emerged: highly physical works that engage with air, water, earth, light, or sound,” explains artistic director Marie du Chastel. Discover some 40 works in the festival’s famous art trail that runs through the city. Meanwhile, KIKK’s permanent art centre atop the citadel, Le Pavillon, hosts installations, activities for youngsters and the exhibition Pavillon Playground. 22-25 October, multiple venues, Namur

For an alternative Halloween experience that’s supernatural and imaginary, discover the galaxy of stars in the night sky during the Euro Space Center’s Les Féeries Nocturnes. The Moon will reveal its secrets via poetic and artistic performances – from illuminated jugglers and dancers to contortionists and magicians – as well as interactive workshops and the immersive spectacle Show me to the Moon. Tickets: €32 per person. 24 October, 18.30-23.30, Devant les Hêtres 1, Transinne (Luxembourg province)

Following 15 years of renovation, Leuven’s 900-year-old Park Abbey complex reopens with the exhibition Threading Landscapes: Art at Park Abbey. It presents 24 contemporary artists whose work engages in a dialogue with the abbey’s layered and rich past, while also questioning the role a historic site can play today in a world facing ecological challenges, polarisation, loneliness and rapid technological change. Participating artists include Pierre Huyghe, Laure Prouvost, Noor Abed, Hana Miletić, Edith Dekyndt and Meg Webster. Free entrance 24 & 25 October for the festive opening weekend. 24 October to 28 March, Abdij van Park 6, Leuven

Celebrating the invention of photography two centuries ago, the city of Liège’s BIP (Biennale de l’Image Possible) embraces the title MIROIR MIROIR (Mirror Mirror) for its 14th edition. Examining images as reflections of our era, within a world marked by chaos, it explores portraiture, perspectives on the self and the other, and the image of the world as a complex, ambiguous, and at times deceptive, truth; a truth that nonetheless remains essential for us to live together. Until 13 December, Chiroux, Quai van Hoegaarden 2, Liège

The Kaleidoscope project inviting Irish and Northern Irish authors to discuss various themes  sees the editor of its third edition, Hedwig Schwall, joined by contributing author Louise Nealon and The Irish Times journalist Martin Doyle. Together, they explore the topic of ‘Faith, Spirituality and Art’. There will also be time for questions from the audience at the event held in the beautiful KADOC chapel. Free event, but registration is required. The discussion will be in English. 29 October 19.30, Vlamingenstraat 39, Leuven

Discover more upcoming events at The Bulletin's events page.

Photos: (main image) courtesy Brussels Diwali Festival; Filem'on MUZIEK Sepideh Farvardin cine concert; Ettore Pagano ©Daniele Barraco; © KIKK Festival: Organism+Excitable-Chaos ©Miha Godec; Féeries Nocturnes - Danseuses féeriques ©Euro Space Center; BIP Liège ©BE_Culture