# Turkish city theatre seasons launch

> Live situation record from CLSTR: https://clstr.news/situations/turkish-city-theatre-season-launches
> Updated: 2026-10-20T07:54:00.000Z. Sources: 9. Developments: 3.

Turkish city theatres have begun launching their new artistic seasons. In İzmir, the İzmir City Theatres premiered “Hepimizin Öyküsü Aynı” (Our Story is the Same), a production adapted from the “Women’s Plays” by Franca Rame and Dario Fo that focuses on women’s struggles and quests for freedom.

In Kocaeli, the Kocaeli Metropolitan Municipality City Theatres is preparing to launch its 29th artistic season on October 17 at the Kocaeli Congress Center. The season will open with the interactive play ‘Karar’, directed by Şakir Gürzumar, which allows audience members to act as a jury to influence the story's conclusion. On November 11, the theatre will perform Shakespeare’s ‘Twelfth Night’, directed by Güray Dinçol, mirroring its 1997 debut with ‘Hamlet’. Other scheduled productions include an adaptation of Murat Gülsoy’s novel, ‘Ve Ateş Bizi Tüketiyor’, a production based on Leo Tolstoy’s ‘What Men Live By’, and dedicated programming for children.

In Istanbul, the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (IBB) City Theatres has released its performance schedule for the week of October 21–26, 2026. The program includes six productions such as the comedy ‘Yoldan Çıkan Oyun’, the Pulitzer Prize-winning ‘Öylece Durur Zaman’, and ‘Haramiler’. The schedule also features a poetry reading of Orhan Veli’s works titled ‘Birdenbire’ and the continuation of the Muhsin Ertuğrul Readings program, which presents unperformed scripts by young playwrights to facilitate audience feedback. The featured reading for this season is ‘İz’ by Aslı Kaplan.

## Timeline

### 2026-10-20: Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality City Theatres announces October program

Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality City Theatres has announced its program for October 21–26, 2026, featuring six plays and cultural events including the Muhsin Ertuğrul Readings for young playwrights.

2 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/istanbul-metropolitan-municipality-city-theatres-announces-october-program

### 2026-10-13: Kocaeli City Theatres announces 29th season repertoire

Kocaeli Metropolitan Municipality City Theatres begins its 29th season on October 17, featuring works by Shakespeare and Tolstoy.

7 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/kocaeli-city-theatres-announces-29th-season-repertoire

### 2026-10-09: İzmir City Theatres launches new season with women's rights play

İzmir City Theatres opened its 2026-2027 season with the premiere of “Hepimizin Öyküsü Aynı,” a play exploring women's daily struggles and quests for freedom.

3 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/izmir-city-theatres-launches-new-season-with-womens-rights-play

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Cite as: Turkish city theatre seasons launch. CLSTR, https://clstr.news/situations/turkish-city-theatre-season-launches