From June 16 to 18, Pula will host a rich program dedicated to one of the most influential writers of the 20th century, James Joyce. Through readings, discussions, workshops, film screenings, and a dance performance, visitors will have the opportunity to explore Joyce’s work from various perspectives – literary, theatrical, cinematic, and educational.
The program begins on Tuesday, June 16, at 10:00 a.m. at Café Bar Uliks with a reading of excerpts from the cult novel Ulysses. At 11:00 a.m., the premises of the Pula Tourist Board will host the presentation of the video game Silence, Exile, and Cunning by Dark Sail Studio. Silence, Exile, and Cunning is a narrative video game based on the history of Pula. Players take on the roles of the famous Irish writer James Joyce and his partner Nora Barnacle, who lived in Pula in 1904 and 1905, and discover the city through their eyes while participating in historical events that shaped it during the final years of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. During Bloomsday 2026, all interested visitors will be able to play the game from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at the Pula Tourist Board offices.
On the same day, at 6:00 p.m., the City Library and Reading Room will host a discussion on Joyce featuring Vladimir Petrović and Vito Paoletić. The evening concludes at 8:00 p.m. at the Istrian National Theatre with a performance of The James Joyce Ballet by the New York dance company Danse Lumiere. Choreographed by Kathryn Roszak, this dance-theatre work is inspired by Joyce’s Ulysses, Finnegans Wake, and the short story The Dead. It explores not only Joyce’s literary output but also the lives of those around him, including his wife Nora Barnacle and his daughter Lucia Joyce, a gifted modern dancer whose artistic ambitions form a lesser-known yet fascinating part of Joyce’s story. The work transforms Joyce’s literary landscapes into dance, translating the rhythms, wit, and emotional undertones of his writing into choreography and bringing his characters and themes to life through movement and atmosphere.
Wednesday, June 17, brings a series of educational and cultural events. At 10:00 a.m., at the City Library and Reading Room, Igor Jurilj and Valentina Sertić will lead a children’s workshop titled It Disappears as Soon as You Solve It – What Is It? At 1:00 p.m., the Student Social Centre will host a workshop for pupils and students titled Both Hero and Coward — The Odysseus from Your Neighborhood, led by Valentina Sertić. On the same day, at 2:30 p.m., Igor Jurilj will conduct the workshop Censor Me Black: Joyce Between Bans, dedicated to the controversies and censorship surrounding Joyce’s works. In the afternoon, at 5:00 p.m., Cinema Valli will screen the documentary Celtic Utopia by Dennis Harvey and Lars Lovén. Celtic Utopia tells the story of a new Ireland and its vibrant music scene, as well as a postcolonial society grappling with its heritage. Marking the centenary of Irish independence, the film follows a bold new generation of young Irish artists who are redefining folk music while reflecting on the impact of their colonial history. This renaissance of Irish traditional music features artists from punk, hip-hop, and beyond, who are rediscovering ancient traditions and taking them in unexpected directions.
The program concludes on Thursday, June 18, with the guided tour In the Footsteps of James Joyce in Croatian, Italian, and English, starting at 10:00 a.m.
At 10:00 a.m., Valeria Park will host a kamishibai storytelling workshop for children led by Petra Rajh, titled James Joyce and the Secret of the Pula Arena.
At 8:00 p.m., Club and Bookstore Giardini 2 will host a conversation with Irish writer Eimear McBride, whose literary work is often compared to the modernist tradition shaped by Joyce himself.
Eimear McBride is an award-winning Irish novelist and screenwriter, renowned for her pioneering stream-of-consciousness writing style. Born in Liverpool and raised in Ireland, she achieved international literary acclaim with her debut novel A Girl Is a Half-formed Thing.