‘Cap Butaca Buida’ returns on March 21 with record spaces
Theater Day No empty chair will celebrate its third edition on March 21, 2026 with 222 affiliated spaces and a wider territorial reach than ever. After breaking for the second consecutive year the world record for theatrical attendance in a single day—with 71,441 spectators in 2025—, the initiative is consolidating itself as a major collective action in the sector and takes a step forward with its first international participation.
Promoted by the Association of Theater Companies of Catalonia (ADETCA) and the Catalan Corporation for Audiovisual Media, with the support of the Catalan Institute of Cultural Companies (ICEC) within the framework of the 1st Catalan Theater Promotion Plan 2023-2026, the day aims to strengthen the theater as a space for meeting, community and coexistence. The project also has the collaboration of institutions, theaters, athenes, civic centers, producers and associated companies.
The Empty Chair crosses borders
One of the great leaps of this edition is its internationalization. To the expansion throughout Catalonia – including Northern Catalonia – new theaters from the Valencian Country (16) and the Balearic Islands (10), as well as Andorra and the Teatre Margarita Xirgu del Casal Català in Buenos Aires, which becomes the first international space to join the Diada, are added. Several civic centers are also incorporated as new scenic spaces, with the aim of bringing theater closer to neighborhoods and new communities.
The president of ADETCA, Isabel Vidalhas emphasized that “Cap Butaca Buida is the manifestation of the social will to participate in cultural life and to celebrate with pride that the theater is a living space of community”. In the same vein, he remarked that “the growth we are experiencing this year shows that the theater continues to be a vehicle for collaboration between territories and cultures, which takes on special importance at the present time”.
For her part, the Minister of Culture, Sònia Hernández, has defined the initiative as a “consolidated initiative” and has expressed the desire that March 21, 2026 will once again be “a prominent day in the calendar to recognize the work done by theatres, athenes and all professionals in the sector”.
As usual, No empty chair will allocate a percentage of its collection to an entity dedicated to promoting cultural and social projects. The choice for the 2026 edition is The Freedom Theatrea cultural and theater center founded in 2006 in the Jenín refugee camp, in the West Bank, which develops productions, workshops and training programs in fields such as interpretation, pedagogy and photography, and which promotes publications, exhibitions and audiovisual projects with the aim of facilitating access to culture and fostering creativity among young people as a tool for community development.
