I INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL – CONTEST
November 19–24 2026
FROM GEORGIA WITH LOVE
LTD “TEAM TRAVEL” & LLC “GEO.FEST.GEORGIA” festival to be held at the State Hall in the city of Mtskheta.
During their stay in Georgia, participants will have the opportunity not only to take part in the festival, but also to visit many interesting and picturesque places of our country and discover Georgian history and culture.
Georgia — the “Land of St. George,” intoxicated by sunshine, filled with light, dancing, singing, proud, loving and beloved...
A country of natural artistry and eternal celebration, sparkling temperament, warmth, vivid emotions, unrivaled hospitality and unforgettable impressions.
A country renowned for its hospitality — “A guest is a messenger from God,” says a Georgian proverb. For centuries, the Georgian people have developed their traditions of hospitality. Love and boundless respect for guests have been passed down from generation to generation.
A country that captivates everyone who visits it, even just once!
Georgia is warmth and hospitality, the sea and mountains, the gentle sun,
architecture and traditions — it simply takes your breath away!
Tbilisi is the capital of Georgia and its heart. It is the country’s largest city and an important economic, political, transport, scientific, cultural and spiritual centre. The history of Tbilisi goes back many centuries; its former name was Tiflis. In 2008, the city celebrated its 1,550th anniversary.
The name Tbilisi means “warm spring”; in Georgian, “tbili” means “warm”. The name and origin of the city are associated with the warm sulphur springs located in the area.
Tbilisi was founded in the 5th century AD by Vakhtang Gorgasali. By the 6th century it had become the capital of Iberia, a kingdom whose territory was located in what is now Georgia. According to legend, while King Vakhtang Gorgasali was hunting, his falcon and its prey, a pheasant, fell into a hot spring. Having discovered the spring, the king ordered a city to be built on the site. Today, the legendary spring is located in Abanotubani, the oldest district of Tbilisi.
Tbilisi offers virtually everything that visitors may find interesting: ancient monuments, modern centres, mountains and forests, plains and lakes.
In addition to the indigenous Georgian population, Armenians, Russians, Jews, Ossetians, Azerbaijanis, Assyrians, Greeks and other communities live here.
Mtskheta is the most sacred pilgrimage city in Georgia and has been declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Mtskheta is located just 20 km north of Tbilisi, in the Mtskheta-Mtianeti region. With a population of around 8,000, the city is one of Georgia’s major tourist destinations.
The ancient history of Mtskheta is fascinating and well documented. The city was founded in the 5th century BC by the indigenous Meskhin tribes, who are believed to have originally migrated from Anatolia (Turkey). According to legend, the city was named after the legendary ruler Mtskhetos, son of the first King of Kartli.
Svetitskhoveli Cathedral is another famous monument of Christian culture in Georgia. It was built on the site of the destroyed Church of the Twelve Apostles (4th century). A religious tradition associated with Georgia’s adoption of Christianity is connected with the establishment of this church.
Children’s and youth groups, as well as individual performers aged 5 and above, may take part in the festival.
Categories: choreography, vocal, instrumental performance, theatre, photography, variety/original genre, circus arts, fine arts, decorative and applied arts.
Folk dance, ethnic choreography, pop dance, classic ballet dance, ballroom dance, modern, jazz, neoclassic ballet dance, sport dance, street dance (hip-hop, breakdance, locking, popping, K-pop), original choreography, disco, etc.
Classical, folk, pop, jazz, academic, rock, rap, soul, musical theatre.
Folk, classic, jazz, percussion ensembles, guitar ensembles, jazz-style ensembles, chamber orchestras, symphony orchestras, accordion and bayan ensembles, folk-instrument ensembles.
Drama theatre, musical theatre, performers of spoken word, poetry, pantomime, fashion theatre, photography, fine arts.
Each performer (soloist, duo or trio) must present one composition with a duration of 3 minutes. If a soloist wishes to perform a second composition, the participant must pay the full fee for the second composition; the second composition is not considered an additional category.
Choreographic groups must perform two dances in the same style, up to 6 minutes per number. If a group performs one folk dance and one contemporary dance, the group must pay for an additional category.
Theatre productions must not exceed 20 minutes.
All compositions must be recorded on a flash drive and sent in advance to the festival organisers by email: geofestival2023@gmail.com
YOU ALSO NEED TO HAVE BACKUP COPIES OF ALL TRACKS!
Each recording must be provided on a separate flash drive, indicating the title of the work, the name of the ensemble, the performer’s first and last name, and the duration of the recording. The application must specify whether the numbers need to be separated or whether the performance will be operated as one continuous block.
The application must also indicate where the performance begins: from the stage centre or from the wings.
The application must include the first and last names of all festival participants and their leaders/directors, exactly as they should appear in English on the certificates. If there are mistakes in names in the submitted applications, the certificates will not be reprinted.
Please also provide the participants’ technical rider, email address and telephone numbers (Viber/WhatsApp).
During the competition performances of vocalists, both groups and soloists are prohibited from using full backing tracks (“plus” phonograms).
All participants must perform with minus/backing-track accompaniment. Soloists may use recorded backing vocals provided they do not duplicate the main melody. Duos and ensembles must sing without recorded backing vocals.
ATTENTION: Technical issues concerning the connection of musical instruments and equipment must be agreed with the sound engineer in advance!
All requests must be specified in the technical rider.
The original text specifies that each artist and photographer may submit no more than two competition works. Works must be no larger than A3. The subject matter and techniques could be different. Tablets (for photographers) and cameras should be provided.
Theme for artists: “MY GEORGIA” or “WONDERLAND”.
The techniques used may be different; photography themes are unrestricted.
For circus performers, insurance and reliable props are required. The duration of one number must not exceed 8 minutes.
All performance details must be agreed with the festival organising committee well in advance of the delegation’s arrival.
Performances will be evaluated by an international jury.
At the conclusion of the contest, participants will be presented with awards at the Gala Concert.
All participants will receive certificates and exclusive memory gifts from the festival organisers, “TEAM TRAVEL” & “GEO.FEST.GEORGIA”.
Groups and individual performers will be evaluated by category and age group. The international jury awards the Grand Prix of the festival; in each category and age group, the titles of Laureate of the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Degrees, as well as Diploma Winner, may be awarded.
Special Prize from the Festival Organisers! Audience Choice Award!
According to the jury’s decision, special diplomas and prizes may be awarded in the following categories: “Festival Discovery”, “For Artistry”, “Youngest Participant”, “Best Performance”, and “Originality of Staging”.
The jury has the right not to award the Grand Prix and may establish special awards based on the festival results.
If there are no sufficiently deserving candidates for the Grand Prix or prize places, those awards will not be given.
The Gala Concert programme is determined by the directing and production team based on the jury’s decisions.
The decision of the international jury is final and cannot be changed!
Winning groups and individual performers will receive offers from “GEO.FEST.GEORGIA” & “TEAM TRAVEL” to participate in festivals held both in Georgia and abroad by our company and our international partners.
The organisers reserve the right to take photographs and make video recordings during the festival-contest and to distribute them.
If festival participants wish to purchase photo or video materials, they must pay a fee agreed in advance with the festival manager.
Group leaders are responsible for the health and safety of their contestants.
Submission of an application to participate in the contest constitutes acceptance of the Project Regulations.
Participants travel to the Georgia at their own expense.
All matters not covered by the Regulations are decided by the festival organisers.
The organisers reserve the right to make changes to the programme.
Participants will be notified of programme changes on the official Facebook pages GeoFest and TeamTravel no later than one week before the festival-contest begins.
Changes to the programme must be communicated to the organisers no later than three weeks before the start of the festival. After that, the established programme will not be changed.
Free time.
Meeting with the festival organising committee and technical services; consultations.
(Lunch or Dinner, depending on the delegations’ arrival time.)
In case the group misses dinner due to a late flight, we will arrange lunch boxes for them.
After breakfast Tbilisi city tour. During the tour you will visit: Metekhi Church, offering a beautiful panorama of the Old Town; Narikala Fortress, reached by cable car; Abanotubani, the sulphur-bath district; Meidan Square; and Shardeni Street. You will also visit Rike Park and the “Mshvidobisa Khidi” / Peace Bridge.
After the tour of the capital, we return to the hotel for lunch.
After lunch, we will go up to “Bombora” Park on the famous funicular, located on Mount Mtatsminda. This is one of the most visited parks in Tbilisi. Everyone can find something to enjoy: walking along beautiful paths and taking in the surrounding nature, riding thrilling attractions, or enjoying spectacular views of the Old Town. The park is designed in a fantasy style, with unusual and whimsical figures at every turn. After the excursion, you will return to the hotel by comfortable bus.
A JOURNEY INTO THE WORLD OF CHILDHOOD WILL TOUCH EVERYONE’S HEART!
Dinner at the hotel.
We depart from the hotel for the Kakheti region and the city of Telavi.
Accommodation of participants at the hotel in Telavi.
Lunch at the hotel.
Official opening of the “NEW STORIES of the OLD CAPITAL” festival and start of the contest programme.
PART I: Choreography and Theatre
PART II: Vocal, Choirs and Instrumental Performance
Return to the hotel. Dinner at the hotel.
We depart from the hotel for an excursion to the Kakheti region and the city of Sighnaghi. Sighnaghi is known as the “City of Love” and the “Georgian San Marino.”
Already at the entrance to Sighnaghi from the Tbilisi side, you can see a bas-relief depicting a suitor and his beloved on a balcony, intended to let visitors know that they have arrived in the “City of Love.”
There is also a version that it was in Sighnaghi that artist Niko Pirosmani gave his beloved a million scarlet roses, later immortalized in a song by Alla Pugacheva. Pirosmani literally sold his house and laid a sea of flowers at the feet of a certain singer, and then lived in a tiny room in Tbilisi, on a street that now bears his name.
Sightseeing tour of the city.
Lunch at a restaurant.
Free time.
After lunch, we depart to visit the estate of Alexander Chavchavadze.
The Chavchavadze estate in Tsinandali became a centre of Georgian high society in the mid-1820s. Mikhail Lermontov, Alexander Pushkin and, of course, Alexander Griboyedov visited here. The poet fell in love with Alexander Chavchavadze’s daughter, Nina. The marriage was short-lived. Several weeks after the wedding, Griboyedov was sent to Persia as an ambassador. In Tehran, a religious mob attacked the Russian Imperial mission. Griboyedov was killed. The poet was buried on Mount Mtatsminda in Tbilisi. Nina Chavchavadze survived her husband by 30 years but never remarried. She is buried next to Griboyedov. His gravestone bears her words: “Your mind and deeds are immortal in Russian memory, but why did my love survive you!”
Return to the hotel.
Dinner at the hotel.
Free time.
Lunch at the hotel.
(An additional excursion may be booked for an extra charge.)
Dinner at the hotel.
Departure of festival participants; transfer to the airport.
SEE YOU NEXT YEAR!
The total package price is 470 euro per person.
(Accommodation in Tbilisi for 3 nights and in Telavi for 2 nights.)
Supplement for a double room: 15 euro per person per day (3-star hotels).
Supplement for a single room: 35 euro per person per day (3-star hotels).
Additional night in a 3-star hotel in Tbilisi: 55 euro for children under 13; 60 euro for persons over 13.
Additional night in a 3-star hotel in Telavi: 40 euro for children under 13; 50 euro for persons over 13.
Soloists pay an additional organisational fee of 50 euro on top of the basic programme price (1 song).
Additional category for vocalists: 40 euro (2nd song).
“Small Forms” (up to and including 5 people: duos, trios, quartets, quintets): additional organisational fee of 25 euro per person.
Additional category for groups of 6 or more: 20 euro per person for dancers, choirs, etc.
Additional excursions not included in the festival programme are charged separately.
Applications accepted until October 31 (inclusive).
50% of the tour/package price and participant fee must be transferred to our account by 5 October 2023. After making the transfer, please send us a copy of the bank payment document by e-mail: geofestival2023@gmail.com
The remaining amount must be paid two weeks before arrival at the competition.
If an application is cancelled in connection with hotel reservations for reasons beyond the organisers control, the 50% advance payment is non-refundable.
If participants who have already arrived at the festival decide to change their booking or reduce the number of days of their hotel stay, a penalty will be charged.
If the penalty is not paid, the group will be withdrawn from the competition.
If participants do not attend the competition for reasons beyond our control, they will also be withdrawn from the competition and the participation fee will not be refunded.
On competition days, groups will be provided with a packed meal at the hotel instead of lunch or dinner, depending on the participant’s performance time.
If any force majeure circumstances occur during the festival—including landslides, road closures, or natural disasters—our company will try our best to help resolve the issues. Please note, however, that we cannot accept responsibility for the situation itself.
The final deadline for applications is 20 days before the start of the festival.
You are welcome to contact us by any convenient means, and we will certainly respond to your inquiry.
ALL QUESTIONS REGARDING APPLICATIONS, THE FESTIVAL PROGRAMME AND THE TECHNICAL RIDER:
Cell phone: +995 579 401 122; +995 592 45 31 09
WhatsApp: +995 579 401 122; +995 592 45 31 09
Viber: +995 579 401 122; +995 592 45 31 09
E-mail: geofestival2023@gmail.com
We are available 24 hours a day!
Dear colleagues, we can revise the programme of our festival for you, review the prices and reduce the number of days of your stay in Georgia, provided that the changes do not affect the competition days. We can also revise and prepare a new festival schedule based on the tickets you have purchased. However, we cannot change the competition day or the Gala Concert day.
Yours sincerely,
Festival President
Elena Barsegova
OLD TOWN PICTURES
GEORGIA (TBILISI - TELAVI)
04 november – 09 november
ATTENTION!
The following is a mandatory requirement for participation in the festival:
1. The performance program must be approved by the festival director.
2. Your musical accompaniment must be sent
to geofestival2023@gmail.com and brought to the venue on a flash drive on the day of the competition and gala concert.
Groups and soloists who violate this rule will not be allowed to participate in the Festival.