The Pyromusical, held for the first time at Nova Icària beach, provided the grand finale to the city's patron saint festival. This year's soundtrack featured a selection of tracks by Josep Montero, leader of Oques Grasses, offering an eclectic proposal with a notable presence of Catalan music. The musical mix was handled by Marçal Cruz from Oido studio, and Pirotècnia Igual was responsible for the synchronized fireworks.
For five days, the city hosted an intense program that reached all districts for the first time, debuting spaces like Plaça de les Glòries and consolidating others such as Parc del Fòrum, which was particularly focused on families and circus performances. High artistic standards and public reception were consistent throughout, with notable shows like 'Decostumari' at Park Güell and 'Emergency Exit' by La Fura dels Baus.
Shanghai, the guest city, presented a showcase of its traditions and technical expertise in music, dance, and circus. Mayor Jaume Collboni announced that Mexico City will be the guest city for 2027, highlighting the influence of its indigenous cultures and its vibrant creative scene.
Popular culture shone with the new 'door of hell' for the correfocs (fire runs) on Passeig de Gràcia. In music, highlights include concerts by established bands like Love of Lesbian during their farewell tour, and the debut of new programmers for BAM, Marta Mei and Aina Pociello. Gisela Sais departs as director of Mercè Música after five years, with Oriol Roca Cano taking over.
The festival also included a pilot program for the Punt Lila al mòbil (Mobile Purple Point) service to prevent and address gender-based violence and LGTBI-phobia, distributing 2950 NFC devices. The purple points provided 11,926 information services, and 28 interventions were carried out.
La Mercè's digital channels saw high engagement: the website received over 1.1 million visits, social media generated more than 5.2 million impressions, and the app had 40,000 users.
