Every summer, from July 10th to August 25th, nearly 2.000 artists from around the world perform approximately 70 theatrical, musical, dance, folklore, and other programs on the ambient stages of the baroque and Renaissance city of Dubrovnik, in front of an audience of about 60,000 domestic and international visitors. This year is no different as the 74th Dubrovnik Summer Festival has officially opened, and the festive atmosphere can be felt throughout the city. It's the perfect opportunity to enhance your business visit or social program of conferences or congresses with cultural experiences!
Unique theatrical program produced by the Dubrovnik Summer Festival
One of the cornerstones of the Dubrovnik Summer Festival's theatrical program is its own productions. This year's program presents four premiere titles, along with four reprisals and two guest performances. The first premiere, "Vidi kako Lokrum pere zube" (Look How Lokrum Brushes Its Teeth), based on the novel of the same name by Ivana Lovrić Jović and directed by Paolo Tišljarić, is a co-production of the Dubrovnik Summer Festival and the Marin Držić Theatre. It represents a chronicle of the author's upbringing, namely her life with and without her father. The play will be performed on the island of Lokrum from July 12th to 14th.
The second premiere, "Na tri kralja ili kako hoćete" (Twelfth Night or What You Will) by Grzegorz Jarzyna and Roman Pawłowski, based on the motifs of William Shakespeare's play, is a co-production of the Festival and the Zagreb Youth Theatre. It will be presented at the Lovrijenac Fortress from July 21st to 25th.
The monodrama "Maske" (Masks) by director and actor Dražen Šivak is a co-production of the Dubrovnik Summer Festival and the Art Organization Grupa, and it will have its premiere on August 12th at the Bokar Fortress. The final theatrical premiere, "Sjetne žene raguzejske" (Melancholic Women of Ragusa), is an author's project by the Festival's Intendant, Dora Ruždjak Podolski, and it will be performed from August 17th to 21st in the Gradac Park.
Concerts by international and local musicians
The musical program of this year's festival will be opened by one of the world's best pianists, Andras Schiff, with a concert in the atrium of the Rector's Palace. Mariza, one of the most popular fado singers, will also have her performance recorded on the Revelin Terrace. Among the prominent musical performers, there will be the Zagreb Soloists, who will begin their celebratory 70th season at the end of the year, German-French cellist Nicolas Altstaedt, the Dubrovnik Symphony Orchestra conducted by maestro Pavle Zajcev, the Janoška Ensemble, Russian conductor Maxim Emelyanychev, and many others.
The Festival program in the Palace will feature concerts as part of the project #synergy: Sharpening the capacities of the classical music industry in the Western Balkans, co-financed by the European Union's Creative Europe program. Selected young musicians from six countries of the region will perform new musical works inspired by local heritage and European values, written by twelve young composers from six countries, at the project's final concerts on July 19th and 20th in the atrium of the Rector's Palace.
For all ballet lovers, "The Great Gatsby" choreographed and directed by Leo Mujić, performed by the Croatian National Theatre in Split, will come to Revelin this summer. The Folklore Ensemble Linđo, which will have four performances on the Revelin Terrace, is an integral part of the festival's dance program.
Accompanying program of the 74th Dubrovnik Summer Festival includes two exhibitions - "Laka je mlados" (Youthful is Easy), presenting the works of the recently deceased Croatian painter and graphic artist Fadil Vejzović, and "Dubrovačka rapsodija" (Dubrovnik Rhapsody) by Romana Milutin Fabris.
Special connection between the city and the festival
The Dubrovnik Summer Festival is the oldest cultural and artistic event in Croatia and one of the oldest European festivals, founded in 1950. Organized in the most beautiful parts of the Old City core and beyond, the festival promotes ambience as its unique artistic postulate, a fusion of tradition and modernity, and the connection of local, national, and international creativity. Over the course of more than seven decades, the festival has taken place at around 130 different locations throughout the city, creating a special bond between the city and the festival.
For years, the Dubrovnik Summer Festival has been a place of encounters, exchange of new ideas, and the creation of new projects, promoting Dubrovnik as a Croatian and global cultural centre. This is evidenced by the BBC Music Magazine declaring the Dubrovnik Summer Festival as the largest Croatian export brand. That's why, whether the reason for your visit to Dubrovnik this summer is business or private, don't miss experiencing the city in its most beautiful form!
The complete program of this year's Festival, as well as tickets, is available on the festival's website dubrovnik-festival.hr.