Noorderzon begins today!
34th Noorderzon edition kicks off today
The 34th edition of Noorderzon Festival of Performing Arts & Society begins today at 15:00. Until Sunday the 1st of September, the Noorderplantsoen and various locations in Groningen city centre form the backdrop for an eleven-day voyage of discovery along a challenging international, national and local programme. We welcome around 140,000 visitors over eleven days. Construction in the Noorderplantsoen started last Monday. In ten days, a complete ‘village’ was built, including performance venues, bars and terraces, installations and, of course, the familiar metre-long cable lighting. In the city centre, Noorderzon will descend on Grand Theatre, the Machinefabriek and the Lutherse Kerk.
International main programme
The international main programme is packed with theatre, dance and circus from all over the world. For instance, there is punky anti-theatre by Peter & Julia from the United States and one of Chile's most renowned directors, Guillermo Calderón comes to Groningen with a masterly political satire; VACA. Leonardo Manzan brings a brilliantly funny piece about (self-)censorship in Glory Wall and Ant Hampton takes you into a story that flows in all directions in Borderline Visible. Also at the festival: an exclusive conference of forgotten masks featuring the mesmerising solo performance of Spain's Matías Umpierrez. The first performances have since sold out, but there is still more than enough to choose from.
&Society programme
At the &Society programme full of inspiring lectures and talks, there is something for everyone. For instance, De Linkse Mannen present six talk shows in 'spiegeltent' Pollux. Together with Jelte Posthumus, we will talk to weatherman Peter Kuipers Munneke, theatremaker Rebekka de Wit and artist Renzo Martens, among others. We will also talk about hobbies that have gotten out of hand, there will be a feminist writing workshop with Zus ‘n zo, you can play Dungeon & Dragons, we will talk about feeling at home somewhere, about memes and cartoons, and you can collaborate on an artwork about the waiting list for transgender care and much more.
Music programme: more than 100 concerts in 11 days
In the Spiegeltent you will see Loverman, Judy Blank and Ævestaden. On the largest open-air stage Apollo, there is a free concert every night, from Dylan Leblanc, ELMER, Ibibo Sound Machine, Pachyman and YÍN YÍN, among others. There is also much more music at the festival: on stage Callisto and Podium de Raaf, we present several free concerts each day. Partner Soundsofmusic will present a concert in the Lutherse Kerk, and legendary duo Arab Strap will perform in Vera.
Local programme & container performances
Visitors can walk with Eva Koopmans & De Makkers in a theatrical tour of the Oosterpark neighbourhood, delve into favourite trees together with Tom Tieman or get fresh between the ears with Douwe Dijkstra. In addition, Margriet van Weenen, in collaboration with Kunstpunt, presents her artwork I WAS HERE In search of the polar wind, between waters in the public garden. In the containers, at four different spots in the park, Noorderzon presents fine, short performances for a small price. From a real film container to local heroes with their latest work. Ticket sales for the container performances are on location only.
Children's programme
Specially for the youngest visitors of the festival, there is the Speelweide in the Noorderplantsoen: a mini-festival for everyone between 4 and 12 years old. Lots of performances, activities and fun at one of the nicest places in the Noorderplantsoen. Tickets for performances are on sale via Noorderzon.nl and at the box offices on the Speelweide, coins only at the box office.
Ticket sales
The full programme of Noorderzon can be found at noorderzon.nl/programme. Tickets are only available online prior to the festival via the festival website. At the head of the pond is De Winkel, where visitors can go in person with questions, and buy tickets and merchandise. De Winkel will be open from 3pm - 10pm from 22 August to 1 September, and from 1pm on weekends. There is also an extensive free-to-attend programme, which does not require a ticket.
Theme discount
Noorderzon is highlighting three themes in this year's programme: Pressure, The Old Now New, and Me in the mirror. For all performances under a theme, there is the theme discount. If you choose three or more performances, lectures or concerts within a theme, you will automatically receive a 10% discount when ordering tickets online.
Help in making a choice
For anyone who needs help choosing performances from the programme, there is a special WhatsApp number. Visitors can ask their questions by adding 06 53 48 59 43 to their contacts and starting a new conversation.
Festival info
Timetables, maps, app, opening hours and a FAQ: you'll find it all on our page festivalinfo.
Have fun!