Raising of the Libertas flag to the verses of the Hymn to Liberty in front of St Blaise’s Church on Tuesday, 10 July at 21:00hrs, will mark the opening of the 69th Dubrovnik Summer Festival, which will traditionally last until 25 August.
In 47 days, at 20 site-specific venues, approximately 2,000 artists from all over the world will present around 80 drama, music, dance, folklore and other programmes to the international audience of 60,000 domestic and foreign guests.
The Opening Ceremony is directed by Saša Božić, who is also the author of the script. Conducted by maestro Tomislav Fačini, the music is performed by the Zagreb Philharmonic, the WDR Children’s Chorus from Dortmund, the Pro musica Academic Choir from Mostar, the Dubrovnik Chamber Choir, the Libertas Mixed Choir and the Female klapa of the Linđo Folklore Ensemble. Along with the members of the Festival Drama Ensemble, the Linđo Folklore Ensemble and acting and dance students of the Academy of Dramatic Art in Zagreb will also perform, as well as the citizens of Dubrovnik, who play a special role in the ceremony this year.
The opening ceremony of the Dubrovnik Summer Festival grew on the collective memory of the carnival season, a time of the year when the traveling actors, troubadours and others could enter the city, and entertain its citizens with their plays and performances. The Rector of the Republic of Dubrovnik (Republic of Ragusa) would give the actors keys to the City, and thus symbolically allow them to perform for its citizens. This will also be the case this year, as the program includes the traditional opening ceremony, including the Rector, the artists and Linđo, combined with the newer history of the City (Dubrovnik Troubadours), theaters and literature (Držić, Paljetak), along with commentary by representative of citizens – the artist Nataša Dangubić. The end of the ceremony will be marked by fireworks that will start around 22:00hrs.
