Tonight, Wednesday July 10, the opening ceremony takes place of the 75th Dubrovnik Summer Festival in traditional fashion, with the raising of the Libertas flag outside the Church of St Blaise. Along with the annual reading of Hymn to Liberty by Baroque poet, Ivan Gundulić, this anniversary year will also be marked by a mayoral decree, Mato Franković allowing hospitality outlets to stay open through the night.
Events start at 9pm and involve the Dubrovnik Symphony Orchestra accompanied by six choirs and ensembles, all to be broadcast live on Croatian TV.
Known in Croatian as the Dubrovnik Summer Games, the festival runs for 47 days until August 25, and is known for staging performances at historic outdoor locations around the Old Town. While comparable to Edinburgh in terms of prominence longevity, Dubrovnik is generally more highbrow, with the accent on classical music and long-established touchstones of Croatian theatre.
The highlight is often a Shakespeare production staged under the stars and this year is no exception, with The Tempest being performed for five nights on the island of Lokrum, from August 20-24. On August 17, the Rijeka Piano Trio play in the Atrium of the Rector’s Palace while on August 22, Christina Aguilera gives a flamenco show atop the Revelin fortress.
For a full schedule and tickets, see here.