Opening of Plovdiv European Capital of Culture 2019

Opening Weekend (11 - 13 January 2019)

The Opening of the ECOC 2019 will be within the range of an extended weekend (11 - 13 January 2019) full of events which will take place at various in- and outdoor spaces across the city. Its peak will be on Saturday, 12 January, with the most attractive and momentous highlight in the programme - the 'We Are All Colors' show.

We Are All Colors (12 January 2019)

The very heart of Plovdiv will welcome the 'We Are All Colors' show. The show, combining music, light and dance, will give the key to the whole year ahead and to the basic concept of the European Capital of Culture project, in which the citizens themselves are not only audiences and actors, but also creators of events. More than 1500 participants from Bulgaria and abroad will recreate on the open stage a large and colorful metaphor of all the main themes of the programme ‘Plovdiv 2019’ and their relationships under the motto ‘Together’.

LIVE STREAMING ON 12 JANUARY 2019, 7 PM EET (CET 6 PM): OPENING EVENT OF PLOVDIV - EUROPEAN CAPITAL OF CULTURE 2019 WITH THE WE ARE ALL COLOURS SHOW!

YOU TUBE LINK.

BULGARIAN NATIONAL TELEVISION LINK! (FROM BULGARIA ONLY)

Programme

A programme featuring more than 30 events will welcome the guests of Plovdiv at the Opening of the European Capital of Culture 2019. The bill for the long weekend (11 to 13 January) is the result of the collaboration between the Plovdiv 2019 Foundation and cultural institutions from Plovdiv. Instead of chronologically, the events are listed in a way that allows guests to choose from the form of art that best suits their tastes and temperaments. The route of locations starts from Tobacco City and SKLAD – Plovdiv's new space for culture – passes through the city centre to end in Kapana, the quarter of creative industries.

The opening weekend will host events of Plovdiv City Art Gallery, Starinen Plovdiv Municipal Institute, Plovdiv Drama Theatre, State Opera Plovdiv, Plovdiv Artists Society, Regional Museum of Ethnography, Regional Museum of Natural History, Ivan Vazov National Library, Lucky House of Cinema, Kapana Fest. The FIRE THEATRE Mime Company; Shade and Fire theatre ‘Fireter’; the D'Ambrosio brass band from the Italian town of Matera; and community centres (chitalishta) from Plovdiv and the Plovdiv region will be presenting their own shows.

The exhibition 'SMOKE. Tobacco Stories,' a Plovdiv 2019 Foundation production, will open in SKLAD on 11 January, and on the next day the exhibition 'Art Liberty – From the Berlin Wall to Street Art' will be launched at the heart of Plovdiv.

Besides the 'We Are All Colors' show, on 12 January, a highlight of the three opening days will be the children's programme (13 January). Part of it will be the touring exhibition 'Eureka' by the children's educational centre Muzeiko. Theatre lovers will be able to see 'Eurydice,' a performance of the Plovdiv Drama Theatre (with English subtitles). The weekend will end with the tango opera 'Maria From Buenos Aires,' the Bulgarian premiere staged by the State Opera Plovdiv.

The official ceremony of the opening of European Capital of Culture, Plovdiv 2019, attracted the attention of millions of spectators online all over the world. More than 50,000 people gathered in the central part of the city to watch the multi-cultural opening ceremony ‘We Are All Colours’. Tens of thousands tuned in online within the country’s borders to watch the event.

Representatives from more than 20 cities, which will and have been selected for the title European Capital of Culture attended the ceremony. More than 100 delegates participated in more than 30 events through-out the opening weekend in Plovdiv. Special guests were the representatives of Matera – the other city selected as European Capital of Culture for 2019.
More than 1 500 people from Plovdiv and Bulgaria took part in the opening show ‘We Are All Colours’. Theodosii Spassov was the first to open the ceremony with a melody, which was specially composed for the occasion. More than 200 kukeri got up on the stage and danced to fight the bad spirits away. Young actors from the National High School of Stage and Film Design in Plovdiv sent messages regarding the main points in the programme. Dancers from ensemble ‘Trakia’ had an unusual part to play - presenting a modern choreography combined with visuals arts. A choir of 230 people from Plovdiv added to the atmosphere, with the help of conductor Dian Chobanov and director Hristo Namliev. The show also included the melodies of 20 bagpipes. Quartet ‘Intro’ surprised the audience with their take on laser harps. More than 1100 volunteers got up on the stage to spread the motto of the ceremony, ‘together’.
The opening show ended with a performance by Valya Balkanska and bagpipe player Petar Yanev, under the chords of DJ Schiller and a 15 minute breath-taking firework display. The opening programme for the weekend continues today as well.

Detailed bilingual programme for the Opening Weekend and location's map you can find here and here:

The ECOC opening event is produced by the Plovdiv 2019 Foundation in partnership with international organizations, the major cultural institutions in Plovdiv, Plovdiv Municipality, artists and performers from Bulgaria and abroad. The concept of the event is created by the German artistic network phase7 performing.arts, artistic director Sven Sören Beyer.
The opening weekend programme is made jointly with partner organizations from Plovdiv and Bulgaria.