What is the Noorderzon festival?

Every year, we look forward to Noorderzon in Groningen and its surroundings! Officially, the name of this festival is 'Noorderzon Festival of Performing Arts & Society'. Here we inform you what to expect from Noorderzon in 2024.
Noorderzon is a performing arts festival that is organized every year in the Noorderplantsoen park in Groningen, located in the north of the city center.

Mark Yeoman, artistical director of Noorderzon

The artistical director is Mark Yeoman and he travels worldwide to visit various performers and programs the Noorderzon festival with his team. The programming of 'Noorderzon Festival of Performing Arts & Society' focuses on new and innovative work in the field of interdisciplinary theater. A professional repertoire with acts that lie on the border between theater and other disciplines.

Femke Eerland, director of Noorderzon

Besides the artistical organization a big part of the work is to manage the professional organization of this big festival. Femke Eerland has been succesfully managing the professional organization as the director of Noorderzon since 2007 and before as a business leader.

International performances at Noorderzon

The festival is freely accessible, but you book tickets for the performances in advance. There is also De Winkel near the pond where you can buy available tickets on the spot. Smaller performances of the children's program and performances in the containers on the site are only available for purchase at the entrance of the respective locations.

The performances are often of international allure. Personally, I think the level of the performances are very high. At Noorderzon, you will find challenging performing arts from all corners of the world, making it extra interesting. So, for booking tickets for performances in the tents, you usually need to be on time.

When can you start ordering tickets for the Noorderzon performances?

The sale of tickets will take place in stages. On Saturday, June 22, 2024, ticket sales for the main program of Noorderzon will start. On Monday, July 22, tickets for all performances will be available for purchase. 
Do you want to buy tickets for Noorderzon earlier? Then become a Friend of Noorderzon now, and you can book your tickets for Noorderzon on Friday, June 21, from noon and then for the entire program on Sunday, July 21.

Take your kids to the Noorderzon festival

For the kids program, you can buy tickets on the spot. When our son was smaller, we were often found at what I called the 'children's square', located near the large playground by the climbing ropes in Noorderplantsoen. For families with younger children, this is a well-known area. It is almost in the middle of Noorderplantsoen. There is a basketball court and a water tap from the Water Company where you can refill your bottle for free.  On this children's square (as I call it), you have the most diverse creative activities (painting, building, making theater, and so on) and... not entirely unimportant, there is always something to drink for the parents. Great! If your kids are old enough, they can enter the tent without supervision ;-)

Take your dog to Noorderzon festival

Since it is an outdoor event, it could of course be possible to bring your dog. But keep in mind that it is busy, that there are many tasty things to be found and often on the ground, and that there are more people who bring their dogs. So.... I would advise keeping the dog on a leash. There are also some parts of the park available to walk the dog.

I myself live close to Noorderplantsoen and usually leave our dog Kai at home. He gets stressed by the crowds, and I don't walk in Noorderplantsoen during the Noorderzon festival. Also because Kai  really enjoys walking off-leash!

Drinks, a performance, and enjoying music during Noorderzon

In the evening, it is fun to meet up with friends and enjoy live music but also to visit performances. Theater, performing arts, acrobatics, and all kinds of combinations of art forms can be expected at this unique outdoor festival.
Below I give insight into what you can expect from Noorderzon in 2024. It will be beautiful again!

The schedule of Noorderzon 2024

First of all, let's start with the schedule Noorderzon . 
First day of Noorderzon: Thursday, August 22, 2024
Last day of Noorderzon: Sunday, September 1, 2024
So, we can enjoy a hopefully sunny Noorderzon Festival for 11 days!

The list of performances planned for this year Noorderzon

Bashar Murkus and Khulood Basel at the Khashabi Theatre - YES DADDY حاضر ياأبي from Palestine

Bashar Murkus is one of the most prominent theater makers in Palestine. Despite being only 30 years old, he has created around 20 performances since 2011. In recent years, he has been working at the Khashabi Theatre, which he co-founded. This group was established after the Israeli government cut funding to the Al-Midan Theatre due to a controversial performance. The Khashabi Theatre, based in Haifa, operates independently and, as much as possible in occupied Palestine, creates its performances in complete freedom.

De Linkse mannen lossen het op, talk shows from the Netherlands

Bram and Wilbert, our favorite problem solvers, tackle a major social issue, a local matter, and a visitor's complaint every day. Dare you join? Together with Marjolein Rover and a daily changing artist-in-residence, they solve problems using culture.

Dylan LeBlanc - Concert at the free Apollo stage

Apollo is the free stage in the heart of the Noorderzon festival, where you can enjoy great bands! With Dylan LeBlanc, expect soulful Americana music with influences from sixties folk, soul, and guitar rock. His most recent album named "Coyote" is about a man on the run, partly autobiographical and partly inspired by a real coyote he encountered during a mountain climb.

Jenna Jalonen (also known as triplejay) in collaboration with SUB.LAB>PRO | RING from Hungary

This captivating dance spectacle will take you into a 'rave' by this dancer. Are you ready?

People Watching - Play Dead from Canada

This circus performance portrays the madness of daily life. A mix of dance and circus turns into a party. Just awesome! People Watching is a collective of six multidisciplinary artists currently based in Montreal, founded in the spring of 2020. More information about this performance.

Tiago Rodrigues - Catarina and the Beauty of Killing Fascists from France

Would you kill to protect democracy? Tiago Rodrigues plays an intriguing political theater where convictions clash with the changing world. Originally from Portugal, Tiago is a top-notch writer and choreographer known for his performances. In 2023, he was even the director of the Festival d'Avignon.

Glory Wall by Leonardo Manzan from Italy

A brilliant comedic piece about (self-)censorship. With karaoke, rap, questionably famous dead men, and a powerful challenge to the rules and conventions of the theater world. Check the trailer below!

Guillermo Calderon, Vaca from Chile

One of the most renowned directors has composed a brilliant political satire on far-right politics.

Jeremy Nedd & Impilo Mapantsula - blue nite to the galaxy around olodumare, from Switzerland & South Africa

On July 12, 2022, NASA released images of galaxies over 10 billion light-years away, captured by the James Webb Telescope. Combine this with modern dance, and we get a better understanding of our own position and time!

HOOP, Platform GRAS from Groningen

Hope as an antidote to despair. Duos who barely know each other from specific fields of knowledge seek solutions together to protect us from the end times. Refreshing, challenging, and exciting! Organized by Platform Gras.

The musicians who bring color to the Noorderzon festival!

They have really done a great job at Noorderzon, as shown by this diverse list of bands and musicians:

Donny Benét from Australia will bring us disco funk music! Delicious sexy disco funk made by an Australian cult hero with a top mustache.

David Keenan from Ireland is a true troubadour who moves us with his guitar and piano.

Minyo Crusaders from Japan bring a mix of authentic Japanese folk music called min'yō.

Togo All Stars from Togo bring a combination of jazz, pop, afrobeat, samba, and funk.

Natalie Bergman uit de VS brengt Gospel 2.0

Meindert Talma & Freek de Jonge - De Domela Passie Laat je verrassen door verhaal, koor en strijksessies.

The Weather Station uit Canada met hun heerlijke folkmuziek.

Aftersun Noorderzon

Is there life after Noorderzon? Absolutely! On Tuesday, August 27th, the After Sun Talks will be organized, in collaboration with Marketing Groningen, just outside the Spiegeltent Pollux. This is a talk show where the cultural highlights in the city of Groningen after Noorderzon will be discussed. Participating organizations are: SPOT Groningen, Forum Groningen, VRIJDAG, and the Groninger Museum.