May 20th – June 3rd, 2020
The Bergen International Festival presents art in all its guises: music, theatre, dance, opera and visual art.
The Bergen International Festival (Festspillene i Bergen) was established in 1953 and is the largest of its kind in the Nordic countries. It is the longest standing and the foremost music and theatre festival in Norway.
The CEO and artistic director of the festival is Anders Beyer, and the festival is under the Patronage of His Majesty King Harald V.
With a combination of dramatic landscapes, local colour and imaginative programming, the festival is well established as a centre for the northern European arts scene, presenting premieres and new productions in the spheres of music, opera, theatre and dance. Each year some 250 events are staged in the course of 15 days in 20 venues, including the homes of Edvard Grieg and Ole Bull.
Classical music and the theatre are cornerstones of the festival, and every year new productions are presented in collaboration with international partners. The festival also gives priority to new music, commissioning several works every year. The festival welcomes over 100.000 visitors each year and receives governmental funding on both regional and national level, in addition to corporate sponsorships.
We want to invite, inspire and challenge a large local and visiting audience. During the festival we declare a state of emergency in the city. With our partners in and outside Bergen, we offer music, theatre, dance – and much more – that reflect our lives and dreams and has unexpected effects on the way we perceive the world.
The Bergen International Festival takes place in the UNESCO World Heritage City Bergen. The city of Bergen is easily accessible from all over the world. Fly direct to experience the range of events the Bergen International Festival has to offer. The airport bus runs every 15 minutes, and tickets can be bought online in advance. Bergen also has a ferry connection to the Continent, and the ferry docks are within easy walking distance of the city centre. The Bergen Railway between Bergen and Oslo has been ranked as one of the greatest train journeys in the world. Express bus services also operate in virtually all directions. Enjoy the varied scenery on your way to Bergen!
For full information, visit the Bergen International Festival website.