The Szentendre Éjjel-Nappal Nyitva (Szentendre Open Night and Day) festival begins on Friday and will continue until Sunday, offering approximately 150 events at 50 locations throughout the town, including concerts, music and dance performances, exhibitions, and jewellery showcases.
The series, organized through the collaboration of the town’s cultural institutions, artistic associations, and businesses, will feature musical programmes, concerts, ballet and belly dance performances, street salsa, and contemporary dance shows. The museums in Szentendre will extend their opening hours and offer a variety of special programmes, including an international contemporary jewellery exhibition and an applied arts jewellery market, according to the statement released on Monday by the Szentendre Cultural Centre, the organizer of the event.
Each year, new locations are added to the festival map, and this year, one such venue is the Karnevál Kávéház és Gasztrobár in the main square, where works by István ef Zámbó and László feLugossy will be displayed in the ReStArt exhibition. Another new feature this year is the End-of-Summer Multidisciplinary Day, hosted by the Szentendre Old Artists’ Colony.
The concert series will kick off on Friday with a performance by the big band of the Szentendre Garrison Support Command of the Hungarian Defence Forces, featuring guest vocalist Éva Bolba. This year’s programme includes performances by several bands celebrating significant anniversaries, such as Lóci játszik, marking its 10th anniversary, Swing à la Django, also celebrating 10 years, Magashegyi Underground, which formed 20 years ago, and Brains, celebrating three decades. The closing concert on Sunday evening will be given by the Vujicsics Ensemble, celebrating its 50th anniversary, with guest artist László Tolcsvay.
Traditional programme elements will also return this year, including light projections on the Main Square, children’s programmes, an outdoor exhibition along the Bükkös Stream, a charity duck race organized by the Rotary Club, and a community painting event on the Templom Hill. The thematic city tours will offer costumed and folk art walks, a tour of the Szentendre Town Hall, and guided walks titled ‘Museum Promenade’ and ‘Fairy Tale Museum Promenade’ by the Ferenczy Museum Centre (FMC). The Hamvas Béla Pest County Library will host a literary therapy session, and film enthusiasts are encouraged to attend the day and night programmes at P’Art Cinema.
As part of the ‘Houses, Courtyards, Hosts’ programme series, artists, civilians, and shop owners will once again welcome visitors, while there will also be a Japan Fest and the Dumtsa Craft Market showcasing applied arts.
Attendance at the event is free, but some events in the ‘Houses, Courtyards, Hosts’ programme series require registration or an admission ticket.
Organizers advise that parking in the centre of Szentendre is limited, so visitors are encouraged to use public transport or arrive on foot if possible.
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