Festival Oude Dijk

September 3 and 4, Festival Oude Dijk will take place for the second time. Founded in corona time, it has now acquired a nice spot in the Tilburg line-up. Founder John tells.

Can you briefly explain what Festival Oude Dijk is like for a festival? 

"The festival is a mixture of young talent in the broadest sense of the word from singing, bands, duos, trios to spoken word and dance acts. There are many talents from Fontys University of applied Science of the Performing Arts."

How was the festival founded?

"The festival was founded in corona time around March 2021. I came across 2 students in the city at that time with their guitars feeling a bit down. I asked what education they were doing and it turned out to be the rock academy. They had graduated shortly before and were living in House Nazareth. At the time I had just read the research report on the city park that said performances could be given there. 1 and 1 is 2 and I asked them if they would like to perform in the city park together with other (former) students from their education. I then quickly set to work to arrange as much as possible. What day do we do it and what about the finances? That day became September 5 and fortunately the municipality had some extra 'corona budget' which helped in making the plans and their execution. On September 5, the first edition took place and with the corona rules in place at the time, there were still 350 visitors in attendance."

Who is the festival for? 

"The festival is and was for people from the city, from the neighborhood, the residents. Because many students live in the neighborhoods around the city park, the ratio was 50/50 last edition."

Who decides the programming and how is it structured? 

"Half of the programming is determined by the applications. This gives a super fun element of surprise."

What is the highlight this year and why? 

"Of course, all the performances are fun and you could call them highlights, but it's especially great to see how new and unknown talents come to the surface at such a festival. Furthermore, we are really looking forward to cover band Midi, The Manatees and Time Out."

What are the ambitions for the festival? 

"We hope to push the attendance numbers up a bit. Now that we don't have to deal with coronary restrictions anymore, it would be nice if it gets a little busier again and we have that nice festival atmosphere. In addition, we hope to continue to attract a diverse crowd, so from old and young residents to students who come to enjoy. It's nice to see all the people mix."

Why is this festival especially fun for students? 

"We think students like Festival Oude Dijk because there are young talents, sometimes even fellow students, performing and there is a very relaxed atmosphere. Because there are also people from other target groups present, you come to different conversations and it increases the social cohesion. But above all, of course, it is also very fun."

Festival Oude Dijk takes place on September 3 and 4 in Stadspark Oude Dijk in the city center (behind the Kloosterstraat). The festival is free to enter. All day you can enjoy great performances and delicious food and drink from Café Berlin and Saté Kid, among others. For more information click here.