Music, film, theater: festivals & concerts in Romania in 2019
Several big names will perform in Romania next year, including Ed Sheeran, Bon Jovi, The Cure and Lenny Kravitz, and the major music festivals in the country round up a rich offer. Film and theater lovers have several major events going on, while classical music fans are getting ready for another edition of the George Enescu International Festival. Below we have compiled a list of some of the festivals and concerts announced for 2019.
David Duchovny concert
February 10
The American actor known for his roles in the “X Files” and “Californication” will perform Bucharest, for the first time in Romania. He will promote his second album, “Every Third Thought”, released in 2018. Tickets are available at iabilet.ro and eventim.ro.
Andre Rieu concert
April 5
The Dutch violinist, together with his Johann Strauss Orchestra, will perform for the first time in Cluj-Napoca, at the BT Arena. Tickets can be purchased from Eventim.ro and Andrerieu.com.
American Independent Film Festival
April - May
The organizers of Les Films de Cannes a Bucarest have added an event dedicated to independent American productions. Top guests have come at previous editions, among them Ethan Hawke, Sebastian Stan or Joaquin Phoenix. Just as with the event dedicated to films awarded in Cannes, it is a good opportunity to see productions that might not otherwise enjoy a wide distribution in Romania. Updates are posted here.
Romania - France Season
April 18 to July 14
The Season began in France in 2018, where it will run until April 5. It takes place under the slogan “Oubliez vos clichés!” (Forget the clichés). More on the planned events here.
Lenny Kravitz concert
May 6
American singer Lenny Kravitz returns to Romania to perform in Cluj-Napoca. The concert will take place at the city’s Sala Polivalenta. He previously performed in Romania in 2008, in Bucharest. Tickets are available at lennykravitz.emagic.ro, eventim.ro and iabilet.ro.
Bucharest International Jazz Competition
May 11– May 18
The 13th edition of the event is open to bands and vocalists of all nationalities. The Bucharest public will get to see the winners at a gala concert. More on the event here.
Sibiu Jazz Festival
May 16 – May 19
The event was first organized in the 1970s and has since launched many local jazz musicians. Among those who, in time, performed at the festival are Ron Carter, Toots Thielemans, Archie Shepp, Didier Lockwood, Dee Dee Bridgewater, Jan Garbarek, Bill Evans, Charles Lloyd, Birelli Lagrene, Chucho Valdes, and Arturo Sandoval. The event’s website is here.
Transilvania International Film Festival
May 31 – June 09
The largest international feature film festival in Romania gathers a wide public and top representatives of the local and international film industry to Cluj-Napoca every year. Some of the films that will be screened have already been announced. More details here.
Sibiu International Theater Festival
June 14 – June 23
After last year, 3,300 artists and guests from 73 countries presented 525 events for some 70,000 spectators each day, the event is getting ready for its 26th edition. The public can expect the same mix of top international guests, street performances, exhibitions, concerts and diverse events. The program is updated here.
Jazz in the Park
June – July
The festival is held in Cluj-Napoca’s Central Park, and started with the mission of changing the general perception on jazz music. Events are held in various other locations in the city, and cover a host of experiences, including sports, arts, biking or gaming. The 2018 lineup included Nouvelle Vague, Juan de Marcos Afro Cuban All Stars, Richard Bona, Nik Bartsch’s Ronin, Soweto Kinch, Alfa Mist, Sona Jobarteh, Bill Laurance, The Herbaliser, Forq, Fanfare Ciocârlia, and more. The event’s website has more updates.
Tom Jones concert
June 26
This is the singer’s first concert in Cluj-Napoca, and it will be held at BT Arena. Tickets are available at Iabilet.ro and eventim.ro.
Gărâna Jazz Festival
July
This is a must-attend for jazz lovers in Romania and comes with the added benefit of a beautiful setting as Gărâna is surrounded by the Semenic Nature Park. Names such as Eberhard Weber, Mike Stern, Jan Garbarek, Charles Lloyd, Jean-Luc Ponty, Stanley Jordan, John Abercrombie, Miroslav Vitous, Zakir Hussain, Magnus Ostrom, Bugge Wesseltoft, Lars Danielsson, Avishay Cohen, Nils Petter Molvaer and more previously performed in Gărâna. The program for the 2019 edition is updated here.
Ed Sheeran concert
July 3
The concert takes place at Bucharest’s National Arena and about 25,000 tickets for the event already sold in just a couple of hours. More are available at eventim.ro.
Neversea
July 4 – July 7
Held in Constanţa, at the Romanian seaside, Neversea already started selling out passes for the 2019 edition. More than 150 international artists performed on the seven stages of the festival in 2018. Among them were The Script, Aloe Blacc, Armin van Buuren, Steve Aoki, Lost Frequencies, Axwell&Ingrosso, and Steve Angelo. More here.
Electric Castle
July 17 - July 21
Held at the the Bonțida domain, close to Cluj-Napoca, the festival already announced big names for the 2019 edition: Indie rock band Florence + The Machine, US rock band Thirty Seconds to Mars and UK rock band Bring Me The Horizon, among other artists. More here.
The Histories and Film Festival in Râșnov
July 19 - 28
A mix of historical films, lectures, debates, workshops, concerts and exhibitions in the Râșnov Citadel. The program is updated here.
Bon Jovi concert
July 21
Part of the group’s This House Is Not For Sale tour in Europe, the concert takes place in Constituţiei Square, in Bucharest. It will be Bon Jovi’s second concert in Romania after the 2011 one, held at the same location. Tickets can be purchased at eventim.ro.
The Cure concert
July 22
It is the first concert in Romania of the English rock band and it will be held in Constitutiei Square, in Bucharest. The lineup of the event also includes Irish post-rock band God Is An Astronaut, part of the Rock the City festival. Tickets are on sale at eventim.ro.
Anonimul International Independent Film Festival
August
The festival features independent films and young directors and takes place each year in the Danube Delta, in the village of Sfântu Gheorghe. The event’s website is here.
Untold
August 1 – August 4
The festival held in Cluj is very popular with both local and international crowds, and tickets sell out even before the lineup is announced. Previous names performing at the event included Black Eyed Peas, The Chainsmokers, The Prodigy, Jason Derulo, Armin van Buuren, Kygo, Diplo, Steve Aoki, Dimitri Vegas&Like Mike, Afrojack, Tiesto, Solomun, Parov Stelar, Foreign Beggars, Stavroz, and Jan Blomquist. Updates are posted here.
Summer Well
August 10 – August 11
This indie, pop, and rock music festival that takes place close to Bucharest, in Buftea. Part of the 2019 has been announced and it includes: The 1975, Tender, Pale Waves, Maribou State, Black Honey, The National. More updates here.
Metallica concert
August 14
The famous American heavy metal band Metallica will perform in Bucharest, at Arena Nationala, as part of the band’s Worldwired tour. Tickets can be purchased at metallica.emagic.ro, eventim.ro and iabilet.ro.
Awake
August 15 - August 18
This boutique festival takes place at the Teleki estate in Gornești, in Mureș county. It combines music, visual arts, workshops and inspirational speakers, cinema and open air theater, among others. Tickets are already on sale here.
George Enescu International Festival
August 31 – September 22
Several firsts have been announced for the 2019 edition of the event. Among them a total number of 34 names will come the first time to Romania, including Marion Cotillard, Kiril Petrenko, Mitsuko Uchida, and 9 world-class orchestras; and the Opera in concert and Mozart Week in Residence sections. The program is available here.
Les Films de Cannes a Bucarest
October
The fresh crop of productions awarded at the Cannes Film Festival is screened in Bucharest at this event. The festival also gives the public the opportunity to meet top filmmakers from around the globe. Past guest have included Olivier Assayas, Asghar Farhadi, Gaspar Noe, Carlos Reygadas, Andrey Zvyagintsev, or Amat Escalante, in a much longer list. The event’s website is here.
SoNoRo
October/November
The chamber music festival runs editions in Bucharest, and several cities in the country, bringing the public a lineup of international musicians and ensembles for themed concerts, held in various traditional and less so locations. Various programs and events have evolved in time around the festival, such as SoNoRo Conac, held in various mansions in the country. The program will be updated here.
Iasi International Festival of Literature and Translation
October
The largest literature festival in Romania, it gathers each year in Iasi writers, translators, publishers, critics, book retailers and distributors for hundreds of events. Authors such as Jonathan Coe, David Lodge, Gao Xingjian, Evgheni Vodolazkin or Jonathan Franzen have so far been guests of the event. Updates on the program are provided here.
Early Music Festival Bucharest
November
This is the go-to event for lovers of early music, from Byzantine to Baroque music. It also includes in its program various other performances and events. The event’s website is here.
Bookfest & Gaudeamus Book Fairs
Spring, Autumn
The two major book fairs in Bucharest usually take place in spring (Bookfest) and autumn (Gaudeamus). Bookfest also has local editions in several other cities in the country. Both feature guest countries at each edition.
(Photo: Pixabay)
editor@romania-insider.com
