Summer Festival a Success Despite Rain and Lack of Indoor Venues
Ljubljana's 53rd Summer Festival closed on a high note on Thursday, as the number of visitors, braving changeable weather and a modernised programme, remained on a par with last year.
Darko Brlek, the "very pleased" Festival's artistic director, said that performances by 3,000 artists from 21 countries had drawn more than 50,000 visitors.
Speaking at a press conference Wednesday, he reiterated the need for a large indoor venue that could accommodate various cultural events, "not just for the Festival's but also for Ljubljana's sake".
Brlek also believes it would be a national shame for Ljubljana not to have suitable facilities by the year 2012, when it will turn into the European Culture Capital.
In essence a festival of classical music, the Ljubljana Summer Festival combines various events, including exhibitions and an open-air cinema, the International Artistic Community, and Days of Chanson.
This year's festival opened with a performance by Russia's Bolshoi Theatre, due to return in two year's time.
It closed with the ballet "Zorba the Greek" by Maribor's Slovenian National Theatre.
The Ljubljana Summer Festival will cost around SIT 400m (EUR 1.67m), with money coming from the Ljubljana municipality, ticket sales, sponsors and donors, and the Culture Ministry.
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