The Norwegian Queen to visit the Bergen International Festival for the 35th time

'We greatly appreciate Queen Sonja's long-standing support for the Bergen International Festival. The presence of the Norwegian royal family on the opening day has set the tone for almost every Bergen International Festival since the beginning in 1953, and not many cultural institutions have experienced such,' says Festival director Lars Petter Hagen.

Queen Sonja will be present when the 2023 Bergen International Festival opens at Festplassen on 24 May at 12:30 PM. The Queen will also attend the opening performance, the opera Tosca in Grieghallen, where the title role is performed by the Norwegian star soprano and this year’s Artist in residence, Lise Davidsen.

H.M. King Harald is the high patron of the Bergen International Festival, as both his father, H.M. King Olav and grandfather, H.M. King Haakon, were. They have all been present during the opening in a number of years. H.R.H. The Crown Prince and H.R.H. The Crown Princess have also represented the Norwegian Royal House during the festival. Even during the pandemic, the Queen and the Crown Prince sent a video greeting to the digital opening of the 2020 festival, and this year, the Queen is visiting the festival for the 35th time.

'We are privileged to have a queen who is so committed to and vividly interested in art and culture. The Queen making it a priority to come to Bergen and meet thousands of audience members underlines the Festival's position as a national and international event – and we imagine that she likes being here, too,' says the Chair of the Board Thorhild Widvey.

This year's festival is the 71st edition and takes place from 24 May to 7 June. See the programme launched so far.