05/12/2024
On Wednesday, 4 December, we presented the GO! 2025 official programme to the German audience at the Slovenian Embassy in Berlin.
This week, European Capital of Culture 2025 Nova Gorica - Gorizia was presented to a Berlin audience. Our representatives were invited by SKICA Berlin (Slovenian Cultural Centre), which operates at the Embassy of the Republic of Slovenia in Berlin. The event was held in cooperation with the Slovenian Tourist Board. Divided in four main chapters, War and Peace, Smugglers, Creation of the New and Very Green, the official programme of the upcoming capital was presented on Wednesday evening at the Kesselhaus Kulturbrauerei Berlin by artistic director Stojan Pelko. The event was accompanied with a speech by the Ambassador of the Republic of Slovenia to Germany, Ana Polak Petrič.
The audience was impressed by the outstanding performances of the world-renowned pianist Alexander Gadjiev and the MN Dance Company in costumes by fashion designer Matea Benedetti. Participants dove into in the borderless cultural cooperation that repositions Nova Gorica and Gorizia as symbols of European unity and cooperation. Cultural visitors, diplomats and numerous journalists were visibly impressed by the performance, as the performers showed that they have the artistic power to completely captivate the audience. For example, a journalist from the German Klassik Radio Station said that she had been completely blown away by the performances. Moderated by Vivian Perkovič, the event was attended by many guests, including those from Saxony, which will host Chemnitz 2025. The evening was accompanied by DJ Zlatko and featured Slovenian wines from the Cultus winery and food.
In addition to the official programme, the organisers also presented a spectacular opening ceremony, which will take place in Nova Gorica and Gorizia on 8 February 2025, the Slovenian Cultural Day. The ceremony will expand throughout the entire day and feature numerous dynamic events, travelling "from station to station". The parade will start at the Gorizia Centrale Railway Station at 9:30 am and then stop at Piazza della Vittoria. The cross-border parade will continue at Nova Gorica Railway Station, where a central ceremony will take place in Europe Square at 16:00, and at 18:00 an artistic programme will be presented on the lawn in front of the Nova Gorica Municipal Palace. In the evenin, a borderless party will take place. In addition to the opening ceremony, directed by Neda Rusjan Bric, we have announced three other mass events in the Stop the City! series that will attract more visitors to the conurbation: March for Europe on 1 May 2025, the Tastes without Borders on 26-28 September 2025, and an Enlighted Closing Ceremony in the beginning of December, on the Day of Culture.
The GO! Borderless slogan symbolises cross-border cooperation, most evident in the organisational and cultural spheres, as creators are more intertwined across borders than ever before. The rich creativity of the region is also demonstrated by the accompanying programme with GO! 2025 and Friends special brand, which ranges from concerts by international musicians on the Italian map to amateur culture in Slovenia. The GO! 2025 and Friends programme will be presented together with the official programme and other accompanying activities at a press conference on Tuesday 10 December in Gorizia, together with the EGTC GO (European Grouping for Territorial Cooperation), the Municipality of Gorizia and the Province of Friuli-Venezia Giulia. We will also present the programme in Rome just before the ECoC opening.
