Dutch Prime-minister Rutte has just given an update regarding the measures being taken against the coronavirus. Even though some measures will no longer be enforced, the future of the event industry remains uncertain. This is why Dutch king Willem-Alexander spoke to several festival organisations this week: “Festivals are essential.”
ALSO READ: “Big events have to wait for coronavirus vaccine”
In The Netherlands, the situation regarding the coronavirus is slowly but surely getting better. This also means some measures will no longer be enforced: among others restaurants, (movie) theaters and others can open their doors again starting the 1st of June. Unfortunately this does not apply to the event industry: earlier Dutch ‘corona minister’ de Jonge explained festivals and big events can only take place again when there is a coronavirus vaccine available.
This is why king Willem-Alexander spoke to several Dutch festival organisations, among them the directors of Oerol, De Parade, Wonderfeel, Holland Festival en Mojo Concerts. The king acknowledged the importance of festivals for Dutch culture and shared his worries about all the unemployed people. He also hopes gatherings will soon be possible again, and said it’s a good thing that festivals are exploring other (online) possibilities to continue their events.
Festivals are essential for Dutch culture, but when are they coming back?
So, the industry is working on several new possibilities for festivals, among which the well-known drive-in concept. Unfortunately we still have to wait for our beloved festivals to return in real life, until a vaccine against the coronavirus is available.
