Afgelopen zaterdag tijdens de derde editie van Jazz in the Park verwelkomde het Zuiderparktheater de 30.000e bezoeker van dit zomerseizoen. Voor het Haagse openluchttheater is dit een bezoekersrecord. De bezoeker werd tijdens de pauze van de show in het zonnetje gezet door Jeffrey Spalburg die de Milesavond aan elkaar praatte. Mildred Maduro werd verrast met bloemen en vrijkaarten voor een show naar keuze volgend seizoen. (Foto Mike van Hees)
"We have had three challenging seasons. First, we had to prove our right to exist after the removal of the structural subsidy from the City of The Hague's Arts Plan. Then came corona. With this season, we draw a definitive line under that. We ran the best season ever. It was a fantastically sunny summer. More visitors, including many returning visitors, more volunteers and lots of publicity," says chairman of the foundation Nachet Louchahi.
Over half of the visitors come for the Zuiderpark Live concerts. "This year we presented De Dijk, Ilse Delange, St. Paul & The Broken Bones, Selah Sue, Suzanne Vega and Clouseau, among others. The spectacular TV coverage on NPO1 and live radio broadcast by NPO4 of the Belgian brothers was a real feat for us. We have already discussed that there will be more live concerts next year. "The first names will already be announced in October this year,'' adds director Berend Dikkers.
The 2nd edition of the Holiday Park including Prince's Day attracted 5,000 visitors. This will also return next season in cooperation with borough Escamp. "Incredibly important for residents of The Hague who cannot go on holiday,'' said team and board. The remaining number of visitors comes from cooperation with city partners such as Residentie Orkest, Haags Beat Festival, Haags Hiphop Centrum, Participatie Keuken and the three Jazz in the Park evenings with Michael Varekamp. This event/ series will also return next year. We can rightly say that we are back on the map. And that's thanks to our great team, our partners and especially the 100 volunteers,'' said Berend Dikkers and Nachet Louchahi.
In May 2023, the open-air theatre will open its gates again. The Hague Zuiderpark will then celebrate its 100th anniversary. "We will definitely join that. We also have plans to celebrate 165 years of Keti Koti with The Hague African Festival."
