The open-air theater in Valkenburg wants to program all year round. That is what the new director Vincent Loozen says. Now the theater only shows performances in the summer.
Loozen will succeed Jos Frusch, who is retiring on 1 July.
All year round
“In recent years, considerable investment has been made in the theater, not only in the programming but also in the theater itself. The backstage, the space behind the stage, is a cave. A glass wall has been placed there, and there can be just 100 people We have not been able to do that until now, because of corona. But if we want to expand the programming of the theater, using that cave theater is actually the easiest and most logical way to do that. you can also program all year round.”
Not in the middle of winter
Loozen, born and raised in Valkenburg, then necessarily thinks of small performances: “That can be anything. Cabaret, small concerts, drama, but also literature. A writer who comes to tell, for example. Things that do not immediately attract a thousand people, but small, intimate productions. I don’t think we’ll be programming in the middle of winter right away. Let’s first see what we can do in the spring and autumn.”
End of May
The open-air theater season kicks off May 21, with a concert by blues musician Phil Bee. The programming of this season still comes from Jos Frusch. says Loozen: “All credit to Jos, he has done a fantastic job in recent years. I will watch with him in the coming months, and I will officially start on 1 July.”
Pierre Cuypers
The open-air theater in Valkenburg dates from 1916 and was built by the famous Roermond architect Pierre Cuypers. It has almost a thousand seats. The season normally runs until the beginning of September, when it becomes too cold and the chance of bad weather too great to program any longer shows. A few years ago a roof was made above the stage. This ensures that at least the artists are dry when it rains.