The historic event De Etstoel in Anloo will definitely not take place this year. An attempt to organize the festival this summer failed, a spokesperson for a large group of volunteers confirms. There is no definitive ending yet.
The board of the Etstoel suddenly announced in March that the event would cease to exist after forty years. The Etstoel was created to raise money for the maintenance of the Magnus Church. The Drenthe Landscape is now taking over the church and so, according to the organization, the main motivation behind the event is disappearing.
A group of about three hundred volunteers disagreed and tried in recent months to keep the Etstoel going. In vain. There is now too little time left to organize things properly, says Herman Sandker on behalf of the volunteers.
“Last week we had a constructive conversation with the board of the Etstoel and the Friends of the Magnus Church. The board indicated that they did not want to support the Etstoel this year. We are now looking at 2027,” says the spokesperson. “But for this year it is very unfortunate.”
Treasurer Paul Brood of the Friends of the Magnus Church Foundation agrees that there has been a positive discussion about a follow-up to the Etstoel. “I dare to doubt that it will still be called the Etstoel. But a historic day around the Magnus Church would of course also be possible,” says Brood. “We welcome the arrival of a similar event.”
The precise reason for the deletion of the Etstoel remains somewhat unclear. According to Brood, this is partly due to a shortage of volunteers. Especially in the run-up to the event, but also around the Etstoel sitting. “An example: the Etstoel is a court hearing of 24 etten (judges, ed.) from the entire province. But it has not been possible to get 24 together for some time,” says Brood.
Another reason Brood mentions is the sale of the church and thus the loss of the most important goal of the organization. Would the Etstoel have continued if the church had not been sold? “I think so.” When asked why this was not decided shortly after the event was canceled given the support from the village, Brood responds that the board of the Etstoel definitely wants to use this year to reflect on the future.
Chairman Henk Doeven of the Etstoel Anloo foundation agrees with Brood’s words. Moreover, according to him, there was no play ready to be performed this year. “Then we shouldn’t have to bend over backwards to organize this at all costs.”
If the historic event returns under a different name and with a different meaning, the Etstoel Anloo Foundation will no longer be in charge. However, it is open to lending out costumes and other materials that were previously used during the Etstoel.
“Our board is not going to organize that,” says Doeven, “but a new group has emerged and is eager to do so.”
