This week, 824th birthday of Riga will be celebrated with various events, concerts, sports activities, a craft market and street musicians in the Old Town, DJ performances on the 11th November Embankment, and everyone is welcome to join the celebration.
Craft market, street music, DJ performances
On the occasion of Riga's birthday, on 16 August, from 10.00, throughout the day, Dome Square will host a craft market, where craftsmen from different regions of Latvia will show their works, offering both traditional and modern handicrafts. The wide range of products on offer includes wood and linen, woven textiles, artistic ceramics, jewellery, leather goods and pottery.
From 14.00, Old Riga will be filled with street musicians, offering ten different venues to enjoy music of all styles and moods, giving everyone a real festive feeling. There will be both professional musicians and street musicians well-known and heard in the streets of Old Riga, whose performances will be accompanied by mime performances. In cooperation with the association "Tavi draugi", donations will be collected during the event to support Ukraine.
The 11th November Embankment will become the epicentre of Riga's birthday celebrations, where the city's diversity will be revealed through environmental installations, historical stories, an antique car parade, poetry competitions, diverse culinary experiences, concerts and DJ sets. Visitors will have the opportunity to learn about Riga's stories – from the port to the bustle of the market, from the city's rich history to its creative present. Throughout the day, there will be a variety of workshops, taste stations and relaxation areas, offering the chance to enjoy the city's birthday in all its diversity.
From 12.00 Katrīna Dimanta and the band "Zeltrači", “Būū”, the band "Musiqq", will perform on the scene with the concert performance "Other Song Celebration” ("Citu dziesmu svētki”), Rolands Če, Intars Busulis and the Orchestra “Abonoments” will also take the stage.
From 22.00, the programme "Riga's Tomorrow” ("Rīgas rītdiena”) will be performed, with three DJ stages running simultaneously, each with its own unique style and mood. DJ Dubra, DJ Magnus Eriņš, DJ all-viss and DJ Linda Samsonova will compete for the audience's favourites, playing everything from urban hip hop to house and experimental electronics.
"Riga(s) Stories" in Vērmane Garden and "Alternative Riga" in Uzvaras Park
On 16 August from 12.00 noon, in Vērmanes Garden residents and guests of Riga can enjoy a rich program of exciting, educational, and entertaining activities - creative workshops dedicated to Riga's birthday and the theme of stories, the theatre performance "Brown Cheese” by “Kvadrifrons” will delight the audience on the stage, the children's favourite "Ukulele" will perform well-known songs, an energy-filled performance by "ZemeDunn" is expected, while the Pecolli family will surprise the audience with real magic and enchanting tales in between the programme.
Meanwhile, from 18.00 to 22.00, the Vērmanes Garden stage will transform into the venue for the “Rīga pop music” event, inviting the residents of Riga and guests of the city to dance to the rhythms of well-known pop artists Ance Krauze, Inga Ulmane, Antras Stafecka, Mārtiņš Kanters, Ieva Sutugova, Artis Robežnieks and the accompanying band led by the MC Orchestra to refresh themselves after a long day of festivities with beloved and well-known melodies.
On the birthday of Riga the Uzvaras Park with the motto "Everyone has their own character. Everyone has their own Riga” invites to the event "Alternative Riga", which will include creative workshops, contemporary performances, shows by the AHHAA Science Centre, as well as the opportunity to engage in discussions and sports activities. Creative communities and other organizations will invite residents to participate, and BMX, skateboarding, roller-blading, and scooter shows will take place in the skate park. From 18:00, the Uzvaras Park stage will become a platform for current, alternative and independent artists, offering an exciting series of concerts that will bring together audiences of different generations, especially young people.
Basketball Tournament and Football Festival
In Esplanade Square, the birthday of Riga will be celebrated in a sporty spirit - all day from 16 August 13.30 to 17 August 15.00 in the basketball tournament "Coastal Tournament", featuring a tournament between actors and musicians, as well as influencers and politicians.
Football fans can look forward to the Riga Football Festival, which will take place at the Riga Congress Centre on 16 and 17 August. The festival will feature a children's and youth tournament, the Riga District Championship, and the Star Cup, which will be attended by well-known personalities. Throughout the day, there will be spectator areas, grandstands, food outlets, DJ music and various interactive activities.
Musical fountains "Serenade to Riga"
From the evening of Friday, 15 August, the city canal will come alive with the musical fountain "Serenade to Riga” ("Serenāde Rīgai”), enchanting visitors with its performances. The fountains will be illuminated on both 15 and 16 August from 21.00 in the evening until 1.00 at night. A series of multi-coloured illuminated fountains with a musical soundtrack specially designed for the birthday of Riga will allow visitors to enjoy the unforgettable atmosphere created by water, light and music. The performance will be viewed from both sides of the canal.
Musical parks in Dzegužkalns, Dauderi Park and Vērmanes Garden
Throughout the birthday week, there will be a programme of musical parks in various parks in Riga. On 13 August at 19.00 in Dzegužkalns Park we will hear two great Latvian bands - "Sigma" and "Kautkaili", on 14 August, the members of the band “Dagamba” – cellist Valters Pūce and pianist Dainis Tenis – will give a concert in Dauderi Park, performing their latest concert program “Pop Goes Classical”, on 15 August, the music will be played in Vērmanes Garden which will simultaneously inspire and invite you to a leisurely evening under the open sky. The charming and charismatic soloist Ilona Bagele will return to the stage, offering the audience a varied programme of Latvian and world pop and jazz music.
On 14 August, a music programme curated by artist Henri Laķis will provide the atmosphere of the evening in Kalnciems Quarter, while gospel choir "GG Choir" - performers of popular and gospel music - will take the stage as special guests. The choir was founded in 2004 by musician Gunārs Kalniņš, and since then it has performed in many different concerts, singing for both wider and narrower audiences, in concert performances, and at events that can be seen on TV screens.
This year, Riga's Summer Program is united under the motto "RakstuRīga", celebrating also the five hundredth anniversary of a Latvian book, which invites everyone to discover and appreciate Riga's rich cultural heritage and look for characteristic features of contemporary urban cultural life, both in the neighbourhoods and at the central events celebrating Riga's birthday.
More information about Riga Summer and birthday events is available on the website rigasvasara.lv, as well as on the Riga City Council social media pages “Rīga” and “Rīgā notiek”.
Further information: Tatjana Smirnova, Project Coordinator of the Department of External Communication of the Communication Department of the Riga City Council, e-mail: tsmirnova11@riga.lv
