Discover Benelux | Netherlands | Top festivals, exhibitions & events 2016
PA R K C I T Y L I V E H E E R L E N
Top open-air performances in the sunny south TEXT: KOEN GUIKING | PHOTOS: JOHN KLIJNEN
Once again the organisers of summer festival ParkCity Live have managed to sign up the most popular musicians in the Netherlands, as well as a couple of big international names. This annual two-day event is the ultimate proof that the far south of the Netherlands is a top region for live music. “The city of Heerlen has a long history with live music and it has a beautiful park. Put together, this is a recipe for a fantastic annual festival,” says Hans Paul Nieskens, a local citizen who has been involved in organising ParkCity Live since the second edition in 2012. As a festival director, he does not just book any band 88 | Issue 31 | July 2016
for this mega event; Nieskens only gets the artists that are extremely popular. This year’s line up features Kensington, Typhoon, BLØF, UB40, Dotan, 77 Bombay Street, La Gran Pegatina; to mention a few names. “For Kensington, it is already the third year in a row that they are performing at ParkCity Live. They are simply one of the best and most popular bands around. People want to see them and Kensington likes to play here, so it is a no brainer: we had to get them.” It is only the sixth edition of ParkCity Live, but this festival has rapidly become renowned across the Netherlands: tickets for this year’s edition were sold
out within ten days. “Initially almost the entire audience came from the south of Limburg, but nowadays we get people from all over the country,” says Nieskens.
Only big names on the main stage ParkCity Live offers something for all ages. “We get lots of families at the festival. The parents come to see the artists on the main stage, while their children tend to be more interested in the two dance stages. The culture stage offers entertainment for a very wide range of ages. For instance, we have an act by a young lady who performs with snakes, there is a singing transvestite and we have a fantastic jazz collective.”