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  • Nuuk Nordic Festival. Photo by Aningaaq Rosing Carlsen, Visit Greenland.

Nuuk Nordisk Kulturfestival: Nordic Ambitions and Arctic Atmosphere

You don’t have to be an art connoisseur to enjoy the biggest culture festival in Greenland that takes place every two years in the capital. Nuuk Nordisk Kulturfestival always offers heart warm hospitality and an extravaganza of experiences for all visitors.

Who, What, Where?

The Nuuk Nordisk Kulturfestival was created in 2015 with the purpose of highlighting art and culture throughout the Nordic region. The foundation of the festival is a great hospitality that is to open the doors of Greenland for Nordic and international guests, but also to serve the best Greenland has to offer of artistic talent. The festival is host to typically more than 150 artists in over 40 venues around the city. The festival is based on a wide definition of culture, and therefore, you can find everything from performing arts, art, architecture, literature and music to food events during Nuuk Nordic.

The festival is based on a heart warm participant atmosphere, so if you are even the slightest interested in Nordic culture, it makes perfect sense to pack your culture glasses and plan your autumn holiday after the next festival. Even if you are not the great art connoisseur there are plenty of good reasons to stop by. Hopefully, this article can inspire you to a few cultural experiences that you would not want to miss out on.

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Close to the Locals

Every year Nuuk Nordic is opened with a show of Arctic dimension with a taste of a lot of what really is the cream of the crop of the Greenlandic cultural scene. The show consists of a concert, theatre, dance and speeches by the local politicians and festival organizers. One can be sure to feel the local spirit, when happy and excited families, children and grandparents from all over Nuuk gather. I have yet to make it through an opening show without shedding a tear, so this is definitely an event, which you do not want to miss.

Staging Life in Greenland

Modern performing arts thrives during Nuuk Nordic, where different venues such as The National Theatre of Greenland, Katuaq and Nuuk Art Museum host modern drama, children’s shows, storytelling and performance art.

Theatre and performance can be found everywhere in the Greenlandic culture, and Greenland has a proud, and thousand year old, history of theatre, where one can also find traditional ways of expression. You should really allow yourself to drop by an event with scary and entertaining mask dancing, magical catchy drum dancing or cozy-scary storytelling.

Legends, Myths and Great Stories

In the Arctic winters good laughs and thrills are essential and great stories come highly valued. Thus, the Greenlandic literature is based on a year-long oral tradition, legends and myths. In the last couple of years the literature has also had a renaissance with breakthroughs in modern poetry, short stories, crime stories, novels and tales. At the festival you can typically also experience tales on life in the Nordic region from prominent international actors. Drop by the national library or the university where you are sure to find good literary events, or, alternatively, you can flick through some of the Greenlandic works that are not easy to find anywhere else.

Experience the City from New Angles

During the festival the nooks and crannies of the city are transformed into exhibition spaces and visual venues. Nuuk Center will be home to photographic exhibitions, Katuaq to installations and the city streets will be used to shine a light on buildings that are normally just a part of the everyday visual noise. Even the permanent exhibitions at the Nuuk Art Museum, the local museum and the National Museum are joined by new artistic guests. Nuuk Nordic focuses on visual culture and architecture in a number of ways, and all you have to do is keep your eyes open and be lead to a wide array of very different events. Whether you are into the national costumes or ground breaking Icelandic experiments, you can find what suits you. Even if museums usually makes you drowsy, you will have ample opportunity to gain a new perspective on the urban space, when overlooked architectural gems open their usually closed doors and host talks, concerts and workshops.

Plan Your Festival

  • The festival takes place biannually in October. The next festival is in 2021.

  • You can fly to Nuuk via Kangerlussuaq from Copenhagen or directly from Keflavik or Reykjavik (Find more information on how to plan your transportation.)

  • The program spans a week from Monday to Sunday.

  • Plan your trip, so you arrive on Friday or Saturday before the festival and fly back on Monday, if you want to make sure that you do not miss any of the events on the festival program.

  • It is a good idea to take into account the possibility of delays. As there are no flights on Sundays at this time of year, a delay due to inclement weather on Saturday could mean that you do not arrive until Monday.

  • Book accommodation in advance as early as possible (up to 6 months before). The city will be full of international guests, so everything from hotel rooms to airbnb will be booked quickly.

  • The festival is scattered all over town, but most of the events are centred within walking distance from the city centre. If you feel like participating in an event outside of the city centre, and you do not feel like a hike, you can avail yourself of a local taxi or alternatively of one of the 7 bus routes at the price of 17 DKK in cash for one adult ticket.

  • The artists that perform are typically announced on an ongoing basis 6 months before the festival. The program itself with information on times and venues is published on the Nuuk Nordic website a couple of months in advance. This is also the place to buy tickets and find more information.

  • You can put together your own program on the festival website and on the festival app.

  • Interested in participating in just a few events? Typically, it is not possible to buy a ticket for a single event, but the festival does have several free events, and in some cases also day tickets. Contact the festival or check their website for more information.

Feel the Greenlandic Pulse

Music is an integral part of the social life in Greenland and it always has been. From Open Mic at the local bars to the Nordic Concert Choir, Nuuk is home to a vibrant music scene that really blossoms during the festival. The musicians work with one another and this opens for collaborations with international musical talents. This creates a unique sound on an international level combined with the pulse of the city. Put your warm winter gear on and venture out into the evening darkness to find one of the many concerts that Nuuk welcomes you to. Here you will find music experiences out of the ordinary.

Eat You Way through Greenland

Once you have walked around the frozen paths in the capital in order to find your way to all the great cultural experiences, you will be happy to know that Nuuk Nordic also caters to your stomach. Luckily the festival takes place during one of the high seasons when it comes to great Greenlandic produce: the autumn. Eat your way through the food events and eateries in the city and taste musk ox, reindeer, salmon, halibut, cod, snow crab or something completely different. Drink an official festival beer at Godthaab Bryghus. Or do as the Greenlanders do and find the local coffee shop or a kaffemik-event, where you can warm your hands and feet while enjoying cake and steaming hot coffee.

Why Should I Buy a Festival wristband?

Still no convinced? Nuuk Nordic takes place in the great and colourful capital of Greenland. Therefore, the festival backdrop is Nuuk with everything that the city offers, from boat trips on the fjord, hikes in nature, great conversations with the locals and visits to the many sights and restaurants of the city. Already interested in an Arctic city getaway, here you can add to that a festival with events to suit everyone. The festival opens up corners and nooks, which were otherwise easily overlooked, and you are therefore given the opportunity to see the city from completely new angles.

I promise you that strolling from a cozy living room with music and great stories through the city in the evening, looking up at the sky that is lit by the dancing northern lights is worth the entire trip. That is the recipe for the Nuuk Nordic Culture Festival.

Learn More

Want to learn more about the Nuuk Nordisk Kulturfestival? Then read this article on the music of the Nuuk Nordisk Kulturfestival 2017.
Did you read the article and pack your suitcase? Then follow our event calendar, where we announce the dates for the next Nuuk Nordisk Kulturfestival!

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By Anna Maria Jakobsen

Anna Maria Jakobsen is a former Nuummioq (Nuuk citizen) and Greenland enthusiast. With a background and profession in cultural communication, she loves telling the story of the Arctic and does so from an insider's perspective.

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