This year, the lustrum week of the University will be featuring a ton on different events from the 5.-15. June, all throughout the city. One of my personal favourites on this year's agenda is the Night of Arts and Sciences which is taking place on the 8th of June. The event was created in 2009 for the UG’s 395th birthday, and since then the festival has been held annually.

Just like the rest of the lustrum, the theme for the night is All-Inclusive. The night will consist of 150 different acts spread all across the city, ranging from lectures to debates, workshops, music, science experiments and more. In this blog, I’ll try to give you an overview of what to expect during this night and highlight some of my personal tips for making the most out of your evening. You can already take a look at the full programme yourself.

The top headliners that should not be missed:

Music by Blanks

Our very own UG student Simon de Wit is an up and coming Youtube star with almost 800,000 subscribers. His youtube bio describes him as an “overexcited music boy!!”, and there really is no other way to describe him. Blanks remakes pop songs into something completely different, like his reggae “Without Me” by Halsey or his remake of Bad Guy by Billy Eilish. He’s Dutch but all of his youtube videos are in English, making this a perfect event to attend at the Night of Arts and Science for international students.

Greg Shapiro

Greg Shapiro is a Dutch-American comedian best known for his Trump-impression and the Netherlands:Second (“Grab em by the pony”)-video. He is known for making fun of the Dutch and the Netherlands in his series Planet Nederland.

Tim Hofman

Many Dutchies might know him from his youtube series “BOOS” (literally translates to ANGRY), Hofman is known for his critical coverage of topics that concern young people. An example of one of his cases is against supermarkets who are underpaying their younger employees. Another example is going after dirty landlords who misuse their power over students. On the Night of Arts and Science, Hofman will be holding an interview in the Academy building.

Kate Zernike

You might recognize the last name.. Kate Zernike is the granddaughter of our famous Nobel Prize winner Frits Zernike and will be joining us on the Nights of Arts and Sciences. Kate is a Pulitzer Prize winner and correspondent for the New York Times specialized in education, criminal justice, US Congress, and national elections. With her book “Boiling Mad: Behind the Lines of Tea Party America”, Kate’s speech at the Night of Arts and Science is not one to miss!

Travis Alabanza

The British theatre maker, performance artist and writer will also be joining us for the Night of Arts and Science. Their poetry book “Before I Step Outside” is a documentation of existing as a gender non-conforming, racialized person in a public space. Travis is a very prominent speaker when it comes to All-Inclusivity, which is explained well in the Ted talk “Who is allowed to be a victim?”

Roxeanne Hazes

The daughter of one of the most famous Dutch folk-singers, André Hazes (you’ll definitely know his songs from The Negende Cirkel or ‘t Fust), will be performing in the Doopsgezinds Kerk. Her classics from the past few years will definitely be played, as well as her new single Bonnie & Clyde.

Activities

Next, to the headliners mentioned above, there is much more to experience on the Night of Arts and Science. Try checking out the science-themed escape room, check out a drag performance or join the glamarchy after party at VERA. On the website of the event, you can find an overview of all different acts sorted by type and indicating whether or not Dutch is necessary to understand the performance or lecture (‘Language No Problem’).

You can still get tickets here.

What are you going to do during the Night of Arts and Sciences? Let us know in the comments below!