Boring

Boring is a vibrant two-day festival celebrating music, theatre, art and (safe) night culture in the city centre of Haarlem. With your Boring wristband you can walk between all the venues with a maximum walk of ten minutes. All locations are accessible during the entire weekend.

Boring festival is a cooperation between Klein Haarlem and the cultural institutions of Haarlem. With this festival we want to acquaint our audience with all those -and for some new- cultural places. Experience daring acts and extraordinary performances in unique places while feeling safe and broadening your horizon.

Klein Haarlem has put together a team of young people who want to break the boundaries between artistic culture and nightlife. We have made a diverse program full of various musicians, DJs, performances, choreographers and visual artists.

It’s very important to us that we create a safe space, where young, bicultural and LGBTQIA+ people are respected and represented. Our safety team is walking around in blue overalls as a first point of contact when someone doesn’t feel safe. We also offer low stimuli spaces with minimal noise to recharge yourself. Besides that, there will also be lectures about subjects such as feminism, safety during nightlife, the queer community and much more.

Boring team:

Chantal David Richard (business leader)

Maarten Claus (artistic leader)

Michelle Schreuders (project leader/ marcom)

Djescho Mananga (marcom)

Daan Knijnenburg (night culture/music programmer)

Lisa de Jongh (music programmer)

Marieke Heerema (theater programmer)

Esmee Ooms (production leader)

Sven Kampen (production assistant)

Chloé Hameleers (production assistant)

Sim Kaart (branding)

Pepijn Borgwat (visuals)

 

Credits to:

Matya Grabijn (co-founder)

Roos Wonders (theatre hotline)

Manon Portos Minetti (concept)

The amazing board of Klein Haarlem and ParkLab

All the cultural venues of Haarlem

Gemeente Haarlem <3

Whatever you want, except of course stuff that is illegal. However you can’t bring your own drinks or food to the festival. Your own water bottle is fine in most places, but not all.

At the heart of the festival, a venue called ‘De vishal’ you can show your ticket at the service desk. They will give you a wristband in exchange and this gives you access to all our locations.

We try our best. All venues are accessible by wheelchair. Send us a message if you have any specific questions or need help with something.

Every venue has its own inhouse restroom, and there will be additional toilets at the festival heart. All toilets are gender-neutral.

Go eat! We partnered with some very nice restaurants and other pop-ups we like, but Haarlem is full of other choices.

If you’re from out of town, we recommend you check out the BNB’s and hotels we’ve partnered with. We made sure you’ll get a nice deal.

Ouch, no. Tickets are bound by name. So someone else is not able to use your ticket.

At some, not all venue’s. It will make sense when you arrive.

The festival is for people 18+.

Not really. All venues are within a 10-minute walk of the festival’s heart (Vishal), but if you do need some form of transportation because of mobility issues. Please let us know.

All venues are within a 10-minute walk of the festival’s heart (Vishal), and within 15 minutes of each other. We’ll share a little map on our socials.

99% inside.

The next edition will take place in early 2026. Exact dates and times will be announced soon, so stay tuned and make sure to sign up for our newsletter to stay up to date!

​​Boring festival takes place within these locations in Haarlem: Phil, Teylers Museum, Noord- Hollands Archief, Patronaat, Vishal, Frans Hals Museum Hal, Museum van de Geest en Schuur. The reception area and heart of the festival are at De Vishal Art Gallery in Grote Markt.

Everyone. We know this is easier said than done, and we are aware of the lack of safe places in the world for women, BIPOC, the queer community, and people with disabilities. This is why we are specifically focusing on making Boring a safe and inclusive event for all. If you are a victim of any type of harassment at our festival you will be heard and taken seriously by any member of our staff, who you can recognize at every location by our shirts. There is also an info stand at the Vishal where you can report harassment.