Song and Dance Festival tickets on sale, popular seats going quickly
Tickets for the 2019 Song and Dance Festival went up for sale at noon on Thursday, and already many of the best seats at Kalev Stadium, the venue for the XX Dance Festival, have sold out, despite ticket prices having gone up since the last festival.
Presale tickets for general admission at the Song Festival Grounds as well as the cheaper seats at Kalev Stadium can be purchased for €9, with discount tickets available for students, university students and pensioners at a cost of €7. The most expensive, seated Song Festival tickets, meanwhile, cost €40, while the priciest tickets to the Dance Festival will run festivalgoers €50 each.
At €60, supporter tickets have the heftiest price tag of all, but at the Song Festival Grounds, this ticket will also guarantee you a designated seat in the section closest to the stage.
In comparison, five years ago, at the last Song and Dance Festival, general admission Song Festival and cheaper seats at the Dance Festival cost just €4-6 per presale ticket.
"True, ticket prices are more expensive than before," Estonian Song and Dance Celebration Foundation director Aet Maatee conceded to ERR on Thursday. "The somewhat higher ticket prices are the result of goods and services getting more expensive in general."
According to Ms Maatee, however, ticket revenue accounts for a significant portion of the Song and Dance Festival budget; while 60% of the budget is covered by the state, the other 40% is covered by the foundation, and ticket sales are an important part of this.
Tickets to the Song and Dance Festival will be available via presale through the end of May, after which prices will increase to €10 and €15, respectively.
Year-long celebration begins
2019 has been designated in Estonia as "150 Years of Song: The Jubilee Year of Song and Dance," the crowning event of which will be the XXVII Song and XX Dance Festival "My Fatherland is My Love" to take place from 4-7 July.
The Estonian National Male Choir (RAM) officially launched the jubilee year on Thursday with a concert at the Chamber Hall of the Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre (EMTA).
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Editor: Aili Vahtla