The biggest open-air theatre show in Slovenia

Between 21 March and 12 April, more than 1,000 volunteers and 30,000 visitors will gather in the town of Škofja Loka for the theatre performance of the Škofja Loka Passion Play. With its concept and staging, it is considered the biggest open-air theatre show in Slovenia; in 2012, it was declared a living masterpiece of national importance. Don`t miss such a unique event this spring. The next one is in 2021, when it celebrates the 300th anniversary.

The Škofja Loka Passion Play is of exceptional importance for Slovenia and its cultural heritage, because it illustrates the development of passion plays, drama and language in Slovenia. It is the oldest surviving dramatic texts in the Slovenian language and the oldest and the only director’s book in Europe from the Baroque period. Come to see the only passion play in Europe in the form of a procession, which makes it different from others, which are usually on a stage.

The Škofja Loka Passion Play was written at the beginning of the 18th century; its staging involved the residents of Škofja Loka and people from the nearby villages. The project associates the residents of Škofja Loka and the Poljanska and Selška valleys to this day. It features more than thousand volunteers, including some 900 people in the play itself and 200 people who help with organisation. In 2012, it was declared a living masterpiece of national importance, and is also bidding to be included on the UNESCO world cultural heritage list.

In 2015, the Škofja Loka Passion Play will be staged eight times between 21 March and 12 April. Experience the performance in the daytime, when the town basks in the sun, or in the evening, when the light and smoke of torches wrap the old town of Škofja Loka in a mysterious mist.

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