The festival will traditionally take place from 10 July to 25 August.
This year's premieres will include two plays dealing with an individual's freedom of action within strict limitations of the given social reality: Miroslav Krleza's Messrs Glembay and a Hrvoje Ivankovic dramaturgical adaptation of the biography of and texts by Marin Drzic, Dubrovnik's great supporter of freedom of speech, entitled Drzic - Enemy's Victory.
The 68th Dubrovnik Summer Festival premiere of Messrs Glembay will be directed by Zlatko Sviben. In the second Festival's premiere, Ivankovic depicts Drzic's dispute with the Dubrovnik Republic on the basis of numerous existing documents and anecdotes. By combining Drzic's biographical data and fragments from his numerous comedies and pastoral plays, Ivankovic creates a special kind of glossary of their present-day meaning. The play, commemorating the 450th anniversary of Drzic’s death, will be directed by Ivica Boban.
Following the longstanding tradition, the festival audience will have the opportunity to watch the most recent premiere by the Lero Students Theatre, The Shadow City, directed by Davor Mojas.
The music and stage programme will include a premiere of Haendel's Orlando, featuring David Bates, Artistic Director, Janusz Sikora, Director, the Croatian Baroque Ensemble, and the soloists Owen Willetts, Ivana Lazar, Renata Pokupic, Marija Kuhar Sosa and David Ostrek.
Ballet lovers will have the opportunity to enjoy the most popular "white ballet" of all time and a synonym of classical ballet art, Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake, choreographed by the famous Vladimir Malakhov and produced by the Croatian National Theatre of Zagreb. Another dance highlight is a piece for four dancers, A Love Supreme, inspired by the music of John Coltrane, after whose famous jazz album the piece was named. The dance is choreographed by Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker and Salva Sanchis, and produced by Rosas & De Munt/La Monnaie ensemble of the Brussels Royal Opera.
The Festival's rich music programme relies on its extensive collaboration with the Dubrovnik Symphony Orchestra, which is its residential orchestra.
Other highlights will include a representative selection of American 20th century music performed under the baton of Maestro Richard Rosenberg, perhaps the leading authority for the repertoire originating from the USA (the country whose freedom and independence were first recognised by the Dubrovnik Republic), and by the violin virtuoso and conductor Hakan Sensoy, the leading name of the Western music in Turkey and also a promoter of modern Turkish composers, Mladen Tarbuk said, presenting the festival programme for the forthcoming season.
In addition to the traditional performances of Lindjo Folklore Ensemble, the accompanying programme will present a selection of the best films from the Pula Film Festival; an exhibition of paintings by Antun Masle; and a new edition of The Festival Features Writers project by Mani Gotovac.