Spotlight on Dudelange – Esch2022 celebrates the municipality of the month from 22 May to 21 June 2022

The city of Dudelange invites you to discover a great variety of festivals and a rich cultural heritage

Within the framework of its participation in the European Capital of Culture Esch2022, the municipality of Dudelange, with its almost 22,000 inhabitants, is the epitome of a multi-faceted cultural policy, initiated decades ago, notably through its famous cross-border festivals. Sophisticated art exhibitions, its significant support for the Luxembourg cultural scene and in particular for the young music scene, the research work of the Centre de Documentation sur les Migrations Humaines (CDMH) and the extensive audiovisual archives of the Centre National de l'Audiovisuel (CNA) are just a few examples of Dudelange's exceptional cultural offer. The city is constantly evolving and boasts a strong identity. Dudelange draws its energy from its industrial past and its sporting spirit, as well as from its constant desire to move forward. Its conviviality and joie de vivre are rooted in its abundant nature and its unique mixture of cultures.

In the framework of Esch2022, the programme of Dudelange, which runs throughout the entire year, remains faithful to its cultural DNA while implementing several innovative ideas. Thus, the project VEWA “Hall des Vestiaires – Wagonnage”, organised in collaboration with DKollektiv and the charity Œuvre de Secours Grande-Duchesse Charlotte, was initiated in 2016 and the reconstruction work started in 2020. This new creative and cultural space, renovated by the City of Dudelange, the Fonds du logement and the INPA, already foreshadows the future of the NeiSchmelz district. The additional participatory transformation work carried out by DKollektiv has been supported by Esch2022 and the Oeuvre de Secours Grande-Duchesse Charlotte. The participation-based redevelopment of the changing rooms in the former wagon hall on the Neischmelz site encourages local involvement and allows residents to identify with the new environment. The building becomes a symbol of past architecture and a source of new artistic creativity. Its repurposing makes it accessible to the public, which is invited to rediscover and reclaim it. The same applies to the locomotive workshop, located opposite, which will accommodate an innovative dining concept.

The European Capitals of Culture have always acted as cultural stimuli in Dudelange: They have led to the creation of the Centre de documentation sur les migrations humaines (Documentation Centre on Human Migration) in the framework of the European Capital of Culture of Luxembourg in the year 1995. The major exhibition on migration, entitled “Retour de Babel” (Return from Babel), was also a great success in the framework of the European Capital of Culture 2007.

With “Re-Retour de Babel” (“Re-Return from Babel”) and its central question “What remains of our roots?”, the city builds on the achievements and spirit of 2007 while adopting a more personal and intimate approach. This seems more necessary than ever as the issue of migration is gaining in complexity in the wake of globalisation and European integration and enlargement. Looking at the past through personal stories will allow us to become aware of the events, people and moments in life that have influenced who we are and shaped our journey.

Dudelange, City of festivals

Festivals such as the “Zeltik”, “Like a Jazz Machine”, the “Fête de la Musique”, the “Fête des Cultures”, “Eat, Beat & Culture” and the “Summerstage” have been punctuating life in Dudelange for decades. Perpetuating this tradition, the city is launching the “Usina22” festival, a brand new event created in the framework of Esch2022. For the very first time, three of Luxembourg's biggest festival organisers will be teaming up to stage a new two-day open-air festival on the site of the former steel factory with, among others, Kings of Leon, Alice Merton, Fools Garden, Caribou, Tuys, Francis of Delirium, Mathilda, The Myterines, Tukan, Culture The Kid, Klein, Claire Parsons, Siegfried & Joy, Chasey Negro, Crack Cloud...

In collaboration with Den Atelier and De Gudde Wëllen the organisers have devised an event that merges the practices of “Food For Your Senses”, “Rock-a-Field”, “Siren’s Call” and “Fête de la Musique” with the aim of “showcasing” the work of the various institutional, non-profit and commercial actors that fill them with life.

In the framework of Esch2022, the “jazzXchange” project has enriched the programme of the festival “Like a Jazz Machine”. This is a three way project with the cities of Novi Sad and Kaunas, that revolves around the creation of a jazz opus by musicians with different cultural, historical, social and political backgrounds from the three partner cities, which each hold a large annual jazz festival. Led by project manager Bojan Z., the collective will reside and work in each of the three cities, and work together with students from local music conservatories who will be joining them on stage.

Alongside the festivals, the ACOUSTIC PICNICS project organises cultural picnics in the Haard nature reserve: theatre plays for children and teenagers, jazz, folk (songs from the mines & steel factories) & concerts by singer-songwriters, conferences, dance performances, readings, storytelling... This project was born during several hikes in the Haard nature reserve, which connects the territories of Dudelange and Kayl-Tétange. Taking a break from the digital everyday, “Acoustic Picnics” aims to create an intimate and relaxed atmosphere in which the whole family can enjoy music, plays, dance performances and readings whilst totally respecting nature, creating zero waste and using no electrical power. As the name of the project suggests, it consists of enjoying a picnic with the artist(s). Participants may bring their own food or choose from a selection of local organic products.

On the agenda:
· “Roude Fuedem duerch de roude Buedem” by Maskénada: Lauschtergeschicht for kids/teens/adults
· “Desire Lines” by Ampersand Variations: collective meditation walk
· “Be_offline” with Luc Spada, Claudine Muno, Mandy Thiery: Reading evening
· Conference (CDMH)
· Mineurslidder with the Krunnemécken and Roland Meyer: accordion, singing & reading
· Julie Campiche: harp & circus performer
· Jemp Schuster et Claire Parsons: reading and singing
· The Visit de Lucoda: dance performances
· Afternoon games
· Viking Chess (Youth Centre)

In order to achieve its full artistic potential and to develop projects that promote the authentic image of the municipality, the City of Dudelange has joined forces with various associations as well as the main local and national cultural players and will be presenting 18 projects in the framework of Esch2022.

The latter can be found on the agenda pages of our website www.esch2022.lu

Our archive, your story & D’Stëmme vun der Schmelz - Centre National de l’Audiovisuel (CNA)

Moving Lusitalia - Centre de Documentation sur les Migrations Humaines (CDMH) Le Festival International d’Orgues Dudelange (FIMOD)

Festival de l’imaginaire européen LuxCon / EuroCon 2022 - Association Luxembourgeoise de Science Fiction et de la Fantasy (SFFS) Antidote Fiction - Bombyx MinettREMIX - Industriekultur - Centre national de la culture industrielle (IK-CNCI)

• E Roude Fuedem Duerch De Roude Buedem - Maskénada
• The Visit - Luxembourg Collective of Dance (Lucoda)
• Desire Lines - Claire Thill
• The Assembly – Pitchblack Collective (Charlotte Bruneau & Catherine Elsen)
• RECKEL!
• Remix22 – European Youth Music Festival
• KINNEKSKANNER – ORGELKIDS (FIMOD)
• Meliting Pot & Organized Chaos
• H- The notion of Humanist Photography
• MinettREMIX

And many more…

For more information on Dudelange click here.

The appeal of the region – Welcome to Dudelange

Luxembourg’s fourth largest city, Dudelange, also known as the “Forge of the South”, can look back at an exciting past as an industrial city. With the discovery of iron ore deposits and the establishment of heavy industry, the city experienced a high level of immigration. 40 percent of the population is made up of foreigners and there are 106 nationalities, making Dudelange an incomparable multicultural city.

Despite its past ups and downs, which can be attributed to the steel crisis, the city has been able to recover and even improve the quality of life thanks to numerous investments. The nature reserve “Op der Haard”, located in the largest nature reserve in Luxembourg, “Haard, Hesselsbierg, Staebierg”, offers numerous leisure opportunities like walking, hiking, nature and educational trails as well as mountain bike trails. History buffs can hunt for traces of the rich medieval past on the Mont St. Jean, where the remains of the medieval castle of Mont Saint-Jean can still be found. Dudelange is also known for its numerous cultural events, which are regularly organised by the Cultural Centre “opderschmelz” (CCRD) and the Centre National de l’Audiovisuel (CNA).