Once again this year, HF Young offered special events related to the festival programme (like the Early Bird Even in March and the Pre-Holland Festival mixer a week before the festival start) as well as discounts on selected performances. These HF Young Favourites were chosen by the HF Young Circle - twelve culture loving volunteers aged 25-39.
The seven selected performances were: Bérénice by Romeo Castellucci and Isabelle Huppert, Holland Festival x BIMHUIS: Craig Taborn Residency by Craig Taborn ft. Okkyung Lee, Sun-Mi Hong & Alessandro Fongaro The Brotherhood by Carolina Bianchi Y Cara de Cavalo, Caen Amour by Trajal Harrell, Holland Festival x Africadelic: by Kuduro tot Afrotech with Batida, Noite e Dia, Nídia, Prince Pasensi and Chinnamasta, ROHTKO by Łukasz Twarkowski, Anka Herbut, Dailes Theatre Latvia and Extra Life by Gisèle Vienne. Later, Welcome to a Night in Asbestos Hall at Welcome to Asbestos Hall by Trajal Harrell was also added to the HF Young Favourites.
After the Friday night ROHTKO performance, all HF Young participants gathered for a silent disco at the Ajaxterras overlooking Leidseplein.
In collaboration with Groupvibe, another HF Young event was added to the programme. At the free-of-charge Opera in het park, we met with a group of young visitors for a casual introduction to the festival. The informal meetup before visiting the screening of Boris Godoenov in Park Frankendael allowed the group to get to know each other and discuss performing arts. 85 people registered for the free event on BASH.
As always, HF Young visitors first had to register in order to get the HF Young discount. This year, 50% of the available discounted tickets were sold. Notably, the 977 HF Young and HF Young+ members attended many performances beyond the Favourites. HF Young members booked a total of 1,862 tickets during the festival.
HF Young+
As of 2024, HF Young visitors can sign up for a paid membership: HF Young+. For €20 they support the HF Young programme and gain admission to an additional HF Young Favourite. This year this was the Sunday afternoon performance of Bérénice on 15 June. We also introduced the HF Young+ sprint pass this year, which allows HF Young+ members to book no less than twenty Holland Festival performances last-minute with a 50% discount. Lastly, HF Young+ members also receive invitations to complementary HF Young programmes, like the Early Bird Eve, the Deep Dive Club and extra activities during the festival and throughout the year.
During the festival, HF Young+ members, together with the Young Benefactors, were invited for a behind-the-scenes tour of ITA. After the performance of Bérénice, there was an HF Young+ reception in the Favourites Expo that could be visited during the festival at the ITA Salon.
The HF Young Circle 2025 consisted of Cadisha Lepelblad, Jihyun Park, Joshka Landsheer, Nigel Onwuachu, Shervin Fekri, Sonia Deiters, Wouter van Herwaarden, Khalid El Haji, Pieteke Dik, Pete Wu, Kiriko Mechanicus and Rowan Stol.