This June, for the 27th year, the Ignis Brunensis fireworks festival will again illuminate the skies of Brno. As in recent years, the international fireworks competition will also feature drone light shows as part of its accompanying program.
The festival will begin this Saturday, 1 June, in the Hněvkovského recreation area, on the occasion of Children’s Day. In the evening, starting at 10.30pm, the ‘Fireworks Overture’ will be performed alongside a firework exhibition synchronised to songs by the popular Czech band Mirai, broadcast by Radio Krokodýl on 103 FM. The rhythm and also the lyrics of the songs will provide a source of inspiration for the firework design.
The main part of the festival will again involve a competition between teams of expert firework engineers at the Brno Dam. The spectators will see four spectacular artistic pyrotechnic shows synchronised to music, also broadcast live on Radio Krokodýl. Public viewing areas for fireworks are free for spectators on the beaches, banks and around the reservoir. There will also be a comfortable ticketed zone: a sound-equipped grandstand seating area sponsored by RegioJet.
On 8 June, the Czech Republic’s “Conquest of Paradise” will present a tribute to the fireworks designer and co-founder of Ignis Brunensis, Ivan Martinek. On 12 June, the German team will present “The Dance of the Angels with Two Steps on the Highway to Hell”, on 15 June the Czech-European team will perform “Rhapsody in Rainbow”, and on 19 June it will be the turn of Austria’s “Friendship”.
Before the two Saturday shows, on 8 and 15 June, there will also be two drone exhibitions, with the extraordinary premiere of a show including a record 250 drones, also combined with music. On 8 June, the show will have a European theme (“We are Europe”), commemorating the 20th anniversary of the Czech Republic joining the EU, while the show on 15 June is entitled “Water is Life”.
Among the side events, it will be possible to taste more than 40 varieties of craft beer from microbreweries from all over the Czech Republic at the František Ondřej Poupě Beer Festival, at the Bystrc dock of the reservoir, on Friday 14 June and Saturday 15 June.
The fireworks shows will go ahead in all weather conditions, but changes are possible for the drone shows in case of strong winds and rain. The festival website will be updated with all current information.
On the days of the fireworks and drone shows at the reservoir, transport on trams 1 and 3, and buses 30 and 50 will be reinforced from about 7pm. Once the fireworks are over, all public transport lines from the Brno-Bystrc area will be available after 11pm. The last supplementary connections from Bystrc will be dispatched at around 0:15.
For visitors arriving by car, the main parking areas are located along Stará dálnice, with secondary parking lots on Páteřní under the Akát shopping centre and on Vejrostova in front of the primary school. Other parking areas in the Bystrc housing estate may also be used.
All vehicles using the exceptional parking facilities along Stará dálnice on the days of the shows must leave by midnight at the latest. Furthermore, to ensure pedestrian safety, Přístavní and part of Hrázní, where the greatest number of pedestrian spectators usually stand, will be closed to cars.
The main co-organisers of the festival are the City of Brno, the South Moravian Region and SNIP & CO as the main producer. The main partner is RegioJet, while Flash Barrandov SFX is the primary supervisor of the fireworks festival, and Spectrum Production is the technological and artistic partner of the drone show.
Among the accompanying events, a varied festival of entertainment continues in Brno outside the duration of Ignis Brunensis, from May to September.
Among the highlights in centre of Brno in the coming weeks are ‘Fun Below the Castle’ and ‘Transport Nostalgia’, with the chance to ride historic public transport vehicles during the weekend of 15-16 June, and the 25th International Police Equestrianism Championships on 7-8 June, taking place in Panska Licha.
Brno is also celebrating various anniversaries this year, starting from the 100 years of Czech Radio Brno, the 160th anniversary of the Brno Fire Brigade, the “70th birthday” of the Brno Observatory and Planetarium, 30 years of Rádio Krokodýl and, in September, the 120th anniversary of the foundation of the Brno City Museum.
For the full event calendar, check here.
