Here is the programme.

‘The opening day has been structured in three parts - daily, official and artistic - and will start from Gorizia: the ceremony will run through the territories of both cities with more than a thousand performers involved in events that will last until the evening: the presence of the highest leaders of the two states, President Sergio Mattarella for Italy and President Nataša Pirc Musar of Slovenia, together with dozens of representatives from European states and the European Commission, shows how the cross-border Capital of Culture is a decisive event for the institutions’.

This was the comment made by the governor of the Friuli Venezia Giulia Region Massimiliano Fedriga on the sidelines of the presentation in Rome of the official programme of the opening ceremony of the European Capital of Culture 2025 Nova Gorica Gorizia - entitled From Station to Station - which will be held on Saturday 8 February.

With the presence of national and international guests, the ceremony will be held on a symbolic date for both Italy and Slovenia: it coincides with the Day of Slovenian Culture, which commemorates the death of the Slovenian poet France Prešeren (8 February 1849) and, on the Italian side, with the anniversary of the birth of the poet Giuseppe Ungaretti (8 February 1888).

The ceremony will start at 10 a.m. from the Gorizia train station, with a cross-border procession that will see the participation of 1,500 performers, music bands and folklore groups: for the occasion, priority has been given to the involvement of local groups, schools and associations precisely to emphasise that it is intended to be a celebration of the cities first and foremost and of the regional and cross-border territory. In fact, in Gorizia, in Piazza Vittoria, together with young artists from Friuli Venezia Giulia such as Shari, Tish and Pierpaolo Foti, there will be representatives of musical and choreographic associations that will alternate until the evening.

There will also be a joint performance by the Italian and Slovenian police bands - an absolute first for two police bands from two different countries to perform together and agree on the pieces to be performed - which will be followed by the parade of mayors from the area.

At 11.15 a.m., Piazza Vittoria will host the cultural programme, which will start with speeches by the mayor of Nova Gorica, Samo Turel, and the mayor of Gorizia, Rodolfo Ziberna, and with the pealing of the bells of all Gorizia's churches. The celebration will continue at 1.15 p.m. with a parade from Piazza Vittoria to the Via San Gabriele crossing, during which athletes, students and artists will give life to the evocative Walking Sculpture performance, featuring Michelangelo Pistoletto's Sphere. At 2 p.m. the procession will reach the San Gabriele Street crossing and continue along Erjavceva Street and Rusjan Square to Bevk Square, where a rich cultural programme with the participation of 900 artists will take place.

The highlight of the day will then be the official opening ceremony, scheduled at 4 p.m. in Transalpina Square - the square shared by the two cities, symbol and emblem of the European Capital, renovated in time for the inauguration and to be even more unique thanks also to the European funds made available through the regional programmes for Friuli Venezia Giulia and the national ones for Slovenia and managed by Gect Go.

This will be followed at 6 p.m. by an artistic performance in Nova Gorica in Piazza Edvard Kardelj, which will be a preview of the main projects of the official programme approved by the European Commission, curated by director Neda Rusjan Bric. In Piazza Vittoria a scenographic illumination of the castle of Gorizia will provide the backdrop for music by Remo Anzovino and the 40 Fingers.

At 8.30 p.m. the cross-border party will continue into the night with a DJ set by Daddy G (Massive Attack) and Andy Smith (Portishead) in Piazza Transalpina.

The Transalpina will be the focal point of the opening ceremony, whose participation will be limited for reasons of space. However, the ceremony will also be shown live in Piazza Vittoria and Bevk to allow everyone to participate in the excitement of the moment.