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The Garage project supports the Slovak city’s bid for the 2026 European Capital of Culture title
Trenčín’s community of skaters, bikers, scooter riders and youth in general can now use a fully equipped Garage at the local skate park, suitable for band rehearsals, concerts, DJ sets and other events. This project supports Trenčín’s bid for the 2026 European Capital of Culture title, creating opportunities for specific city communities to organise their own needs-based cultural programme.
Garage opened on 25 September with the Best Tricks competitions for skaters, bikers and scooter riders from midday, and music performances in the evening by rapper Gleb and the Trenčín bands Fraktúra, Cherry Street and Fyasco.
The Garage project has been spearheaded by Trenčín 2026, the internationally recognized Trenčín-based Pohoda festival, and the skate park community, represented by skater and Cherry Street musician Milan Hanuliak. “We consider Garage as the foundation of the music scene - where many bands start out. Our band Bez ladu a skladu also started in a garage...albeit our parents’,” says Michal Kaščák, director of Pohoda festival, as quoted in a Trenčín 2026 press release.
While Pohoda and Trenčín 2026 have provided the necessary technical equipment for Garage, the programme itself will be hammered out by the community. People can create and propose events at the skate park throughout October and November, and members of the Trenčín 2026 team will be there to lend a hand.
“The candidacy programme aims to transform passive receivers of culture into active participants. We also want to create opportunities for people to think of new cultural events and means of expression,” explains Veronika Žák Sučanská, Trenčín 2026’s Outreach manager.
“That’s what Garage represents - we want the Trenčín skate park community to stand out as active and lively. Now the skate park’s young users have the technical means, physical place, and mind space to get creative. They will also learn new skills for organising cultural events, and get experience as culture creators. Enabling creativity by users themselves - that’s Trenčín 2026 in a nutshell,” says Sučanská.
If the city wins the ECoC title, Garage will travel around the city and its surroundings as a ‘pop-up’ opportunity. Thus, art groups and cultural communities can use the new experience and organise their own programmes.
Trenčín is a middle-sized city in the western region of Slovakia, close to the Czech border, which boasts a stunning scenery with the Váh river crossing the city. Trenčín is one of the three shortlisted candidates from Slovakia for the 2026 European Capital of Culture competition, alongside Nitra and Žilina.
Its programme called Cultivating Curiosity wants to open up curiosity among residents and visitors, stimulate creative industries in the city and make Trenčín one of the authentic European cultural hubs.
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