To be …
400 years later, Hamlet’s question still echoes from Elsinore: To be, or not to be? Amid the cries of seagulls and the roar of engines. Between the sea, the forest, and the land. From Kronborg to the market town. In urban communities and residential neighborhoods. With a megaphone to its mouth, Elsinore now poses the question once more, so that it can be heard across the Øresund and throughout the region.
TO BE is the title of Elsinore’s bid to become the European Capital of Culture in 2032. Under the banner of TO BE, the entire city of Elsinore invites its neighbors in North Zealand, Skåne, and the rest of Europe to explore how culture can help us understand ourselves, one another, and the times in which we live.
The first track focuses on what it means to be human in an era marked by rapid technological advancement, uncertainty, and profound social change. It is, of course, about identity, but also about cultivating a sense of presence in a world that is moving faster than ever before.
The second track moves from reflection to practice. We use culture as a shared workshop for the future—a place where people meet, create, and imagine possible futures. Citizens, artists, institutions, and businesses work together to develop new forms of participation. Forms of collaboration and democratic laboratories make it possible to envision local solutions to common European challenges.
The third track turns our attention to Europe. We reach out to the connections that link Helsingør to the Nordic region, to the Baltic states, to Europe, and to the rest of the world. We insist that smaller destinations like ours must play an active role in the European public sphere as we turn to our creative spaces for shared development.
For centuries, Helsingør has been a place where people, cultures, and ideas have intersected. The city grew up around the Øresund, shaped by trade, seafaring, and its encounter with Europe. Today, we stand at a new turning point where we must recalibrate our compass. The future calls for new answers.
TO BE is a call to embrace our humanity through active participation in the communities we can create through culture. Helsingør and its urban community invite their neighbors and the rest of Europe to join them on a creative journey toward new shared horizons.