Crossing Border Festival
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Tue 3 Nov 2026-Sun 8 Nov 2026Koninklijke Schouwburg, Den HaagKorte Voorhout 3
Édouard Louis returns with a new book, a sweeping manifesto for a new literature. Bestselling author R.F. Kuang (Yellowface, Babel) will be in conversation at the Koninklijke Schouwburg about her new coming-of-age novel Mijn Zomer in Taipei. Tony Tulathimutte and Catherine Lacey travel to The Hague, alongside Abdelrahman ElGendy, Nathacha Appanah and Atef Abu Saif, each bringing their own politically and socially engaged stories. And Jeanette Winterson speaks at Crossing Border about her latest work One Aladdin, Two Lamps, in which she cracks open the framing story of One Thousand and One Nights.
The music programme is just as diverse: from energetic performances to intimate concerts, full of linguistic virtuosity. Dry Cleaning stands alongside the captivating Zoh Amba and the poetic, activist voice of aja monet.
This is a first glimpse of the programme. More national and international writers and musicians will be announced in early September, along with the programme for Crossing Border Kids, You'll Have to Scream Louder, The Chronicles, and the presentation of the European Literature Prize.
For the full programme, practical information and tickets, visit the Crossing Border website:
International music and literary stars such as Salman Rushdie, Sally Rooney, Colson Whitehead, Nick Cave and Hilary Mantel have graced the Crossing Border stage over the past three decades. But they've been just as enthusiastic about the rising talents who have appeared alongside them.
Literature
Highlights from the literary programme of recent years include:
Isabel Allende, Michael Cunningham, Dave Eggers, Allen Ginsberg, Germaine Greer, Michel Houellebecq, Karl Ove Knausgård, Elmore Leonard, Norman Mailer, Hilary Mantel, Ian McEwan, Marilynne Robinson, Sally Rooney, Salman Rushdie, David Sedaris and Colson Whitehead.
Music
Equally important at Crossing Border is the live music programme, spanning a range of genres within alternative pop music, including space for multidisciplinary artists and crossovers. Below are a few examples of artists who have performed here before:
Coldplay, Boubacar Traoré, David Byrne, Nick Cave, Fleet Foxes, Bob Geldof, PJ Harvey, Emmylou Harris, Lou Reed, Mumford & Sons, Ed Sheeran, St. Vincent, Patti Smith, Kae Tempest, The National, The Black Keys and Rufus Wainwright.
Tickets
Early Bird passe-partout (limited availability) – €60
Festival Evening – Friday 6 November
Festival Evening – Saturday 7 November
R.F. Kuang – €15
Nathacha Appanah – €10
Atef Abu Saif – €10
For many, many writers, musicians and artists, Crossing Border Festival IS Holland and the Netherlands – it is what we associate the country with: an engine of meeting and discoveries and memorable concerts and book events.
