Klanglicht expects 20,000 ticket buyers after paid move

Graz’s redesigned Klanglicht festival is expected to attract 20,000 ticket buyers at Schloss Eggenberg, after moving from a free outdoor event to a paid format, ORF reported. The two-week light and sound festival ends on Saturday.

Bühnen Graz managing director Bernhard Rinner called the change a success. The organisation cut its contribution to the festival by half because of reduced funding and sought to make up the difference through ticket sales.

Rinner said he had worried that audiences would not follow the festival from Graz city centre to the palace and its park, or accept paying for an event that had been free. Tickets cost €19 or €24. He said the expected 20,000 buyers represented about 20 per cent of the 100,000 people who had attended the previous outdoor event.

An analysis of ticket buyers found that 96 per cent came from Austria, with nearly 89 per cent from Styria. Visitors from outside Austria came mainly from Germany.

Klanglicht will remain a paid event in 2027, and Rinner said Bühnen Graz was pleased with Schloss Eggenberg and its park. The organisation is also considering whether the 900th anniversary of Graz in 2028 could provide a reason to bring the festival back to the city centre.