It was a special kind of hurdles until the multi-day cultural festival “kult’21” finally rocked the Thoma meadow in September. The volunteer organizers were able to record around 1000 visitors a day to their colorful program for people of all ages, despite the corona-related restrictions. The festival, which was originally planned at the city pond, had already fallen victim to the pandemic in 2020. This meant that more than a year of preparation, organization and financing were left behind.
What would have made others resigned to give up was for the committed cult-makers the signal for a “now more than ever”. It may be that the special constellation played a role here: until the 1990s, kult am Stadtweiher was literally a cult in the region’s culture and party scene. The makers from back then wanted to know again after a twenty year break. But it shouldn’t be a memorable revival, but “a festival for everyone – from 0 to 100 plus”, as Sabine Seeholzer from now eV Dachau, the sponsoring association, said. Right from the start, the Dachau cultural associations, which were mainly inspired by young people, participated in the extensive planning, the search for sponsors, the program design and the implementation of ever new official requirements. If the cultural scene was more than punished by the pandemic, the participants in front of and behind the stages should at least receive a decent fee, although by no means all events were chargeable for the audience. So it was time to recruit sponsors, adjust the program and so on. But the success and the unique atmosphere in the circus tent, on the open-air stage, on the food trucks, in the beer garden, in the sensory garden, in the large play area for the little ones and even at the test and vaccination stations on the Thoma- Wiese let all the troubles be forgotten. 140 voluntary helpers made the appearances of Joe Kieser, Amy Warning, Scandinavian and Latin American bands and soloists, cabaret greats and many others possible in the first place. The team of helpers ensured the right atmosphere for the “Long Night of Open Doors” and the children’s program at the Dachau Theater Days. And it did away with a few beautiful traditions of the cult festival: the obligatory rain.
Conclusion: The two-year tremor game came to a happy end, and everyone who took part or was there is hoping for a continuation.