Built as an aspiration of many previous generations, the Summer Stage has been beautifying the Grand park  for the past 70 years.

According to some sources, the idea of ​​building a theater dates from the 19th century.  In the catalog of the Third International Film Festival, Bela Duranci states that Lajos Vermes had a license for building the theater, which he later demolished. A draft for the theater was preserved at the Historical Archives of Subotica; before that, in 1881, the director Bokodi Antal submitted the petition, but he also gave up on the idea. At the beginning of the 20th century, there was an increasing demand for building-up a new theater both for Subotica and Palic.

Despite the political and economic crisis that threatened to grow into a war, at the turning point of the 1940’s and 1950’s, there was a sudden boom in the cultural activities.

Although it was built in the mid-20th century, Summer stage is almost unique in its beauty, fitting perfectly into the Grand park greenery. The project was carried out by Baltazar Dulic, an architect from the AP Vojvodina governament office. Built out of natural untreated stone and brought from the village Rakovac in Fruska gora, the stage was raised near the lake itself, surrounded with pine trees. The Summer stage was opened in 1950, with the Vojvodina Opera performing plays „The sold bride“, „Travijata“ and „Seherezada“.

The Palic International Film Festival

Subotica Open University came up with the idea of creating a Film festival during the 1990’s, but it is only after 7-8 years the idea was crystallized. The Palic International Film Festival was founded in the year 1992. Many significant events take place at the Summer Stage, but it is most mentioned as a place where this famous film festival is being held.

Summer stage renovation

In the year 2017, due to the high demands for this facility during the summer, the Ministry of Trade, Tourism and Telecommunications together with Park Palic Ltd, provided 9.5 million dinars for the renovation of the Summer stage. The adaptation involved the paving of the plateau at the entrance, the stairs and the reconstruction of the wooden-concrete benches. To see the complete adaptation list, click here.

The summer stage reached its peak in 2019, when it hosted over 30 different events – theater performances, concerts, operas, dance competitions, and other various events.