Grapevine Events: dreymandi hundur, Örvar Smárason, Sakaris & So Much More

It’s that time of the week again! Events aplenty! We just passed the longest day of the year yesterday, the summer solstice, and all we can say is we’re very happy we were up here on dry land, looking at that gorgeous glowing red sunset. We’re almost halfway through the year but not even halfway through summer, and now’s when things really kick into gear. Festival season takes off in early July, but for now there’s festival action right here in town with the RVK Fringe Festival. There’s also a bunch of new event series kicking off, both music and art, so read on and get ready to party!

Don’t forget to check out our events site for even more options!

LJÓS #1 – dreymandi hundur, Örvar Smárason, and Damsel Talk (AR/UK)

Saturday June 24 — Bíó Paradís — 20:30-23:30 — 2.000 ISK or pay what you can

Bíó Paradís isn’t just the finest cinema in town; it’s also an awesome spot for enjoying Happy Hour. But that’s not all — it is now becoming a thriving music venue too. Introducing LJÓS, a new series of live music and visuals happening at Bíó Paradís. It’s a unique opportunity to kill two birds with one stone — catch a freshly released movie (our recommendation: Wes Anderson’s Asteroid City) and afterwards, treat yourself to a drink while immersing yourself in the enchanting performances by dreymandi hundur, Örvar Smárason, and Damsel Talk. IZ

Leftovers: Performance Series Opening

Saturday June 14 — Nýló — 17:00 — Free

One of the defining elements of performance art is the ephemeral nature of the form; it exists in a time and space for as long and as big as it wants, and then it’s just gone. The new summer performance series at Nýló Leftovers somewhat subverts that premise by having physical remnants of each performance literally leftover at the gallery, keeping the evidence of the performance that was. These performance leftovers will eventually become archival material for the gallery as timeless reminders of what existed for a fleeting moment. The series runs over six weeks every Saturday, starting with Lithuanian-Icelandic artist Kamile Pikelyte. Experience the real-time art and see what gets leftover. RX

PIKKNIKK #1: SAKARIS

Sunday June 25 — Nordic House — 15:00 — Free

Back once again for another summer of fun, the Nordic House’s PIKKNIKK concert series kicks off on Sunday. Starting with Faroese-born Reykjavík-dwelling synthpopper SAKARIS, the series will go off with a big bang of high energy, good vibes, and lots of fun. This year’s series is curated by Mexican-born musician José Luis Anderson, aka Andervel, who has made diversity their focus of the lineup, programming artists from Denmark, Canada, Germany, Russia, USA and Iceland. The series runs through the end of July with free, all-ages performances each Sunday afternoon in the greenhouse. BYOPicnic! RX

RVK Fringe Festival

June 26 – July 2 — multiple locations and prices, all over town

When you live on the fringe, anything goes. At least that’s the way things go at the RVK Fringe Festival, one of the hundreds of global fringe festivals all stemming from their great foremother in Edinburgh. Back for its sixth year, the Reykjavík-wide festival is the largest its ever been and bringing some big names, both local and international, along for the ride. If you’ve never dipped your toes in the Fringe festival waters, it’s a platform that hosts performing arts of all kinds, from standup and theatre to cabaret, dance, spoken word, circus acts and more. With styles and shows as wide-ranging and as rule-breaking as the festival’s name implies, the RVK Fringe Festival truly has something for everyone. RX