For the 18 consecutive time Bulgarian cultural institutions have joined the annual European initiative "Night of Museums" on May 14.

The idea for this event was born in 2005 in France, under the auspices of the Secretary General of the Council of Europe and UNESCO, on the occasion of the International Museum Day - May 18.

Gradually, the idea for European museums to prepare a special attractive program annually and have their doors wide-open to visitors spread to dozens of countries, including Bulgaria. In this country the event was held for the first time in Plovdiv at the end of 2005. Today, events within the European Night of Museums take place in almost all major Bulgarian cities and the number of cultural institutions that participate has been growing.

In the capital city of Sofia, more than 45 museums and galleries will welcome their night guests with exhibitions, screenings and numerous artistic events.

The highlight of the program on May 14 is the screening of the documentary "A Night at the Louvre: Leonardo da Vinci" at the French Cultural Institute in Sofia. The French digital museum Micro-Folie will also be presented. It has been recently installed in one of the halls of the Regional Museum of History - Sofia on the occasion of the French Presidency of the Council of the European Union. It shows treasures of the 27 EU Member States, presenting 200 works of art from prestigious museum institutions, including the Bulgarian Panagyurishte Treasure.

The Regional History Museum - Blagoevgrad joins the international initiative for the sixteenth consecutive year and provides free access to visitors until midnight.

This year the Municipality of Stara Zagora has included in its program of events performances of the ballet of the State Opera in the city, the State Puppet Theater - Stara Zagora, as well as concerts.

The Varna City Art Gallery and its branch - the Art Museum "Georgi Velchev" are also open until midnight on Saturday and a special screening of the documentary "Monumental", dedicated to the great  artist Stoimen Stoilov, will take place.

Author: Vesela Krasteva

English: Alexander Markov