Campus life [2025-05-12]

Piernikalia 2025

— Editors

Anti-heroes, dark creatures and mysterious figures emerging from the shadows - this year's Piernikalia will be taken over by anti-heroes, who will invite you into a world of mystery and darkness from 12 to 17 May. The musical stage of the student festival days will feature performances by, among others, Chivas, Pidżama Porno and Szpaku.

The events of the city's biggest student event will begin with an evening of board games and karaoke at the Student Activity Centre Kotłownia. The party will start on Monday 12 May at 7 p.m. Traditionally, there will also be an open-air cinema - on 14 May, two films selected by internet users' voting will be screened in the square at the Collegium Humanisticum: 'Presence' and 'Beetlejuice'. Entrance will open at 8 p.m. and half an hour later the first screening will begin.

At a press conference held on Friday 9 May, Marta Kuta, President of the Student Government, announced new additions to the programme for this year's Piernikalia Festival.

A silent disco will take place in the foyer of the NCU Auditorium on Tuesday 13 May. We tested this format last year during the university's freshers' party. The event received very positive feedback, with many students asking about the next such event. We decided that the students' festival days Piernikalia would be the perfect opportunity to repeat it - said the President of the Student Government.

Participants will have a choice of three music channels: trap house will flow from green headphones, rave vibes from red headphones, and those with blue headphones will party to pop and R&B sounds. Places are limited.

Another novelty announced by Marta Kuta is a unique LAN Party at the Faculty of Mathematics and Computer Science, which will take participants to the world of retro games. It will be an opportunity to play cult titles from years gone by, to feel the atmosphere of old network games and to spend time on mini-tournaments and exciting games. Admission will only be possible on presentation of a valid student card, and the number of places is limited. Start at 5 pm.

The Piernikalia festival will officially open with a traditional march, which will start on Friday 16 May at 5 p.m. from under the Student Activity Centre Kotłownia. The parade, which will be attended by students dressed up in accordance with the theme of the event, will go through the streets of Toruń to the university campus.

The theme of this year's students' festival days is the opposite of what we did last year, which was a party with a fairytale theme. I think everyone also has their favourite anti-hero, so this will be the perfect opportunity to feel like one for a while - said Marta Kuta.

Friday and Saturday will be filled with dance, sports, social events and outdoor concerts. Those with a thirst for competition will be able, among other things, to compete for the title of rowing champion, test their spatial orientation in a maze and compete in a run through the circles of hell. There will also be plenty of offers for team-building fun - field games in a dark atmosphere, traditional beerpong and a dance party with the Erasmus Student Network.

The main attraction of the student festival will be the concerts. On Friday, 16 May, Kasia Kowalska, Lemon, Chivas and Bracia Figo Fagot will perform on stage. On the following day, Pidżama Porno, Natalia Szroeder, Meteroids and Szpaku will present themselves before the audience. Admission to the concerts is ticketed - tickets can be purchased via the website stage24.

The Student Government also invites you to the “Zone with Culture", which will feature a variety of workshops ranging from the making of natural cosmetics and creative works of art to activities in a sporting spirit. The Fieter Theatre will be presenting on the stage of the cinema hall in Od Nowa on Friday 16 May, while the stage at DS 9 will host concerts by Toruń rap crews. On Saturday, at 3.30 p.m., Radio Sfera invites you to a meeting with the writer and journalist Marcin Ogdowski, and at 4.30 p.m. to a Q&A with the Vice-Rector for Student Affairs and Education, dr habil. Monika Wałachowska, NCU Prof.

The full programme of Piernikalia 2025 can be found at piernikalia.umk.pl. Current information about all the events can be followed on Facebook.