Vilnius is inviting live performance venues to apply for “Dainyklos” status — the competition opens today. Applications are accepted until April 20, 2025.
Independent venues can participate, including bars, clubs, and concert or event spaces whose purpose and outcome are cultural activities, and which agree to educate visitors and apply harm-reduction measures. Venues granted Dainyklos status may receive up to €12,000 in annual funding. The status will be awarded for a two-year period (2026–2027), meaning a single venue could receive up to €24,000 in total.
The Dainyklos program offers not only financial support but also the opportunity to become partners of the city in strengthening live music and cultural nightlife. The two-year status provides greater stability for planning programs, inviting performers, and investing in event quality, as well as in visitor health and well-being.
“Dainyklos in Vilnius create space for music, new names, and communities. We see that these spaces are very important to the city, so we aim to help them operate: to continue activities loved by residents and visitors or to initiate new formats. I invite everyone interested to apply and join this initiative, strengthening the city’s live cultural life together,” says Vilnius Vice Mayor Simona Bieliūnė.
Municipal funding may be allocated to pay creators, performers, lecturers, and experts; to develop and technically implement events; to acquire rights and licenses; for communication; and for project administration. Up to 30% of the allocated funds may be used for long-term assets, such as musical instruments and other necessary equipment.
Venues granted Dainyklos status will commit to organizing at least 40 performances per year (including events already held in 2026). They must also have a stage and sound and lighting equipment, provide snacks and free drinking water to visitors, participate in staff training, and take part in social campaigns run by the municipality and its affiliated institutions.
Eligible applicants are legal entities registered and operating in cultural activities within Vilnius municipality that submit an application, except for budgetary institutions and other organizations funded or subsidized by the municipality or the state. Each legal entity may submit no more than one application.
Applications must be submitted via the Vilnius City Municipality competition platform: konkursai.vilnius.lt. The new list of Dainyklos venues is expected to be announced in summer 2026.
For more information, interested parties can contact Gabija Liaugminaitė, Project Manager at the Vilnius Night Office, at gabija@vnb.lt
