Francis van Broekhuizen

MartiniPlaza in Groningen is an indoor arena with a capacity of around 4,500 that has functioned since its opening in June 1969 as one of the most modern event facilities in the northern Netherlands. Originally known as the Martinihal Groningen, it was expanded and renamed MartiniPlaza in 2000. The complex serves simultaneously as a concert hall, exhibition space, theater and sports arena, and is the permanent home of basketball club Donar. Volleyball club Lycurgus also uses it on occasion. With more than 500,000 visitors per year, it is the largest event venue in the northern Netherlands and draws audiences from Groningen, the wider region and beyond. The venue's concert history stretches back more than five decades and includes some genuinely significant moments. Wings played there in August 1972, Genesis brought The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway Tour in April 1975, and The Jacksons stopped by on the Destiny World Tour in January 1979. Bob Dylan performed at MartiniPlaza in March 1995 as part of the Never Ending Tour, and the Backstreet Boys appeared in December 1996. Within Temptation played the arena in November 2018 on The Resist Tour. The programming today remains broad in scope. Recent and upcoming events include shows by Danny Vera, Racoon, Guus Meeuwis, Jethro Tull, and children's act Dirk Scheele, alongside theatrical productions such as Dear Evan Hansen and orchestral events like the Symphony of Magic concerts built around the music of Harry Potter. That mix of mainstream pop, rock, musical theater and family entertainment reflects MartiniPlaza's role as a general purpose large venue rather than a specialist music hall, making it the default destination in Groningen for any touring act that needs substantial capacity.