IKV İstanbul EU Information Centre organised the theatre play ‘This is Europe’ on 20 May 2025 at Notre Dame de Sion French High School. The theatre play was staged by Belgian Hendrik Vos and Dutch Frans Grapperhaus in partnership with the EU Delegation to Türkiye, the Belgian Embassy in Türkiye, the Ministry of Culture and Tourism and the Directorate for EU Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

On stage, Hendrik and Frans presented the history of the construction of Europe and the history of unification, as well as the encounters that led to great dreams and actions. With humour, music, misunderstandings and interesting anecdotes, the performance told the true story of how the EU became what it is today.

The main aim of the play, which is based on the book ‘Dit is Europa’ by Director of the Centre for European Studies at Ghent University Prof. Hendrik Vos, is to seek answers to the questions of what the EU is and who is the EU.

After the play, theatre actors and participants attended a reception hosted by Tim Van Anderlecht, Consul General of Belgium in İstanbul. This year, Europe Day is celebrated with the theme ‘Europe 75 Years Old: Shaping the Future Together’ is being celebrated with events organised in different corners of the country throughout May.