Festival Parade
posted February 17th, 2012.
The Scotsman reports that a festival parade will be held along Princes Street, the first for four years. It is being organised by the Edinburgh Jazz & Blues Festival. It is likely to be smaller than previous cavalcades as it will take place on July 22nd as a curtain raiser to the Jazz & Blues festival when there are likely to be few Fringe or Tattoo acts around.
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Proposal for Spiegeltent on George St.
posted February 17th, 2012.
The Scotsman reports that Tommy Sheppard who will be running the Assembly Rooms this year has put forward a proposal to have a venue in the middle of George Street. The idea is to attract acts and punters back to the New Town, stemming the drift towards the south side of the city. This is far from straightforward of course, there being traffic and parking implications and it assumes that Princes Street will free of tram works by August.
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Film Festival to reinstate awards
posted February 15th, 2012.
The Edinburgh International Film Festival has announced that it will reinstate three awards which it had abolished in 2011. They are Best International Feature Film by an Emerging Director, Best Performance in a British Feature Film and The Michael Powell Award for Best British Feature. The Scotsman has an article which covers the announcement.
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Bongo Club to be given marching orders
posted February 8th, 2012.
Chortle reports that the Bongo Club, a popular Fringe venue, has received notice to quit its Moray House home in September after this year's festival by Edinburgh University who plan to use the space as a new home for its Office of Lifelong Learning.
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Launch of Fringe 2012 programme to be a week early
posted February 2nd, 2012.
The full programme for Fringe 2012 will be launched on May 31st this year, one week earlier than usual. This is to avoid it clashing with the double bank holiday in early June when the Queen's Diamond Jubilee will be celebrated.
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Annual review of Fringe 2011 available
posted February 1st, 2012.
The Fringe Society's Annual Review of 2011 can be downloaded from its website. It includes draft financial figures which show income for the year of circa. £3.16m and expenditure of £2.79m.
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First Fringe 2012 shows announced
posted February 1st, 2012.
The idea in recent years of announcing some shows well before the official launch of the Fringe programme in early June continues. Details of eight shows can already be found on the Fringe website. They are mainly productions at Venue150@EICC. I am afraid that I am old school - early June is the time for launching the full programme ... and not before.
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Old Vic New Voices & IdeasTap to bring shows to the Fringe
posted January 21st, 2012.
The Stage reports that Old Vic New Voices is teaming up with IdeasTap, a funding body and network for emerging talent, to bring five shows to this year's Fringe. New Voices, the education arm of the Old Vic, will showcase five new plays at the Underbelly venue.
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Fringe Survival Guide
posted January 18th, 2012.
Mark Fisher, theatre critic and freelance journalist, has written The Edinburgh Fringe Survival Guide: How to Make Your Show A Success which will be published in Februrary 2012. It is primarily aimed at aspiring performers and others who are involved in putting on a show at the Edinburgh Fringe for the first time, although punters may also find it a useful read. Further information can be found on the book's website.
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Fringe roadshow and show registration deadlines
posted January 15th, 2012.
The Fringe Society's roadshow started earlier this month in New York. In February it will visit Edinburgh, Manchester and London and finally Adelaide in early March. The roadshow provides an opportunity for potential performers to find out more about what is involved in appearing at the Fringe. Deadline dates for registering shows have also been announced. To get into the printed programme brochure the deadline is April 11th, 2012. Full details on the roadshows and registration dates can be found here.
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Early news on visual arts exhibitions during 2012 festival
posted January 5th, 2012.
Here is some early news on major visual arts exhibitions that will be running at the time of the 2012 Edinburgh festival: Van Gogh to Kandinsky: Symbolist Landcape in Europe 1880-1910 at the National Gallery of Scotland; Picasso and British Modern Art at the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art; and Catherine The Great: an Enlightened Empress at the National Museum of Scotland. The Picasso exhibition is also on at Tate Britain earlier in the year, running from February 15th to July 15th, 2012.
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New chief executive for Edinburgh Festival City Theatres Trust
posted January 5th, 2012. updated January 6th, 2012.
The Stage reports that Duncan Hendry has been appointed as the new chief executive for the Edinburgh Festival City Theatres Trust. Hendry, who currently has a similar role with Aberdeen Performing Arts, will take up his position at the beginning of April. Further information, including some background on the troubles that the Trust faces (previously covered here), appeared subsequently in The Scotsman.
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Festival marketing for 2012 to start early
posted January 2nd, 2012.
The Scotsman reports that Festivals Edinburgh, the umbrella body for the city's festivals, will head the biggest marketing campaign ever for the Edinburgh festival. It is estimated that around £550,000 will be spent in various promotional and advertising campaigns, as part of Edinburgh's attempts to compete with the London Olympics in 2012. The campaigns, which aim to woo both the media and punters, will get under way in the next few weeks, some two months earlier than usual. The City Council, VisitScotland and Creative Scotland have all contributed towards this campaign.
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Happy New Year
posted January 1st, 2012.
Happy New Year to all festival punters. A quick note on some changes here. I have completed my annual update of the festival history, summary of favourite shows over the years and other articles with any relevant data from 2011. I have also added some further material on the history of the Fringe which I have gleaned from Alistair Moffat's The Edinburgh Fringe which was published back in 1978, a copy of which I recently obtained. Finally, I have largely rewritten the article on potential threats to the festival, as the old version was somewhat past its sell by date.
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Edinburgh to host cultural summit in 2012
posted December 20th, 2011.
The Stage reports that Edinburgh is to host a cultural summit on August 13th and 14th 2012 during the Edinburgh International Festival. Ministers of Culture from all nations who are competing at the London Olympics have been invited. Titled "Culture as an International Dialogue" ministers, artists, thinkers and those who are charged with the development and implementation of cultural policy will discuss the use and value of culture and its role in encouraging dialogue among nations. The summit is being organised by the Scottish and UK governments, the EIF and the British Council.
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Alternative model for Fringe comedians?
posted December 17th, 2011.
Bob Slayer, owner of the Alternative Heroes of Comedy company, will be co-promoting the "Alternative Fringe at the Hive" with Free Festival outfit Laughing Horse in 2012. The venue will host some paid for shows alongside the standard Laughing Horse free shows. Comedians who are appearing on the paid for side will not be charged rent for the venue and ticket revenue will be split 70-30 in the artist's favour. In an article in Chortle, Slayer markets the idea of comedians being more independent, and not relying on venues and promoters. John Fleming outlines the approach in this blog.
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City leader says no to festival campsite at Meadows
posted December 16th, 2011.
One of the winning ideas from the recent Edinburgh Festival Ideas Challenge was to use the Meadows as a campsite in August during the festival. Council leader Jenny Dawe has been quick to scotch this idea. They are prepared to look at other possible sites although they will have to be outside the city centre. This news will come as no surprise to anybody who has monitored the complaints from local residents over the years about the damage caused to the Meadows by events that have been held there. It is boggy ground that is easily damaged.
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Concerns over future arts funding
posted December 10th, 2011.
There is apprehension over plans by Creative Scotland to scrap its Flexible Funding scheme in March 2013 according to The Herald. Beneficiaries of the £7m scheme include the Festival Fringe, Inverleith House and Edinburgh Printmakers. Fears are being fuelled by a lack of clear information on a replacement scheme, to be called Strategic Commissioning. Creative Scotland is facing cuts to its core grant from the Scottish Government.
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Bed tax idea to be further investigated
posted December 8th, 2011.
Edinburgh City Council is to further investigate the idea of a bed tax as a means of raising revenue to help festival funding according to The Stage. The ideas revolve around a charge of £1 or £2 per night that would be levied on hotels and guest houses. This would generate £5-£10m per year. The council currently spends approximately £3.3m on grants and subsidies to Edinburgh's 12 main festivals.
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Results of Edinburgh Festival Ideas Challenge
posted December 8th, 2011.
The results of the Edinburgh Festivals Ideas Challenge have been announced. It was launched in August, seeking ideas to improve the festival experience. It was an initiative of the Edinburgh Festivals Innovation Lab. It remains to be seen if any of the ideas will be adopted.
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Remarkable Arts expected to go into liquidation
posted December 7th, 2011. updated December 8th, 2011.
The Scotsman reports that Remarkable Arts which ran the Hill Street Theatre and St.George's West venues in 2011 is expected to go into liquidation early next year after a winding up order was instigated at the end of November. The article claims that at least a dozen companies are owed money from this year's Fringe by Remarkable Arts. The company is run by Tim Hawkins who is also an employee of the Fringe, acting as its IT Manager. In a short message, the Remarkable Arts website confirms that it is closing its doors. The Stage estimates that it has debts of £75K.
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Scottish National Portrait Gallery reopens
posted December 1st, 2011. updated December 2nd, 2011.
There is general rejoicing that the Scottish National Portrait Gallery reopened today after its major refurbishment which has taken two and a half years. There have been a variety of articles on the gallery over the last week. They include: The Scotsman, The Guardian, The Herald, and a video on YouTube.
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Early plans for Traverse's 50th anniversary
posted November 23rd, 2011.
The Stage reports that the Traverse is to celebrate its 50th anniversary in 2013 with a Scotland-wide initiative to encourage writers to create work for the stage. Established playwrights will mentor 50 new writers. The current objectives are to: produce 10 new plays in 2013; and identify 5 emerging writing talents and produce 5 new plays for the following 5 years. The city council plans to award the Traverse a £50K grant to help in the anniversary work. Full details of Traverse 50 will be announced in 2012.
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£650K package to compete with Olympic and Commonwealth Games
posted November 23rd, 2011.
Edinburgh City Council has agreed a £650K package to help Edinburgh Festivals compete with the London Olympics in 2012 and complement the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow according to stv.tv.
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More info on EIF 2012
posted November 19th, 2011.
The Edinburgh International Festival has released a smidge more information about the 2012 festival. In the main, it simply recycles previous announcements on the two Shakespeare productions and the Speed of Light show. What is new is that there will be no themes by geographic region - but I think that we had all guessed that one. The official programme will be launched on Wednesday, March 14th, 2012 and public booking will commence on Saturday, March 24th, 2012.
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School of Comedy Edinburgh residency
posted November 19th, 2011.
The Stage reports that young comics from the London-based School of Comedy clubs are to benefit from more opportunities to showcase their talent, with an annual presence at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, content for CBBC and a dedicated YouTube channel all planned. An annual residency at the Assembly Rooms will start in 2012.
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Financial troubles at Festival City Theatres Trust
posted November 8th, 2011.
The Edinburgh Evening News reports that auditors have warned that there is a doubt about the ability of the Festival City Theatres Trust, which runs the Festival and King's Theatres, to continue as a going concern. The accounts for April 2010 to March 2011 have not yet been officially published. In previous years they have appeared around July time. The trust has been struggling recently with cutbacks and resignations.
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More info on EIF's Speed of Light show
posted November 2nd, 2011.
The Edinburgh International Festival has published further information on the Speed of Light show. The objective is to bring communities together from all over Scotland to celebrate sport and culture. "Thousands of runners will activate specially designed light suits, illuminating the hillside as they follow choreographed routes over Arthur's Seat creating an astonishing visual displays". A call is being put out for runners who wish to participate. The performance will take place nightly on Arthur's Seat from Thursday 9 August to Saturday 1 September 2012.
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Made in Scotland Showcase 2012
posted October 29th, 2011.
Applications are now being accepted for the Made in Scotland Showcase 2012. This will be a curated showcase of performances at the 2012 Edinburgh Fringe. Investment will be available to the successful Scottish dance and theatre companies and individual artists to present artistically ambitious work at the 2012 Fringe. The showcase is supported by the Scottish Government's Expo Funding. The closing date for applications is November 28th, 2011.
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Book Festival seeks company for website development
posted October 28th, 2011.
The International Edinburgh Book Festival is seeking a company to take on the maintenance and development of its website.
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Festival venue for St. Andrew Square?
posted October 11th, 2011.
Essential Edinburgh, a group which represents New Town businesses between Princes St and Queens St, is concerned over the significant drop in customer numbers and spending during the 2011 festival. It considers that the closure of the Assembly Rooms and the gradual move of venues to the Old Town is responsible. The Scotsman reports that Essential Edinburgh is looking to encourage venues to open up in the New Town. It is particularly looking at the viability of using St. Andrew Square.
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Film Festival sticks with June date
posted October 7th, 2011.
The EIFF has announced that it is keeping to its June date in the calendar. The 2012 Film Festival will run from June 20th to July 1st. It has also been announced that the Michael Powell Award for Best New British Feature Film will make a return.
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Now we are back to the bed tax idea
posted October 6th, 2011.
Following on from talk of a festival tax, councillors are now having a go at Edinburgh's hotels who had an extremely successful August, outperforming London hotels. The Scotsman quotes Steve Cardownie, the city's festivals and events champion, as saying that they are "laughing all the way to the bank" and he raises the need for a bed tax to be levied on them, a subject which has been brought up before. The hotels, needless to say, cry poverty.
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Talk of Festival tax?
posted September 25th, 2011.
The Scotsman, and other media outlets, have seemingly got exercised by the mere mention of a possible festival tax on tickets by Council leader Jenny Dawe. A sensible debate on festival funding is long overdue but it appears to be a bit early for journalists to be marshalling the troops - alias the interested parties - on either side of the funding divide.
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Interim CEO for CMI
posted September 22nd, 2011.
Ken Hay, a former CEO of Scottish Screen, has been appointed as interim CEO of the Centre for the Moving Image, the parent organisation of the Edinburgh International Film Festival. This follows on from the sudden resignation last week of Gavin Miller as CEO of the CMI after a turbulent year at the Film Festival. This is reported by a number of media outlets, including The Scotsman.
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New Artistic Director for Film Festival
posted September 15th, 2011.
A number of media outlets report that the troublesome year at the Edinburgh International Film Festival has eventually led to the appointment of a new artistic director and the resignation of Gavin Miller, CEO at the CMI - the organisation which is responsible for the Film Festival. Chris Fujiwara, an American film writer, author and critic, is to be the new artistic director of the Edinburgh International Film Festival. Brooklyn-born, he has been based in Tokyo for the last 5 years. EdinburghGuide.com has the most comprehensive article on the subject.
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Portrait Gallery on course to re-open in November 2011
posted September 8th, 2011.
The Scottish National Portrait Gallery closed in 2009 for major refurbishment work - the project being called Portrait of the Nation. The work has been completed and the art works are in the process of being installed according to its website. St. Andrew's Day, November 30th 2011, is the date when the gallery will re-open. The Scotsman contains a short article on the gallery and some of its history.
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EIF to take part in 2012 World Shakespeare Festival
posted September 7th, 2011.
The Edinburgh International Festival will take part in the 2012 World Shakespeare Festival, a feature of the Cultural Olympiad which will accompany the London Olympics. The EIF will stage Macbeth by Polish company TR Warszawa and a version of A Midsummer Night's Dream, a production from The Chekhov International Theatre Festival in Russia which will be directed by Dmitry Krymov. The Herald also reports that the EIF is to commission Speed of Light in 2012, a light show powered by cyclists on top of Arthur's Seat.
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EIF 2011 box office income down slightly
posted September 6th, 2011.
Initiial estimates indicate that box office income for the 2011 International Festival was 3% lower than the figure for 2010 according to The Stage. The EIF spokesman was at pains to stress that they had balanced their budget this year.
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Valery Gergiev appointed honorary president of the International Festival
posted September 4th, 2011.
BBC News reports that the Russian conductor and director Valery Gergiev has been appointed as honorary president of the Edinburgh International Festival. Valery Gergiev is the artistic and general director of the Mariinsky Theatre in Saint Petersburg. He first came to Edinburgh in 1991 with the Kirov Opera. He is the third honorary president of the International Festival, following on from violinist Yehudi Menuhin and conductor Charles Mackerras.
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Final allocation of tickets for Fireworks Concert
posted September 2nd, 2011.
The final tranche of tickets for Sunday night's Virgin Money Festival Fireworks will go on sale at 10am on Saturday. These tickets will only be sold over the counter at the Hub. Further details in EdinburghGuide.com.
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Commercial Director appointed at Festival City Theatres Trust
posted September 2nd, 2011.
The Stage reports that Nick Parr has been appointed to the new post of commercial director at the Festival City Theatres Trust which is responsible for both the Festival Theatre and the King's Theatre. The new role includes the duties that were previously the responsibility of the head of sales and marketing.
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Dates for 2012 summer festivals
posted September 1st, 2011. updated September 13th, 2011.
I have posted details of the dates of the 2012 summer festivals on the home page. A number are provisional at the moment and await confirmation. The most problematic is the Edinburgh International Film Festival. It is currently unclear if it will continue in June or return to its original dates in August. The Scotsman currently thinks that it will remain in June. Information relating to the dates on all the festivals will be updated as it becomes available. This includes dates for programme launches and the commencement of public booking.
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Closing thoughts and 2011 statistics from the Festival Fringe Society
posted August 30th, 2011. updated August 31st, 2011.
The Festival Fringe Society issued its closing thoughts on the 2011 festival plus the usual selected set of statistics. 1.877m tickets were issued - I could be cynical and ask what "issued" means precisely. Anyway, the figure is marginally up (approximately 2.5%) on the 2010 figure. The Scotsman quotes provisional figures from the super venues, including: Underbelly with a claimed 19% increase in ticket sales (this excludes the McEwan Hall which was not available this year - not sure that this makes for a valid comparison), Gilded Balloon up 10%, Pleasance up 6% while Assembly expects the figures to be "marginally up" on last year. Everybody says that the figures would have been better if it had not been for the rain, particularly in the first week.
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Ideas sought to improve festival experience
posted August 29th, 2011.
The Edinburgh Festivals are seeking ideas to improve the festival experience. Ideas can be submitted and voted upon until the end of October 2011. Prizes will be awarded in late November for the best ideas. This is an initiative of the Edinburgh Festivals Innovation Lab.
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New Artistic Director for The Traverse
posted August 27th, 2011.
The Traverse has announced that Orla O'Loughlin, currently Artistic Director at The Pentabus Theatre, will replace Dominic Hill as its Artistic Director. Hill leaves in October to take over the reins at the Citizens in Glasgow. O'Loughlin will start in January 2012.
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Forest Café looking for alternative premises
posted August 26th, 2011.
The Forest Café Arts Centre, home to The Forest Fringe in August, has given up the unequal struggle to stay in its current premises. If you remember, the owners, Edinburgh University Settlement, were declared bankrupt and forced into administration in October 2010. The Forest Café has unsuccessfully tried to raise sufficient funds to allow them to stay in the building in Bristo Place. They have accepted the inevitable and are now looking for alternative premises. Read more here including their requests for donations.
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Equity survey on backstage conditions and pay at the Fringe
posted August 26th, 2011.
The Stage reports that Equity is conducting an online survey on backstage conditions and pay at this year's Fringe. It can be accessed until early September and is open to any UK-based performer.
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Fringe set to commence marketing for 2012 early
posted August 24th, 2011.
The Fringe is in talks with venues about commencing marketing for 2012 as early as March or April according to The Scotsman. In an attempt to compete with the attraction of the London Olympics The Fringe would promote the 2012 festival, including some shows, several months earlier than usual.
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Film Festival loses funding from British Film Institute
posted August 24th, 2011.
The Herald reports that the British Film Institute, the recently appointed lead provider of funding and support to the film industry, has told the EIFF that it is unable to provide any funding although other forms of support may be possible. The Film Festival had previously received a grant of £1.8m spread over 3 years, a funding package that ended last year.
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Fringe 2012 AGM
posted August 23rd, 2011. updated August 29th, 2011.
The Fringe AGM was held on Saturday August 20th, 2011. A brief summary follows. See the article in Whatsonstage,com for more information.
- concerns expressed over potential shortage of technicians next year due to the London Olympics
- £100K set aside in last year's accounts towards debts re the disposal of the failed Pivotal software system
- new back-office software "Fringeware" being developed - to help analyse the data that is held about participants and punters
- Tommy Sheppard (Stand) beat Charlie Wood (Underbelly) for a place on the Fringe board. See all Fringe election results.
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Warning on potential lack of availability of technicians for 2012 festival
posted August 23rd, 2011.
Venue
bosses are warning that the London Olympics in 2012 will suck up many
technicians, leaving a potential shortfall of these resources for
events such as the Edinburgh Festival according to The Stage and other media outlets.
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Possible home for Demarco's festival archive
posted August 13th, 2011.
Richard
Demarco is the 81 year-old veteran festival impressario who has been
responsible for bringing many International companies to the Fringe
over the years. He was also one of the founders of the Traverse back in
1963. The Herald reports
that he may have found a home for his festival archive which runs to
around one million pieces. Discussions are ongoing to use part of the
old Royal (Dick) Vet School building in Edinburgh (the Summerhall
campus).
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EIF 2011 ticket sales still a "challenge"
posted August 12th, 2011.
The Herald appears to be indicating
that ticket sales for the International Festival are not going as well
as they might, possibly due to this year's theme which is based on
South East Asian culture and its links with the west.
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Cheap EIF tickets for the under 26s
posted August 10th, 2011.
The International Festival will be offering £8 tickets for selected performances during the festival if you are under 26. Further details can be found here.
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Edinburgh Book Festival website working again
posted August 10th, 2011.
The website appears to be working ok this morning.
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Edinburgh Book Festival website unavailable
posted August 9th, 2011.
The
data centre in Ireland which houses the Book Festival's website was
affected by a lightning strike on Sunday evening. The website is
currently unavailable although tickets can still be purchased over the
phone and at the box office. The online brochure can be browsed here.
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Earlier date fails to boost Jazz Festival
posted August 4th, 2011.
The Jazz Festival was a week earlier than normal this year. The Scotsman reports
that the festival's expectations of increased ticket sales failed to be
satisfied. However, it is likely that the new date in the calendar will
be retained.
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Extended line-up announced for Amnesty's Stand Up for Freedom comedy night
posted August 3rd, 2011.
Further names have been announced by Amnesty for its famous Stand Up for Freedom comedy night which this year will take place on August 17th, 2011.
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