Festival August

Edinburgh is apparently known for it's August Festival season. Every year hundred of thousands of performers and tourists flock to Edinburgh to participate in any one of the numerous festivals that simultaneously occur. It's really like nothing I've ever experienced. The festival began in 1947 with the Edinburgh International Festival and then grew to include the Fringe; today, there are dozens of other festivals that also make their home in Edinburgh in August: The Book Festival, Comedy Festival, the Mela, the Storytelling Festival, the Spirituality Festival, and the Political Festival to name just a few. It's really pretty amazing.

High Street, or the Royal Mile, is covered with street performers who give 45 minute magic shows, art demonstrations, acrobatic shows, or musical dazzlings. Others simply set up shop on a corner and peddle their wares, pass out flyers to a show in some clever and entertaining manner, or attempt to draw you in with their physical theatre performances.

I think every possible venue in Edinburgh is booked out for the festivals in August, with really every nook and cranny of the city being used for something related to the events.

In all honestly, the festival was a bit overwhelming for first-timers like ourselves. The programme for the Fringe alone was several hundred pages, each with numerous tiny adverts for some show or other. Still, we managed to catch a few shows and events and to take the festivities in. A few of the highlights for us, this year:

Danny Bhoy: a really funny, family friendly, Scottish comedian. Photos weren't allowed, but we had great seats for this show and enjoyed his style.

The Mela: I made my way down to Leith, with a few friends, to check out the Mela which was a festival to celebrate the South Asian culture. Some good food and enjoyable music made this day really nice.


The Sun Also Rises: Part of the International Festival, we were excited to take in this adaptation of Ernest Hemingway's novel by an American experiential theatre troupe. Sadly, we were a bit disappointed by this 4 hour play (yes, 4 hours. They've also produced a 6.5 hour rendition of The Great Gatsby). It was a long (obviously) and pretty slow. But, the theater was nice, there were a few clever parts, and we enjoyed a great dinner before, so all was not lost.

The site of the 4 hour play!

Inside the Lyceum

The Book Festival: Every day during the book festival, Amnesty International hosted readings on a topic related to the issue of Imprisioned Writers. We went to one on US Civil Liberties and another on a Russian Journalist, Anna Politkovskaya. I found these events to be really interesting and very thought-provoking. Probably one of my favorite festival experiences.


The Storytelling Festival: one Sunday afternoon, I made my way over to the Botanical Gardens where various artists were sharing their craft admist the beautiful, natural surroundings. This woman, in particular, was amazing. Such a gifted storyteller--I was disappointed when her "show" ended.


There was also a group of women who combined narrative and dance to tell a wonderfully creative and engaging story. Really enjoyed it as well.


Finally, we had a few great evenings just walking around the Royal Mile and taking in some magic, acrobatics, and music. Some of the most interesting acts included this woman who hula-hooped and a really entertaining magician (who may moonlight as a comedian!).

Now that we know a bit more about the festivals, we're looking forward to next year when we can take a bit more of a strategic approach and hopefully catch a few more great acts.