As we prepared for our time in Scotland, we kept hearing about "The Festival Fringe." Actually, our students currently attend it as part of their course work. There is a group of 8 theatre major students from UW-Superior who are here for two weeks specifically for this event, and the students who are here for the entire semester are also attending courses and shows as a part of Module One.
I was not sure quite what to expect, but have been very pleasantly surprised at what this month long event has turned out to be. The following, from the official Fringe website ( http://www.edfringe.com/about-us) sets out some of what this festival is all about.
The Edinburgh Festival Fringe is the largest arts festival in the world and takes place every August for three weeks in Scotland’s capital city.
Every year thousands of performers take to a multitude of stages all over Edinburgh to present shows for every taste. From big names in the world of entertainment to unknown artists looking to build their careers, the festival caters for everyone and includes theatre, comedy, dance, physical theatre, musicals, operas, music, exhibitions and events.
Our story dates back to 1947, when eight theatre groups turned up uninvited to perform at the (then newly formed) Edinburgh International Festival, an initiative created to celebrate and enrich European cultural life in the wake of the Second World War. Not being part of the official programme of the International festival didn’t stop these performers – they just went ahead and staged their shows anyway. Year on year more and more performers followed their example and in 1959 the Festival Fringe Society was created in response to the success of this growing trend.
The Society formalised the existence of this collective of performances, provided information to artists, published the Fringe programme and created a central box office. Its constitution was written in line with the ethos that brought these theatre companies to Edinburgh back in 1947: that the Society was to take no part in vetting the festival’s programme. To this day that policy remains at the core of our festival and we’re proud to include in our programme anyone with a story to tell and a venue willing to host them.
As a new inductee to the Fringe, it was really quite exciting for a guy from Mikana. The streets are packed with people; half the people are tourists like myself, and the other half are performers looking to spark our interest in their particular show. There are fliers that are handed out to anyone who will take them, and to get our attention, many techniques are used. Somehow the creepy, (or is it cute?) little puppet got my attention, and I talked to the folks about their show.
The shows, seemingly hundreds of them, run from 10:00 in the morning until midnight or later. What an attendee does is walk along The Royal Mile to see what might be interesting, choose a show, and go find it. The shows usually cost between 7 to 10 pounds and are located within a few blocks of the city center. We like to pick a show by chance and whim, but there are serious fest goers who have their whole day planned out by using the guide book.
The shows run every day for the much of the three weeks of the festival, except for a day or two here or there, so the actors are out there everyday trying to drum up a full house for their daily performance. They sing, dance, howl announcements, and generally try to get the attendees' attention any way they can think of. The following are some examples:
We have gone to a number of shows now including a post modern, punk, Macbeth, A Clockwork Orange, and one called "Sunday in the Park with George" - a 1984 musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by James Lapine.
The musical was inspired by the painting "A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte" by Georges Seurat. The story revolves around a fictionalized Seurat immersed in single-minded concentration while painting the masterpiece. The characters in the painting come to life and are given "back stories" - culminating in a replica of the finished painting by the end of the play. It was very well done. The following pictures may give you a flavor of it.
Are you familiar with the painting?
In addition to the performers trying to get us to attend their shows vs. another performance, there are performers who are plying their arts right on the street in the hopes that passing the hat after the show will pay for their ticket to get there. There are the usual, jugglers, fire eaters, guitarists, violin players, and other quirky acts that will last from 20 to 40 minutes, gathering a crowd for a bit, then passing the hat.
Below is a unicyclist with a pretty substantial crowd, some street musicians, and a "statue" who would change positions every time someone would put money in the "hat." In my opinion there are too many fire eaters - too much build-up yik-yak, and not enough fire eating.
In addition to the Fringe itself, there are other festivals going on at the same time.
There is the original, The International Festival, which is the "by invitation" festival of the arts event. The following is from its website:
The Edinburgh International Festival was established in 1947, in the wake of the Second World War. Its founders believed that the Festival should enliven and enrich the cultural life of Europe, Britain and Scotland and 'provide a platform for the flowering of the human spirit'. They also recognised that, if the Festival succeeded in its artistic ambitions, it would create a major new source of tourism revenue for Edinburgh and for Scotland. This founding principle - that a world class cultural event, which brings together people and artists together from around the world, would also generate significant cultural, social and economic benefits for Edinburgh and Scotland - is as relevant today as it was nearly 60 years ago.
Over the years a number of other festivals have grown up around the International Festival. Most notably, in July and August the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, the Military Tattoo, and Book, Jazz and Mela Festivals take place, but festival events have now been expanded into other times of the year with the Hogmanay Festival and the Science and Children's Festivals. All of these events are administered separately from the Edinburgh International Festival.
Of the events listed above Denise and I (along with our WIS students) are going to the Military Tattoo - a three hour procession of military bands from all over the world; and the International Book Festival - a gathering of authors, from all genres of writing, give lectures and perform signings that visitors can attend.
We have not been to the Tattoo yet, but I will put some pics up once we do go. The book festival, as you can imagine is not as photogenic as the Fringe, but it is set in a great little park just off one of the main streets and maintains a busy, yet dignified, atmosphere of intellectual discovery. Below is Denise getting a book signed by author Alexander McCall Smith - author of Number 1 Ladies' Detective Agency.
There is a lot going on in Edinburgh right now. They say that the population of the city (250,000), doubles during the month of August. I believe it. The buses and streets are full, and the shops and pubs are spilling customers out onto the boulevard everywhere. The price of everything is, logically, set higher considering the city's current supply and demand ratio.
I'll buy my Scotland souvenirs in the fall after the Fringe is over.
