Mo Blog

Saturday 27 August 2011

Age old


The Festival has just turned 64 years young! 64 is a huge achievement for the longest running performance festival in Edinburgh. While maybe starting to feel a little senior, compared to the scenes of art, performance and theatre where it draws its programme from, it is actually very young.

While the festival pulls huge tradition and ritual from across the globe, it uses every modern convenience to drive itself. Everywhere i look i see the very old with the very new. Old performers and new audiences. Ancient venues with fresh approaches. Old circles welcoming new friends. Traditional stories told like for the first time.



 A mother and her daughter admire the Lightning Drawings exhibition at the launch night


The rooftop grid system at the Festival Kings Theatre. These bars have taken the weight of thousands of performances since 1906.


Amjad Ali Khan during a sound rehearsal

Princess Bari Choreographer Eun-Me Ahn and the Lord Provost of Edinburgh embrace in thanks at the artists reception at the City Chambers



Conductor Alberto Zedda leads a rehearsal of the orchestra for Semiramide



Ravi Shankar receives a standing ovation at the age of 91 at the Usher Hall



The original curtain counter-weight at the Edinburgh Festival Theatre


Sir Gerald Elliot hosts an Indian inspired pre-theatre reception in honour of Ravi Shankar



2nd year students from the Royal High School stretch out before an after school dance class. THe RHS is a main focus of dance tuition with many students going on to dance professionally


A guest weaver operates a handmade loom at the Dovecot studios. His technique is meticulous and ancient in spinning silk.

Young participants in the Nrityagram Ensemble dance class look on with a snack















3 comments:

  1. Wonderful me dear. The rig pic is fascinating. (Ahem, with word editor's hat on, "exercise" is spelt wrong at the top.) I look forward to more pics... Helena

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  2. Thanks Helena, i'm going to leave the camera do the talking from now on;)

    ReplyDelete