Due to building works in the Bristo Square area Underbelly is having to move its Udderbelly venue that is the big purple cow into adjacent George Square. This will change the face of the Fringe this year, but the organisers are keen to say that change is a good thing and that the Udderbelly may return from pastures new in 2017.
Udderbelly will be situated on the west side of George Square, alongside Assembly Festival in the east side. The dates for Fringe 2015 are 5 to 31 August 2015.
In Bristo Square, Udderbelly was the original home of Into the Hoods, the ZooNation musical which then transferred to the West End and Tom Tom Crew, the Australian circus spectacular; and has played host to a wide range of artists including Stewart Lee, Demetri Martin, Jerry Sadowitz, Reginald D Hunter, Rhys Darby, Jim Jefferies, Ruby Wax and Beardyman. Udderbelly has also been one of the recent successful exports from the Edinburgh Fringe, located as it is every summer from April to July in the shadow of the London Eye as the Udderbelly Festival at Southbank Centre.
Underbelly also announced today that one of the headline shows in the Udderbelly at Fringe 2015 will be a new co-commission with Circa, one of the most renowned contemporary circus companies in the world, following from their acclaimed presentations with Underbelly in the McEwan Hall of Wunderkammer (2013) and Beyond (2014), selling over 35,000 tickets between them. The new commission will be called Close-Up, and tickets will go on sale on 30 January.
Professor Charlie Jeffery, Senior Vice Principal said “The University is delighted to provide new pastures for the iconic purple Udderbelly cow while development work is carried out at the McEwan Hall in Bristo Square. We are proud to continue our strong association with the Festival Fringe and are looking forward to what promises to be another exciting Fringe in 2015″.
Charlie Wood, co-director of Underbelly, the operator of the Udderbelly venue, said “We are very grateful to the University, whose far-sighted vision for the Fringe and for Bristo Square allowed Udderbelly to be created in the first place, for continuing to support the great work, fun and entertainment that Udderbelly brings to the Fringe. We’re really looking forward to creating a new pasture for Udderbelly in George Square for the next two years and to returning to Bristo Square when the works are complete”.
Ed Bartlam, co-director of Underbelly, said “In the last two years at the Fringe, working with Underbelly, Circa have won a Herald Angel Award, been nominated for a Total Theatre award, and astonished a total audience of over 35,000 people with their unique brand of breathtaking and beautiful circus. It’s incredibly exciting to be taking the next step in commissioning this brand new piece, which will make its world premiere in our flagship venue – a show that we are sure will capture the imaginations of Festival audiences like never before.”
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