Edinburgh International Festival – Opening Event : Where to Begin

Edinburgh International Festival’s Opening Event: Where to Begin, will light up the grounds of George Heriot’s in the heart of the Scottish capital on 3 and 4 August in response to this year’s Festival theme: Rituals That Unite Us.

On Friday the first public performance took place as a precursor to the festival which opens officially on Saturday.

Tickets may be available on the Festival’s website.

Blending immersive installations, performance, spectacular video projections and captivating storytelling, Where to Begin is the opening event heralding the city’s festival season.

It is also announced that “One of the finest singer-songwriters in Britain” (The Guardian), Karine Polwart features on a new track commissioned for Where to Begin, composed by Roma Yagnik with lyrics by Davey Anderson and Simon Sharkey.

Listen to a snippet of the song here.

An Edinburgh International Festival production, created by Pinwheel and in partnership with The Macallan, Where to Begin transforms an iconic Edinburgh location into the epicentre of creative power, exploring the myths and rituals which shaped the country, the capital and its festivals.

These include the process of whisky making and the warm welcome visitors to the city received in 1947 thanks to the private donations of coal rations by Edinburgh residents which were used to light up Edinburgh Castle during the first ever Edinburgh International Festival.