ASSEMBLY Festival, one of the Edinburgh Fringe’s largest show promoters, have confirmed their plans to move their George Street hub to St Andrew Square following the Princes Street fire.
The blaze, which ripped through the former Debenhams Department store on the Western end of Princes Street, has caused travel mayhem in Edinburgh, with trams entirely cancelled for weeks for most of the city.
The enduring closure of the stretch of Princes Street – a major transport hub – between Frederick Street and South Charlotte Street has also added increased strain to the city’s bus services, which have been rerouted onto George Street from Princes Street – a major transport hub.
In response, the council has been forced to shelve plans for the yearly pedestrianisation of George Street and the Summertime Streets programme so buses can continue to pass.
Assembly Rooms, one of the Fringe’s largest event promoters, has now announced that its George Street hub, containing the “Bijou” spiegeltent and the “Front Room” container space venue, will move to St Andrews Square.
This means that the 17 shows scheduled for the venues can still go ahead. Shows indoors on George Street will not be affected.
Artistic director at Assembly Festival, said: “The fire on Princes Street has had, and will continue to have a significant effect on city centre businesses and residents.
“Following the subsequent investigations, it became clear that the usual festival road closures Assembly Festival operates on George Street wouldn’t be possible for this year’s Fringe season.”
He added: “It is extremely positive news that all 17 of these shows will still be able to go ahead, after the huge amount of work our artists have already put into them.”
The shows affected by the relocation are as follows:
Bijou: 70s Jukebox by The 60 Four; 1954: Ella, Etta, Eartha; Best of Burlesque; In Pour Taste: A Comedy Wine Tasting Experience; Frisky’s Remix Roulette; Midsummer!; Scaramouche Jones; Smashing Shakespeare: Brave Macbeth.
Front Room: A Haunted House; The Van Gogh Shogh; Arachne / Athena; The Problem; A Play on Words; 44 Minutes; Cricket & The Freebugs; Becoming Dr Ruth; Ludwig: Unfinished Business.
