The wonderful thing about this year’s Edinburgh Festival, the 79th, is that the weather joined in the fun.
It was dry, sunny a lot of the time and the coolest place in red-hot Europe. The grass was actually green. So the clattering circus of music, theatre, dance, comedy, book reading and military tattooing could spread itself into the streets. Visitors sat in T-shirts at pavement cafés as if they were in Paris or Milan or Buenos Aires.
It was most unlike Auld Reekie, where the sea-haar and the chilly east wind can spoil the party. The only spoiler this time was the closure of Princes Street due to a major fire. It meant the buses and trams were disrupted (although they will be operating normally from Saturday according to the council leader). At least the traffic could flow properly again across the North Bridge after an eight year restoration project costing £86m. And the new visitor levy of £5 a night, will eventually be paying for cleaner streets.
The pavements seemed even more crowded than usual this year, more than double the normal population we are told. Troubadours, show-goers, guided walks, school parties, and a few cross-looking citizens shuffled patiently behind each other looking for passing places. There were 150 shows to see at the official Festival and around 4,000 each day on the Fringe.
The official theme this year was America, 250 years after its declaration of independence.
The opening concert was a performance of “All Rise” a musical exploration of American life, composed by Wynton Marsalis, the husband of the festival director, the Scottish violinist Nicola Benedetti. She played later in the Usher Hall and also chaired a discussion on the arts bringing hope to a troubled world. Apparently 68 per cent of the public agree it does just that, according to an international opinion poll conducted by Global Ideas.
As for the Fringe, it was its usual rumbustious self, ranging from a show from Dunfermline on the life of Andrew Carnegie, various takes on Shakespeare and Jane Austin, to folk, jazz and lots of stand-up comedy. The Amanda Knox Show caused some controversy and the hero of the Clacton by-election, Count Binface, made an appearance. And there was a fortuitous performance of a Dolly Parton tribute show on the very evening the Queen of Country died.
Various armies sent their marching bands to the 800-strong Military Tattoo, performing every night, high on the Edinburgh Castle esplanade. They flew in from the United States, New Zealand, Qatar, Germany, Poland and Ukraine. Those of us who couldn’t lay hands on a ticket could see the laser lights and the fireworks on the castle battlements and be assured that the West was safe.
The final week of the official festival gave us an alarming insight into the world of AI with a performance called “Mere Mortals” by the San Francisco Ballet Company. “The Clown Show” painted a disturbing picture of American society in free fall. And Verdi’s comic opera “The Masked Ball”, set in Boston, is a tale of deceit and jealousy.
So much for the celebration of the 250th anniversary of American independence. And quite a contrast with Marsalis’ hopeful “All Rise” three weeks before. Thank goodness Beethoven comes to our rescue on Sunday in the final concert in the Usher Hall with his beautiful violin concerto.
It’s humbling to think how much talent has been walking around Edinburgh in the last month. And how much business has been done – they say all the Festivals together generate £500m for the city economy. It underlines that the arts can be big business and that if the government wants to encourage economic growth and useful employment, it would be worth investing in the creative industries.
My final memory of the 79th Edinburgh Festival is of a lone piper standing on top of Arthur’s Seat, in full regalia, and waiting for a film crew to turn up to capture him playing as the sun set over the city. Alas, they never showed up. O’ cruel world.
