4-27 AUGUST 2023
eif.co.uk / @edintfest
- New Festival Director Nicola Benedetti’s first Edinburgh International Festival programme is revealed.
- Benedetti sets out a vision for the 2023 Festival to deliver the deepest possible experience, with the highest quality performances, to the broadest possible audience.
- Following the Festival’s 75th anniversary, under the direction of a new Festival Director, this year’s programme is themed around the question ‘where do we go from here?’.
- Comprising 295 separate events from 4-27 August, Edinburgh International Festival 2023 features work from over 2000 local and international artists from across 48 nations.
The global celebration of performing arts, Edinburgh International Festival has unveiled an expansive programme of world-class music, opera, dance and theatre to take place from 4 – 27 August 2023. This year marks the first Festival under the direction of new Festival Director, Nicola Benedetti, one of today's most influential classical music artists.
With a bold ambition to reimagine how we experience and interact with live performance, Benedetti has set out a vision for the Festival to deliver the deepest possible experience, with the highest quality performances, to the broadest possible audience.
Inspired by the literature of Martin Luther King Jr, and his belief in people’s capacity to unite, the 2023 Festival is charged by the question, ‘where do we go from here?’, this expansive programme of 295 events, asks us to consider how the transformative power of the arts can have the most impact on society at this moment.
Three central themes underpin each week of the Festival: community over chaos, hope in the face of adversity, and a perspective that’s not one’s own - inviting audiences to consider ideas of identity, community and resilience as they experience Edinburgh this summer.
Benedetti says, “After we have celebrated 75 years of our Festival, we now enter into a new phase of redefining, together, where we go next."
Diversity, discovery and internationalism are at the heart of the Edinburgh International Festival, this year welcoming artists from across 48 nations and 6 continents to our stages. The 2023 International Festival also hosts three major artistic residencies with internationally renowned orchestras as part of ongoing ambitions to increasingly engage with the city of Edinburgh and reduce the amount of travel required for the international artists. This year’s Festival also offers an unprecedented emphasis on a deepened audience experience, through performances for young people and families, participatory events, in-conversations, and intimate performances in informal performance spaces.
General booking for the 2023 International Festival opens on Wednesday 3 May, with tickets currently on-sale to Members and supporters.
Nicola Benedetti, Festival Director, Edinburgh International Festival said: “'Where do we go from here?’ At a time of huge global change and challenge, we will hear powerful and diverse perspectives of artists from across the world.
“Edinburgh International Festival has long been dedicated to advocating world-class performing art and innovating new ways to bring it to audiences. I am immensely proud of this year’s programme, and look forward to expanding on this legacy in 2023”.
Culture Minister Christina McKelvie said: “The Scottish Government is proud to support the Edinburgh International Festival and it’s wonderful to see such an exciting and diverse line-up in this year’s programme. The International Festival is the jewel in our summer festival crown, attracting people from across Scotland as well as visitors from further afield to this world-class event in Edinburgh.”
Cllr Val Walker, Culture and Communities Convener at City of Edinburgh Council said: “The Capital has a long history of promoting the value of culture and we look forward to this year’s programme of 295 events that will celebrate world-class music, opera, dance and theatre across our wonderful city. I’m delighted the Council is yet again able to support this year’s Festival, and I would encourage everyone to explore this year’s programme and grab their tickets – it’s not to be missed.”
Iain Munro, Chief Executive, Creative Scotland said: “As we emerge into a new post-pandemic world, the Edinburgh International Festival is perfectly placed to address the big issues of our times, just as it was when founded 76 years ago. Nicola Benedetti’s vision uses our most vital universal language – the arts – to draw together world-class performances that challenge and inspire, affect, and entertain, placing Scotland at the forefront of the cultural calendar. Creative Scotland is proud to support such an exhilarating programme of home-grown and international artists.”
Special Events
In partnership with the Festival of Politics, keynote series Where Do We Go From Here? sees artists and thinkers from across the world offer their visions for the future. Hosted in the Scottish Parliament, each session will include a Q&A, where audiences can help shape responses to the question: where do we go from here?
The Opening Celebration welcomes everyone to take part in the fun, with a free celebration of professional and community music-making from artists from across Scotland in Princes Street Gardens.
On the final weekend of the Festival, the garden at Charlotte Square will be opened to the public as a musical oasis, where a soundscape of recorded music from the International Festival classical music concerts can be enjoyed in a collective listening experience for all.
As part of the International Festival’s ongoing commitment to accessibility, the 2023 programme includes 25 accessible performances, including nine audio described performances, six BSL interpreted performances, seven captioned performances and two relaxed performances.
In 2023, the Edinburgh International Film Festival returns as a bespoke film programme hosted by the Edinburgh International Festival. The film programme celebrates the work of exceptional local and global filmmakers and ensures the flame of EIFF burns bright for future generations of passionate cinema fans. The full programme will be announced in June.
Background
Edinburgh International Festival is a global celebration of performing arts, bringing the finest performers of dance, opera, music and theatre from around the world to Edinburgh for three weeks every August.
The International Festival will take place 4-27 August 2023 and is the first from Festival Director and Scottish violinist Nicola Benedetti. Benedetti’s vision for the program is to create the deepest level of experience, through the highest quality of art, for the broadest possible audience. Each year the programme will also be developed around a central question, this year’s asks ‘where do we go from here?’
The International Festival’s impact also extends beyond the annual programme, with community learning, engagement and professional development programmes running throughout the year, contributing to the cultural and social life of Edinburgh and Scotland.
For more information visit www.eif.co.uk
2023 International Festival supporters
The core investment that the Edinburgh International Festival receives from the City of Edinburgh Council and Creative Scotland plays a critical role in ensuring our stability and success. The income we receive through project grants allows us to present work that is often additional to our core programme. This year, and for the eighth consecutive year, EventScotland will be supporting our Opening Event.
Private funding and support from individuals, the corporate sector, trusts and foundations and the Edinburgh International Festival Endowment Fund is also vitally important in enabling us to present a Festival of scale and quality in 2023, as well as ensuring the success and positive impact of our year-round learning and engagement initiatives. As a Festival which creates and fosters cross-border cultural connections and understanding, we remain extraordinarily grateful to our international partners and supporters. This year we are particularly thankful to our Korea in Focus Partner, the Korean Cultural Centre UK, as we celebrate 140 years of diplomatic relations between Korea and the UK.
Full details of all 2023 supporters can be found at https://www.eif.co.uk/support-us.
Media contacts
Isabella Feros, Media Manager, [email protected]
Hugo Mintz, Head of Communications, [email protected]
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