Saturday, 31 October 2015

Week 6 [02.11 - 08.11.2015] The Fringe

International festival in Edinburgh is a dream come true for many artists and performancers from all over the world. This gigantic event with a tremendous reputation attracts not only musicians and actors, but also other curious events which have a chance to be noticed and appreciated.
Contrary to a popular belief Edinburgh Festival is not one but several festivals, including the various areas of cultural activity.  Nowadays  there are as many as twelve. They are independent events, which ' create' the largest cultural festival in the world. The festival events take place mainly in August. 


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The idea of ​​a large international project which would build a basis for artistic world than political borders, was born in Edinburgh, the Scottish capital city , in the difficult years after the end of Second World War. First Edinburgh International Festival was organized in 1947, mainly thanks to the British Government, cultural activists, local authorities and a lot of enthusiasts.  Since this year it  takes place every year and it is growing in popularity and recognition. It brings a profit, too. Rudolf Bring, later the director of the New York Metropolitan Opera, was the first director and co-founder of this festival.
The Edinburgh International Festival successfully pretends to be the most prestigious festival all over the world in the field of theater, opera, ballet, music and visual arts. The most famous teams, performers, directors, conductors and choreographers want to participate in it. The decision who will have the right to appear in the next edition of the festival is made by the Festival's leadership. There were also many Polish events there like a great theater production "2008: Macbeth" by Grzegorz Jarzyna and Karol Szymanowski and Witold Lutoslawski's performances.
The Edinburgh International Festival has made several impressive facilities. The most known next to the Festival Theatre for 1800 seats are Usher's Hall, Queen's Hall, the Royal Lyceum Theatre and the King's Theatre. For the purpose of the festival there was adapted a former cinema complex the Edinburgh Playhouse too.


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The Edinburgh International Festival is referred to as the official festival. It suggests that there is also an unofficial festival too. The story is that during the first International Festival there were a few of British theater companies that were not qualified for the main festival stage. They decided to perform on the sidelines of the official festival. Each year there were more and more unconventional and unofficial artistic events that do not fit into the mainstream of the International Festival. Over the years they have evolved into an independent festival which  also complements the "official" one. It has no jury, it does not require a qualification process and invitations. It needs only applications for participation.
Polish performances have  received the most important prize of the festival "Fringe First," awarded by the daily newspaper 'The Scotsman,' many times. Here they were shown spectacles by  Tadeusz Kantor, Jozef Szajna or Andrzej Wajda. Worth mentioning are the successes of Wroclaw Pantomime Theatre, the Theatre of the Eighth Day from Poznań, theater Wierszalin from Bialystok, theater Travel Agency from Poznan, theater Provisorium of Lublin, Poznan Theatre and New Theatre too.


http://www.theatresonline.com/theatres/edinburgh-theatres/edinburgh-festival/images/edin-festival.jpg

The Edinburgh International Festival and The Fringe Festival are the two main pillars of Edinburgh's festival events. But there are also many more.  Very popular and spectacular is the festival called Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo, whose tradition dates back to the early fifties. This festival is organized at large stands of Edinburgh Castle.
Another festival in Edinburgh is International Book Festival, organized since 1983 in a tent city, specially built for this purpose. Nowadays it is the biggest such a festival in the world. Thank to this festival Edinburgh received in 2004 the title of the World City of Literature by UNESCO.
Lovers of good jazz and blues can commune with their favorite music at the Edinburgh Jazz and Blues Festival. It has been organized since 1978 and the main purpose is to connect different music styles and make music together in the "jam session" style. The best known are the big parade of New Orlean 'Mardi Gras' and a great concert 'Jazz on a summer day'.


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The last of the twelve festivals is the Edinburgh's Hogmanay. It is a great three-day New-Year-Eve event, which takes place on the streets of the city. It begins on the 30th of December and lasts until January 1st. Hogmanay is feted throughout Scotland, but  the Edinburgh's version is hailed the greatest event of the New Year in the world.


18 comments:

  1. how does Bollywood relate to the Edinburgh festival?

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  2. Never heard of it, #the more you know.

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  4. I've never heard about this event. I'm a little skeptical about it because I'm more a fan of movies than theater or opera performances.

    I think it's great for talented people who want to present their skills/abilities. Maybe become SOMEONE. It's perfect initiative for those people.
    P.S. We also have talented people, and TV program - "Mam Talent"

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    1. I also agree that in Poland we have many talented people, but please do not compare this festival with adjustable programs like "Got Talent"

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  5. It's a shame, never heard of it. It looks like fun. Watch a sample movie from it:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oVV2egciYlc
    From a street drummers to acrobats and choirs. If you have some talent go there and show it, people will surely love it if you are having fun as a presenter ;)

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    1. certainly you're right, for many people this may be an opportunity to exist in the art world.

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  6. I think as a programmer too little interest in art, since I will be the next person to admit that he had never heard about it. The idea is very cool, it allows many people to show their talents on a large scale and become recognizable. It might be worthwhile to do an event like this for IT specjalists. I was joking :)

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  7. Personally, I don't interested in art. Becouse of it I first time hear about Edinburgh International Festival. It's cool that we can meet there also Polish accents. I always feel happy when Poles take part in important and interesting events.

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    1. Poles are a capable nation so it is not unusual to meet them at every possible events. Often, we are also appreciated by other nations, so sometimes we should interested in something more than the IT. ;)

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  8. As I see above, fortunately I'm not the only one who has never heard about it before. I consider it as a great opportunity for talented people to show ones skills. I'm the person that easly gets interested in many different events/ideas, so of course I'd like to see it, to be a part of this even. Even though I've got no talent when it comes to art, it would be great to see all this artists. I've got to look closer at International Book Festival and Edinburgh Jazz and Blues Festival. I'm also really pround that so many Poles paticipate in such events and there, they do great!

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    1. Tomek you are the only one who showed more interest so "RESPECT MAN" :D I also think it would be great to take part in the festival such as "The Fringe". Definitel I am interested in the events you mention in your comment.

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  9. I never heard of it, it looks interesting.

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  10. I am not a fan of art festivals, but this twelve in a row make an impression. There are so many attractions, but still I would rather go on Octoberfest in Munich, Germany for beer and white sausages (which I hope, causes cancer less than red meat).

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  11. I 've never heard of this festival but that's probably because I'm not a greates fun of art. It sounds interesting and tempting but still I would rather go to a cinema or some other kind of event more related to my interests.

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  12. It looks interesting for me but I never heard about that.

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  13. I think I heard a name of this festival somewhere. Maybe when I was in London a year and a half ago?..
    Anyway, cannot say nothing more about it, I'm afraid...

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