The International – December 2022

Nicola Benedetti © Jassy Earl

I have been hugely energised by the amazing work of my colleagues and the support of so many friends of the Festival this past month. The planning and dreaming is well underway for the 2023 Festival and we are all so looking forward to sharing these details with you next year.

Inside this newsletter, you will find a reflection on the 2022 Festival, details on the launch of our digital At Home programme and a look at some of the year-round work of our Learning and Engagement team. I hope you enjoy having this insight and understanding into the work and future of the Festival from staff, artists and performers.

As we build on 75 years of bringing world cultures together through art, I have made a commitment for my tenure –to provide the deepest possible experience, through the greatest level of art, to the broadest possible audience. The dedication of our supporters has been, and will be, vital in fulfilling this commitment. Thank you for your generosity and friendship.

Sincerely, Nicola Benedetti, Festival Director P.S. I have written about my experience at the Festival thus far, and my vision for the future, which you can read online at eif.co.uk

Nicola Benedetti © Jassy Earl

MARGE HENDRICK, SCOTTISH BALLET PRINCIPAL DANCER

© Mihaela Bodlovic

BURN © Ryan Buchanan

INGOMA NSHYA: THE WOMEN DRUMMERS OF RWANDA

MEDEA

© Jess Shurte

© Jassy Earl

AAKASH ODEDRA AND HU SHENYUAN

© Ryan Buchanan

COPPÉLIA

© Jassy Earl

RUSALKA

© Andrew Perry BRUCE LIU © Jess Shurte

PRESENTING AT HOME

Following the success of last year’s digital programme, we have created 16 new films specifically for online audiences to experience Festival performances for free.

Our 2022 At Home programme in partnership with abrdn showcases world-class performers from this year’s Festival. It includes a series of new artist performances in unique Edinburgh locations, fulllength concerts from the 2022 programme and exclusive backstage music sessions.

We created five short films titled Edinburgh is a Story that present intimate portraits of artists featured in the 2022 programme; Edinburgh Makar Hannah Lavery, the Ukrainian Freedom Orchestra and soprano Liudmyla Monastyrska, British pianist and conductor Wayne Marshall,

Oscar Sansom, from Glasgowbased production company Forest of Black, directed Edinburgh is a Story. He explains that the concept is ‘a series of films that weren’t simply live captures of Festival performances but instead filmic works that truly celebrated the artists we were working with.’ The aim was ‘‘to place the works within the city of Edinburgh in a way that really told a story, and in this way the city itself became a character within the film.’

Each individual performance determined the locations across Edinburgh, ranging from the city streets, Holyrood Park, Salisbury Crags, the National Monument

Australian didgeridoo virtuoso William Barton and a new Scottish Ballet commission choreographed by Nicholas Shoesmith.

Director Oscar Sansom and pianist Wayne Marshall describe their experiences of directing and performing in this year’s At Home programme.

‘Improvisation is something that l cannot plan or prepare for in advance! A great deal depends on the instrument, the environment, and the atmosphere. The rest depends on how my creative spirit feels at that moment!’

WAYNE MARSHALL

Wayne Marshall © Forest of Black

of Scotland, the Scottish Parliament, Portobello beach and many more.

‘Some were inspired by a message, sentiment or feeling of a work’, explains Oscar, whilst for Scottish Ballet’s performance, which was choreographed specifically for the film, ‘the locations actually started to become part of the creative inspiration for the work

itself. We really liked the idea of the choreography interacting with the spaces that it was being performed in.’

Each film, or chapter, as Oscar describes, starts with the artist entering the scene and preparing for the performance, and ‘these fleeting moments of preparation are, for me, some of the most beautiful parts in the film.’

William Barton Filming © Forest of Black

At the 2022 Festival, Wayne Marshall performed a host of American classics with the Scottish Chamber Orchestra at the Usher Hall. For Edinburgh is a Story, he enters the historic Palace of Holyroodhouse for his solo performance of an improvisation on Gershwin’s Summertime:

‘Both performances were challenging in different ways. Holyrood is a very special place. This was my first visit and it was quite overwhelming.

Improvisation is something that I cannot plan or prepare for in advance! It is an on-the-spot experience and that is what makes improvisation special. The theme is important and then it is up to me to make something interesting out of it. A great deal depends on the instrument, the environment, and the atmosphere. The rest depends on how my creative spirit feels at that moment!’

During this year’s Festival, we also captured three live concerts; fulllength versions of the sold-out Brandenburg Concertos with Richard Egarr and the epic Closing Concert with the Royal Scottish National Orchestra are available to watch, alongside highlights from the concert performance of Handel’s Saul.

A number of exclusive music sessions were filmed backstage at this year’s Festival too. Staged in The Queen’s Hall, Leith Theatre, and The Studio, performers include the Takács Quartet, early-music pioneer

OSCAR SANSOM

Jordi Savall with members of his Hespèrion XXI ensemble, Gaelic vocal trio Sian, Iranian classical musician Aref Ghorbani, the Scottish indie rock duo Arab Strap, and piper Brìghde Chaimbeul.

All films part of the At Home programme are freely available to watch worldwide online at eif.co.uk

Thank you to abrdn for their continued support of our digital programme.

‘a series of films that weren’t simply live captures of Festival performances but instead filmic works that truly celebrated the artists we were working with.’

JUNGLE BOOK REIMAGINED WORKSHOPS

We reflect on the Learning and Engagement team’s work bringing the production of Jungle Book reimagined to life for local community and dance groups.

‘We let free our inhibitions of daily “adulting”, to embrace play. Play which is so lacking as an adult, a freedom to be silly and find creative expression. The Jungle Book reimagined workshop was perfect for that inner child waiting to be let out and prowl on the floor.’

INSTITUTE

From a group of young carers to a dance company for over-60s, our Learning and Engagement team brought the spirit of play to Edinburgh throughout this summer

and autumn, as part of their yearround engagement work. Eighteen Edinburgh-based groups were invited to attend Jungle Book reimagined at the Festival Theatre in August and participate in a dance workshop run by four local dance artists: Emma Smith, Katie Miller, Jennifer Taggart and John Ross.

As part of the Festival’s ongoing relationship with the worldrenowned Akram Khan Company, the Edinburgh-based dance artists were given the opportunity to travel to Paris to see the performance and

WORKSHOP PARTICIPANT FROM LEITH WOMEN’S

Akram Khan’s Jungle Book reimagined © Ambra Vernuccio

to meet the company. They used this experience to develop interactive workshops for participants aged eight to 80 plus.

The workshops explored animal movements based on Akram Khan’s choreography and delved into the theme of climate change which was central to this innovative adaptation of the classic story. Tailored to the different interests and abilities of the groups, the workshops ranged from play-based activities to developing choreography based on a speech by Greta Thunberg.

When participants were unable to attend the theatre itself, we brought the performance to them. Two of the dance artists, Katie and John, ran a bespoke workshop at the The Royal Hospital for Children and Young People, Edinburgh, which included a pop-up performance from Luke Watson, a dancer in Jungle Book reimagined. Luke is originally from Portobello, Edinburgh and attended the Dance School of Scotland.

During this interactive workshop, Luke performed the movements of Baloo the bear with the participants playing the role of Mowgli from the comfort of their beds. This experience is one he won’t forget:

‘I have one memory etched in my head of one girl’s excitement any time Baloo had an interaction with her.

Performing and working in contemporary dance can sometimes feel very insular. This just felt like a beautiful opportunity to carry out the ethos of the show and company and give back to the city that has given me so much’.

We’d like to thank Luke as well as the brilliant work of our four dance artists, Emma, Katie, Jennifer and John.

Impactful projects like this wouldn’t be possible without the support of our Learning and Engagement Partner, Baillie Gifford Investment Managers.

Jungle Book reimagined Workshop

© Jess Shurte

MEET THE TEAM

Johnson, Membership Officer

Welcome to the team, Holly. What did you do before you came to the International Festival?

Thank you! I grew up in rural North Yorkshire and moved to Edinburgh in June 2021. Before the Festival I worked at Jupiter Artland: a sculpture park on the city’s outskirts. My favourite aspect of that role was managing

their membership scheme. I loved getting to know our regular visitors and making them feel at home. I’ve also worked for a variety of other arts and historic venues across Yorkshire, Manchester and Devon. I enjoy surrounding myself with art, and working with creative, passionate people – something I’m also lucky to have working here at the Festival.

Holly

Festival Theatre Interval Lounge © Andrew Perry

Looking back at my other roles, Edinburgh International Festival is a particularly special opportunity. When I was young, I spent my free time in dance and musical theatre classes, and I also played clarinet for many years. As such, the Festival has allowed me to relish in my love for dance and classical music more than any previous role. I feel exceptionally lucky!

What does your job involve?

As the Membership Officer, my dayto-day responsibility is making sure our members are well looked-after. For me, the key to this is maintaining good lines of communication, whether that’s through newsletters, thank you letters or over the phone. I love hearing about long-standing members’ experiences at previous Festivals (some of which stretch back to our first in 1947), as well as making sure our new members feel welcome.

It also involves finding ways we can make the membership experience even better for the coming year, something which excites me tremendously as a newer member of the Development team.

During the Festival, I play the important role of ensuring our programme of members events runs smoothly. You may have seen me at one (or several) of these events,

as I was lucky enough to meet many members throughout August!

What were your 2022 Festival highlights?

Whilst it proved impossible to see everything I’d have liked, I enjoyed what I saw of the 2022 Festival programme enormously. Scottish Ballet’s Coppélia was an obvious standout, combining my love for both dance and science fiction. The breathtaking choreography combined with the imaginative use of technology absolutely dazzled me. Our opening event MACRO and Akram Khan’s Jungle Book reimagined also impressed me very much.

On the classical music and opera front, Garsington Opera’s Rusalka was a firm favourite, and Philharmonia Orchestra’s exciting repertoire was an absolute joy. My theatre highlight was Belvoir’s Counting and Cracking (with National Theatre of Scotland’s Medea coming in a close second) and my contemporary music highlight was electronic Celtic band Niteworks, who closed Leith’s Theatre’s 2022 Festival run in spectacular fashion.

If you have any questions about becoming a member or your current membership, please contact Holly at membership@eif.co.uk

PARTNER OFFERS

PANTRY EVENTS

The official catering partner of Edinburgh International Festival, Pantry Events, is offering all International Festival members a special Christmas gift. Receive 15% off Christmas meal box orders, containing everything you need to host your very own festive celebration.

Order your choice of three meal boxes now from pantryevents.co.uk/shop using the discount code EIF 15

LIND & LIME

Forged from the talent, heritage and industry of Edinburgh, Lind & Lime is based in the historic distilling district of Leith. They are offering International Festival members 10% off their Distillery Tours until 31 December 2022.

Use promo code EIF10 at lindandlime.com/thetour to book and redeem your exclusive members discount.