The Edinburgh International Festival's opening event has been cancelled this year due to ongoing funding challenges. The festival warns of losing its prestigious status without increased public and philanthropic support.
Last year’s opening event of the festival transformed George Heriot’s school. This year’s opening event has been cancelled amid funding concerns. An international festival has warned it could lose its status as one of the world’s greatest arts events without significant increases in public and philanthropic support.
Scottish Government arts spending announced four weeks ago, while “a very welcome step in the right direction”, had come too late to prevent this year’s international festival being smaller. “It’s too close to impact our 25 festival in any significant way,” she said. “There are one or two late levers we’d be able to potentially pull , but even that will be down to late availability. So it’s not leaving us in a great place for the 25 festival.” The festival has this year been forced to cancel its opening event, which has previously included gala concerts and light projections staged at Edinburgh Castle, at Tynecastle Park football stadium and the Usher Hall. Benedetti said it was unclear whether the extra £34m secured in the budget by Angus Robertson, the Scottish government’s culture secretary, including £4m more for festivals, would lead to a significant boost to the international festival’s future funding. is due to publish its spending plans in late January. Benedetti hopes it can fund an expansion in the festival’s programming in later years. Founded in 1947, it celebrates its 80th anniversary in 2027. Nicola Benedetti: ‘I have to say that my concern is mostly for the whole ecosystem in Scotland. We are so interlinked in our festival.’“I’m seeing the next three, four years of the festival as one grand opera that builds and builds and, you know, we have our 80th anniversary,” she said. “And a year after any anniversary, you have to be incredibly bold with what you’re doing next”
Edinburgh International Festival Funding Arts Cancellation Scotland
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