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Edinburgh International Festival

The Edinburgh International Festival is an unparalleled celebration of music, theatre, opera and dance performed across our beautiful city.

Edinburgh International Festival

About Edinburgh International Festival

, Various Locations Edinburgh
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The Edinburgh International Festival was the inspired idea of Rudolf Bing, then the General Manager of Glyndebourne Opera, Henry Harvey Wood, the Head of the British Council in Scotland, and leaders from the City of Edinburgh. It was established in 1947 as a world class cultural event to bring together audiences and artists from around the world, and over 70 years has gone from strength to strength.

For three weeks in August, Scotland’s capital becomes an unparalleled celebration of the performing arts and an annual meeting point for people of all nations. The International Festival presents a programme featuring the finest performers and ensembles from the worlds of dance, opera, music and theatre.

Our impact extends beyond the annual programme: our community learning and engagement and professional development programmes run throughout the year, reaching the widest possible audiences and contributing to the cultural and social life of Edinburgh and Scotland.

Upcoming Events at Edinburgh International Festival

Edinburgh International Festival: Make it Happen

30th July 2025 - 9th August 2025

Set in Edinburgh, Make it Happen sees legendary actor Brian Cox return to the Scottish stage for the first time in a decade as Adam Smith, the ghost of fiscal past.

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Edinburgh International Festival

1st August 2025 - 24th August 2025
Various Locations Edinburgh

The Edinburgh International Festival returns from 1st to 24th August 2025 with live performance throughout the city.

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Edinburgh International Festival: The Dan Daw Show

2nd August 2025 - 4th August 2025

This daring International Festival debut fuses sexy choreography and touching theatricality to take a stand against the disabling forces of society.

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Edinburgh International Festival: NYO2: Prokofiev’s Fifth Symphony

3rd August 2025

Cellist Alisa Weilerstein and Carnegie Hall's NYO2 take on a thrilling pairing of Dmitri Shostakovich and Sergei Prokofiev.

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Edinburgh International Festival: The Big Singalong

3rd August 2025

Gather friends and family to start your Festival season on a high note at Ross Bandstand on 3rd August for The Big Singlong, joined by Scottish national treasure Dougie MacLean!

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Edinburgh International Festival: NYO2: Family Concert

4th August 2025

Suitable for children and their grown-ups, we invite curious minds discover the magic of classical music in this joyful concert at the Usher Hall.

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Edinburgh International Festival: Best of Monteverdi Choir

4th August 2025

Led by conductor Jonathan Sells, the Baroque choir present a dazzling showcase of their repertoire.

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Edinburgh International Festival: María Dueñas & Alexander Malofeev

4th August 2025

Maria Dueñas and Alexander Malofeev are one of the most inspired pairings in the recital world. This collaboration illuminates works by Karol Szymanowski, Claude Debussy and César Franck.

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Edinburgh International Festival: The Ceilidh Sessions

4th August 2025
Edinburgh New Town

Gather with friends and family at Princes Street Gardens for this lively celebration of music and dance, where Scottish tradition meets Baroque flair!

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Edinburgh International Festival: Holst’s The Planets

5th August 2025

Let the London Philharmonic Orchestra takes you on the ultimate cosmic journey at the Usher Hall on 5th August!

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Edinburgh International Festival: Pavel Kolesnikov & Samson Tsoy

5th August 2025

Join creative collaborators Pavel Kolesnikov and Samson Tsoy for a deeply spiritual recital of piano works, ranging from Bach to Messiaen.

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Edinburgh International Festival: Bruce Liu plays Ravel

6th August 2025

Join Bruce Liu, Myung-Whun Chung and Beijing’s NCPA Orchestra for jazz-infused Ravel and Saint-Saëns’s spectacular Organ Symphony.

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Edinburgh International Festival: Mark Simpson & Richard Uttley

6th August 2025

Mark Simpson brings dual talents as composer and clarinettist to an intimate programme featuring Johannes Brahms and his own works.

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Edinburgh International Festival: Hugh Cutting & George Ireland

7th August 2025

Experience the expansive range of vocal music, from Baroque arias to specially commissioned contemporary works.

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Edinburgh International Festival: Works and Days

7th August 2025 - 10th August 2025

Birth, life and death converge at the heart of this visually spectacular performance, as theatre collective FC Bergman seeks the truth about our place in the wider world.

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Edinburgh International Festival: Leonard Elschenbroich & Alexei Grynyuk

8th August 2025

Explore the musical love triangle between Clara Schumann, Robert Schumann and Johannes Brahms.

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Edinburgh International Festival: Bach & Bartók

8th August 2025

Budapest Festival Orchestra return to the Festival with a programme that celebrates their Hungarian heritage and showcases the vibrancy of music written for dance.

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Edinburgh International Festival: La clemenza di Tito

9th August 2025

Under the baton of Maxim Emelyanychev, the Scottish Chamber Orchestra and Chorus continue their electrifying explorations of Mozart at the International Festival.

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Edinburgh International Festival: Fibonacci Quartet

9th August 2025

One of Europe’s leading string quartets, Fibonacci Quartet, brings their trademark brilliance to a programme of Scottish and Czech music!

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Edinburgh International Festival: NFM Leopoldinum: Bizet’s Carmen Suite

10th August 2025

Experience the unforgettable music of Bizet’s opera Carmen alongside moving pieces by Bacewicz and Strauss.

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Edinburgh International Festival: Piotr Anderszewski

11th August 2025

The Polish pianist Piotr Anderszewski is known for his intimate and subtle playing style. It is beautifully suited to this programme of small-but-perfectly-formed works.

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Edinburgh International Festival: LSO: Beethoven & Shostakovich

12th August 2025

Nicola Benedetti and Sir Antonio Pappano co-present this concert, introducing two monumental symphonies by composers reckoning with mortality and the world around them.

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Edinburgh International Festival: Sitkovetsky Trio

12th August 2025

Experience evocative works for piano trio, from Beethoven to a UK premiere by Iranian composer Mahdis Golzar Kashani from the Sitkovetsky Trio!

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Edinburgh International Festival: Bostridge, Pappano & Members of the LSO

13th August 2025

Expressive singing reveals the emotional depth of Benjamin Britten, Ralph Vaughan Williams and Edward Elgar.

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Edinburgh International Festival: Orpheus and Eurydice

13th August 2025 - 16th August 2025

Circa joins with the Scottish Chamber Orchestra and a chorus from Scottish Opera for the European premiere of this electrifying production of Gluck’s seminal opera at The Edinburgh Playhouse.

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Edinburgh International Festival: Bomsori Kim & Thomas Hoppe

14th August 2025

Award-winning violinist Bomsori Kim is joined by eminent pianist Thomas Hoppe in this stunning recital celebrating Poland's rich musical heritage.

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Edinburgh International Festival: Book of Mountains and Seas

14th August 2025 - 16th August 2025

Ancient Chinese myths inspire Huang Ruo's opera, confronting humanity's complex relationship with nature.

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Edinburgh International Festival: LSO: A Sea Symphony

14th August 2025

Celebrate 20th-century British treasures from Elizabeth Maconchy to Ralph Vaughan Williams performed by the London Symphony Orchestra (LSO).

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Edinburgh International Festival: Cutting the Tightrope

14th August 2025 - 17th August 2025

This collection of short plays audaciously explores the power of the arts in today's world events, political resistance and displays of artistic freedom.

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Edinburgh International Festival: Florian Boesch & Malcolm Martineau

15th August 2025

Celebrated for their Lieder performances, this duo showcases the lyrical beauty of Johannes Brahms and Robert Schumann.

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Edinburgh International Festival: Mary, Queen of Scots

15th August 2025 - 17th August 2025

Renaissance meets punk in Scottish Ballet’s retelling of the story of one of Scotland’s most famous women.

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Edinburgh International Festival: LSO: Puccini’s Suor Angelica

16th August 2025

Sir Antonio Pappano conducts the London Symphony Orchestra (LSO) in Giacomo Puccini’s heartfelt opera.

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Edinburgh International Festival: Ryan Wang

18th August 2025

Ryan Wang, BBC Young Musician of the Year winner, takes on an all-Chopin programme that showcases extraordinary mastery of the piano.

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Edinburgh International Festival: Shostakovich Inside Out

18th August 2025

Explore Dmitri Shostakovich’s Fifth Symphony as Aurora Orchestra unpacks its drama, depth and defiance.

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Edinburgh International Festival: Dementia Friendly Concert

19th August 2025

New to the International Festival this year, the Scottish Chamber Orchestra performs familiar repertoire for people with dementia and their loved ones.

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Edinburgh International Festival: Faustus in Africa!

20th August 2025 - 23rd August 2025

Through puppetry and animation, Handspring Puppet Company reimagine Faust's downfall and reframe the classic tale to confront colonialism and the climate emergency.

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Edinburgh International Festival: Belcea Quartet

20th August 2025

Revitalising and transforming chamber music from the 18th and 19th centuries, Belcea Quartet's provocative recital spans Beethoven, Mendelssohn and Mozart.

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Edinburgh International Festival: Breaking Bach

20th August 2025

Discover Johann Sebastian Bach from a fresh perspective in this world premiere where classical music meets hip hop and contemporary dance!

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Edinburgh International Festival: As You Like It A Radical Retelling

20th August 2025 - 23rd August 2025

Encounter Cliff Cardinal's radical reimagining of Shakespeare's classic in this unapologetic production at Church Hill Theatre!

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Edinburgh International Festival: Dunedin Consort & John Butt

21st August 2025

This leading baroque ensemble revives Handel's sparkling comic cantata, unearthing the origins of his operatic masterpieces.

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Edinburgh International Festival: Bernstein & Stravinsky

21st August 2025

Conductor Karina Canellakis returns to the Festival and leads the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra (SSO) through a monumental programme featuring Messiaen, Stravinsky and Bernstein.

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Edinburgh International Festival: Pictures at an Exhibition

22nd August 2025

Take a whistlestop round-the-world trip with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra and William Barton at the Usher Hall on Friday 22nd August!

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Edinburgh International Festival: Figures in Extinction

22nd August 2025 - 24th August 2025

Dance and theatre legends Crystal Pite and Simon McBurney unite with Nederlands Dans Theater (NDT) to confront the climate crisis through spellbinding movement and sound.

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Edinburgh International Festival: Emily D’Angelo & Sophia Muñoz

22nd August 2025

Join mezzo soprano Emily D'Angelo and pianist Sophia Muñoz for a programme of epic scope that explores humanity's connection to the natural world.

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Edinburgh International Festival: Leonidas Kavakos & ApollΩn Ensemble

23rd August 2025

Johann Sebastian Bach’s violin concertos shine in this electrifying performance with soloist and ensemble in synergy.

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Edinburgh International Festival: Come and Sing Elijah

23rd August 2025

Join fellow singers in a full-day workshop, culminating in a performance of highlights from Mendelssohn's epic Elijah.

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Edinburgh International Festival: Closing Concert: Mendelssohn’s Elijah

24th August 2025

In this Closing Concert, discover Felix Mendelssohn's triumphant oratorio anew as the Edinburgh Festival Chorus and Royal Scottish National Orchestra breathe life into his most famous work.

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Related Links

Edinburgh Festival Fringe

, Various Locations Edinburgh

The Edinburgh Festival Fringe is one of the greatest celebrations of arts and culture on the planet.

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More Festivals in Edinburgh

NT Art Month

, Edinburgh New Town

NT Art Month is a month-long celebration of the incredible arts quarter in Edinburgh's New Town.

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Edinburgh Tradfest

, Various Locations Edinburgh

The very best traditional music from Scotland and around the world returns from 2nd to 12th May 2025.

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Push the Boat Out

Summerhall 1 Summerhall, Edinburgh South EH9 1PL

Push the Boat Out returns for 2023. Join us for three epic days, 24th – 26th November, throughout Edinburgh’s iconic Summerhall.

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First Stages Festival

Traverse Theatre 10 Cambridge Street, Edinburgh West EH1 2ED

The Traverse kicks off its 2022 programme with a wide range of interactive workshops and Q&As, in-person readings and creative prompts for first time writers to seasoned theatremakers.

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Portobello Book Festival

, Various Locations Portobello

Portobello Book Festival is a volunteer run festival, taking place over the first weekend of October.

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Edinburgh Science Festival

, Various Locations Edinburgh

Edinburgh Science Festival is an educational charity that aims to inspire all ages and backgrounds.

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Edinburgh Horror Festival

, Various Locations Edinburgh

The Edinburgh Horror Festival is one of the most popular Hallowe'en events in Edinburgh. Incorporating theatre, comedy, magic, spoken word, movies, games, improv, workshops and more!

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Edinburgh International Childrens Festival

30B Grindlay Street, Edinburgh Old Town EH3 9AX

Edinburgh International Children's Festival of performing arts for children and young people.

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Edinburgh International Magic Festival

,

Edinburgh International Magic Festival is back this Christmas with a mind-blowing programme of shows, events and workshops!

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TravFest 2025

Traverse Theatre 10 Cambridge Street, Edinburgh West EH1 2ED

TravFest 2025 sees the iconic festival and fringe venue showcase an incredible programme of brilliant and bold theatre.

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Soundhouse Winter Festival

, Various Locations Edinburgh

The Soundhouse Winter Festival is a new 5-day music festival taking place this winter in Edinburgh.

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Edinburgh Chinese New Year Festival

, Various Locations Edinburgh

Edinburgh’s Chinese New Year Festival returns in 2024 with a full programme of events and activities across the city to celebrate Chinese New Year and the start of The Year of the Dragon.

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Sponsored Links

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Sponsored Links

Escape The Past
Fayre Play
Renfrewshire Council
Escape The Past
Link
Open Pass Scotland
Paisley First
ATG
Hostelworld
Edinburgh Dungeon

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