Edinburgh residents are set to be gifted 35,000 free tickets from Edinburgh’s International Festival (EIF) as a ‘thank you’ for 75 years of welcoming visitors to the city.
2022 marks the 75th anniversary of the EIF and their Summer free programme will include a variety of performances from circus acts, orchestras and an immersive installation that has been touted as a ‘spa for the psyche.’
The first free event will take place at Murrayfield Stadium on the opening night of the festival on Friday August 5 and will see a variety of performances including music, theatre, dance and acrobatics.
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It will begin at 9:30pm with MACRO, a collaboration between Gravity & Other Myths (acrobatic group) and First Nations dance company Dujki Mala, the National Youth Choir of Scotland as well as Scottish musicians including Aidan O'Rourke, Brìghde Chaimbeul, Lauren MacColl and Kathleen MacInnes.
The Ukrainian Freedom Orchestra, which is partly made up of refugees impacted by the recent conflict, will perform a free event on Saturday August 6 at the Usher Hall at 2:00pm.
Efforts will be made by the Scottish government to invite Ukrainians in Scotland to the event.
An immersive event using sound and light will also be made available to the public courtesy of the Dreamachine, part of Unboxed: Creativity in the UK.
This event has been created by Collective Act and will be presented by Edinburgh science and brings together Turner Prize-winning artists Assemble, Grammy and Mercury nominated musician and composer Jon Hopkins, and a team of leading technologists, scientists and philosophers.
A further event taking place on the final weekend of the festival will take place at the Playhouse and will see the Philadelphia Orchestra perform a ‘Thank You’ concert to the people of Edinburgh.
This will be led by conductor Yannick Nézet-Séguin who will be in residence through the EIF and will start at 3:00pm on Saturday August 27.
The free finale gala will be streamed live at the Ross Bandstand in Princes Street Gardens.
Fergus Linehan, festival director, Edinburgh International Festival said: "As the Edinburgh International Festival prepares to celebrate its 75th anniversary, we wanted to acknowledge the dedication and hard work of so many of the city's residents who have contributed to the festival over the years.
"We are delighted that tickets for several our most ambitious 2022 productions will be completely free of charge".
You can find out more about how to secure your tickets via the EIF website here.
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