What a joy to be working on a project in Edinburgh last week, which coincided with the return of the festivals.
After a two-year, pandemic-enforced hiatus, performers and writers have been excited to return to in-person shows, and we’ve seen a full programme for the Fringe, International, Film and Book Festivals.
In the run up to the Fringe, there was the contentious issue of the festival’s abandoned mobile booking app. The anger over this was sure to be rumbling away in the background, especially with additional costs this year caused by our gloomy economic situation.
But, in the midst of it all, people seemed excited to be back, and the venues I made it along to were certainly buzzing. The show must go on, and Edinburgh will always eagerly accommodate.
I was thrilled to be back, breathing in the wildness of Fringe theatre, ducking and diving in my seat to avoid the Trainspotting Live cast sweating out their bodily fluids on me. A furiously immersive performance, it made me feel like I was 20 again. Edinburgh was hotter than I’ve ever known it, and experiencing this visceral piece in a cool, dark vault was a hedonistic pleasure of its own.
The best night out I’ve had in a long time
Edinburgh’s International Film Festival returned with an emphasis on celebrating women’s filmmaking. I was invited along to the opening gala to see Aftersun, a lingering, elegiac first feature film from Charlotte Wells. It’s a Scottish film with a very French feel. The much in-demand Irish actor Paul Mescal does an impeccable Scottish accent.
I was dressed up, professionally made-up too, with coordinated green frock and eyeshadow, feeling and looking like a more cultured version of myself. The after-party was at the National Museum of Scotland, an impressive disco venue, uplit in sunset pinks.
I looked cultured until approximately 4am, when I was still dancing in a sweaty basement club. In heels, I might add. It was the best night out I’ve had in a long time.
I was overjoyed that I made it along to see This Is Memorial Device, the Royal Lyceum production based on David Keenan’s book of the same name. It has been sympathetically adapted for stage by Graham Eatough, and stars Paul Higgins, who lives the role of Ross Raymond. Music is by the wonderful Stephen Pastel, from legendary Scottish band The Pastels.
Not only was it an inspired and emotional adaptation, but I also got to meet the author himself and have a good old yarn. Now that’s entertainment.
Festivals are proof we need connectiveness
As someone who once lived and worked in Edinburgh and is now firmly rooted back in the arts, it felt special to be there, particularly this time around. The sun was shining, the streets were still packed at three in the morning.
Did you cry? Yes, me too. Did that bit make you jump? Yes! Right out of my skin…
The Bombay Bicycle Club Indian restaurant is still going strong. (I was going there regularly some 30 years ago.) God, I loved having proper pakora, spiced onions, and the super-sized naan breads that you only get in Scotland.
Just as much as I loved sitting at the back of the Wee Red Bar, watching the Memorial Device play – back at the student bar of Edinburgh College of Art, where I haven’t quaffed a pint since 1996. I managed to squeeze into a seat beside Wayne, a Twitter writer pal, and I unashamedly wept a wee bit when the protagonist explored memory, or the fragmentation of it.
For me, festivals are living proof of how much we need connectedness and how willing we are to share our vulnerabilities. Did you cry? Yes, me too. Did that bit make you jump? Yes! Right out of my skin…
Festivals should be hybrid
Further north, Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire host an abundance of festivals throughout the year and attracting varied audiences, from Pride, Spectra, Nuart and Granite Noir to Stonehaven’s Fireballs, held at New Year.
As well as Edinburgh, I was fortunate to have events on at Govanhill Community Festival in Glasgow and Féile an Phobail in Belfast over the summer. Festivals are back and, yes, they are better than ever.
Of course, there can always be improvements. One of the key things we’ve learned from the pandemic is what’s really and truly important.
Let’s make our festivals even more inclusive, by keeping them hybrid as much as possible, offering both in-person and online events. Let’s keep providing access to the arts for people who can’t always travel, for any reason – health, economic, caring responsibilities.
Let’s focus on the arts being meaningful and accessible to all. Let’s keep on sharing the love!
Donna McLean is originally from Ayrshire and is a mum of twins, writer and activist
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