The Edinburgh: Edinburgh International Festival has this week revealed the programme for this year's event which will run from 7 to 29 August.
The line-up has more than 170 events covering classical and contemporary music, theatre, opera, dance and spoken word performances delivered to in person audiences at both indoor and outdoor venues.
The Festival is taking a wide range of safety precautions to assure the wellbeing of all participants including social distancing and performances without intervals, as well as presenting 21 full-length performances free online.
Theatre productions include the world première of Enda Walsh’s play, Medicine, staring Domhnall Gleeson, the UK première of Alan Cumming's new show Alan Cumming Is Not Acting His Age, and the National Theatre of Scotland’s Lament for Sheku Bayoh by Hannah Lavery.
Rodgers and Hammerstein enthusiasts can revel in staged musical revue A Grand Night for Singing whilst those who enjoy spoken word can see A Toast to the People presented in partnership with the Edinburgh International Book Festival.
Festival Director Fergus Linehan said, “the programme we are announcing represents a carefully organised return to live performance. It is a collaborative effort between those who live in our city, our artists, the team at the festival, our donors and stakeholders and all who will be coming along to our performances.
“While so much has been written and said about the challenges of the past 15 months, it is now time to look to the future and to the brilliant musicians, actors, dancers and poets who are getting ready to perform in Edinburgh this August.
“I would like to pay tribute to everyone involved in the Festival who has worked tirelessly in extraordinary circumstances and to thank our many partner organisations and stakeholders who have contributed to this programme. None of us can be certain of what the coming months will bring but we are committed to working together on returning to the joy of live performance.”
Refer to the web site for information regarding audio described, captioned and British Sign Language interpreted performances, and other details. General booking opens on 11 June.