Theatre News

Curtain comes down on 2012 EIF, final ticket sales up 9%

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4 September 2012

The Edinburgh International Festival 2012 closed with a bang on Sunday (2 September 2012), as the traditional Fireworks Concert brought the curtain down in spectacular fashion.

This year’s Festival saw over 3000 artists from over 47 nations and audiences from over 70
nations take part. It took £2.83 million at the
box office making it a record year, an increase of 9% in sales income
and an increase of 11% in number of tickets issued on Festival 2011.

The EIF, which launched in 1947 and spawned the much larger Edinburgh
Fringe, takes place at venues across the Scottish capital, showcasing
theatre, music, dance and opera.

This year’s theatre programme highlights included Grzegorz Jarzyna’s multi-media version of Macbeth set in the Middle East, and Christoph Marthaler’s off-the-wall adaptation of My Fair Lady entitled Meine faire Dame – ein Sprachlabor.

Festival director Jonathan Mills, who steps down in 2014, said: “Festival 2012 was a year of partnerships and collaborations. I would like to thank our funders both public and private who came together to support our ambitions in this special year for the UK.

“In hard times as well as good it remains one of the world’s most important examples of the power of culture to transform lives. In sharing this year’s Festival with audiences this has felt both real and important and I thank everyone who shared in these wonderful moments.”

Next year’s Edinburgh International Festival will run from 9 August to 1 September 2013.