Summerhall August Festival 2013

An Actor Despairs will be screened on a film loop and available to watch everyday of the festival at any time for free, just drop in!

A video meditation on acting and performance to celebrate Konstantin Stanislavski’s 150 anniversary!

Bringing together stock footage, tech demos, documentary and historical photo archives, artist and theatre maker Christopher Earley has created an intricate HD video installation that pointedly questions the place of traditional acting technique in the world of digital media.

If 'all the world's a stage' and we want to change the world, what does it mean for the stage? BiDiNG TiME - an experiment to share a story around the world and make theatre, acting locally / sharing globally. Thyme is a young woman looking for love, success and the changing weather. What does she really want? Walk with us to Arthurs Seat to share the process/journey or come to a talk about how to get involved.

Circus Post will be screened on a loop and available to watch everyday of the festival at any time for free, just drop in!

Circus Post is a series of short films contextualising the development of contemporary circus over the past 40 years, as it has moved away from traditional big tops, and into theatres, and back again, in Europe, the UK and beyond.

Summerhall's Visual Arts Curator Paul Robertson will be giving guiding tours of a selection of out current exhibitions from the 30th August - 1st September. The exhibitions will include The Vanity Press by Fiona Banner, Images Were Introduced by Michael Nyman, One Hundred Multiples by Laurence Weiner and also one of our permanent exhibitions Phenotype Genotype, a selection works from the Heart Fine Art Archive.

Artist Kate Mackay of Alchemy Arts has worked with children from Scotland and Asia to create an art work that comprises of hundreds of haikus written on the backs of silk cut-outs of swallows.

The haikus have been written by the children, who were asked to imagine cities around the world as seen through the eyes of swallows. Ideas of travelling, perception, perspective and imagination were explored through numerous workshops at these schools and community centres in three countries.

Journey of a Thousand Wings will be in Summerhall from the 2nd-25th August.

Memory always distorts. Theatre is inherently un-real. Is this the perfect combination, or fraught with difficulties? This panel discussion explores the tensions between theatre, history, memory, preservation, and politics; between that which has been left to us and that which is absolutely new. Leading artists discuss.

Are you a university student at the Fringe? Network with your tech, acting, management, producing peers - make connections! Come meet other university students at this meet and greet sponsored by Fringe University.

What do we know and how do we learn? Must Try Harder is a panel discussion exploring some of these key themes emerging from Anoesis, the show by award winning young performance makers Junction 25, presented at Summerhall this Festival. Featuring contributions from leaders in learning and teaching, educational policy and philosophy, as well as some of the performers themselves, this discussion seeks to examine the role of formal education and the function of examination for young people today.

A site-specific performance about domestic abuse staged in a residential house. Our Glass House involves moments of fantasy, choreography and song, and is a promenade piece, encouraging audience to make their own journeys. The performance text is based on interviews we have carried out with men and women who have experienced domestic violence. There are no perpetrators in the show; we explore why people stay and how they leave. For the making of this show we have collaborated with artists to transform a disused house into a world for you to explore.

Michael Nyman will give a rare opportunity to discuss hisart work, photography andmusic in the intimate setting of Summerhall’s Anatomy Lecture Theatre. The Q&A will be followed by a book signing in Hope Park Church, Summerhall.

Tickets are limited so book early to avoid disappointment!

A series of talks by Summerhall founder Robert McDowell.

World Crisis: How to understand Europe in the world? 8 August
Illustrated talk & open discussion of world economics and how Europe's internal
imbalances, its dystopia and low growth matter to the rest of the world?

Culture in Economy: Scotland as a top ten Region of Europe 15 August
Illustrated talk & open discussion of Scotland's culture economy, its strengths and
weaknesses and what we can all do about this?

Art of Political-economy: politics in high art? 22 August
Illustrated talk & open discussion of how high art may or may not be political?

A pre-performance discussion with Zdenka Fantlova, force of nature, Holocaust survivor and author of The Tin Ring, and Director Mike Alfreds - author of Different Every Night and Then What Happens?

The discussion will focus on the process and practice of The Tin Ring and why adapting this particular witness testimony from a memoir into a performance has relevance for future generations.

In celebration of the Traverse Theatre's fiftieth anniversary, travel back through time and relive the early days with an exhibition of exciting theatrical artifacts, complementing the Traverse Through Time lecture series.

Explore the Traverse Theatre's dynamic fifty-year history through a series of talks by theatre practitioners and scholars illuminating the founding days and reflecting on the Traverse's history, influence, and future. For specific speakers, dates and times visit the traverse through time website.

In celebration of the Traverse Theatre’s fiftieth anniversary, travel back through time and relive the early days with an exhibition of exciting theatrical artifacts, complementing the Traverse Through Time lecture series.

Fringe University believes that the Edinburgh Fringe makes an excellent classroom. Come meet and network with other university professors from around the world planning to, or already using, the Fringe for educational purposes.

Contradiction has long been understood to cut right to the heart of drama. But what is contradiction if not impossible? And what changes if we think about impossibility with regards to drama and performance? This panel discussion will look at these questions, with exciting artists whose work pushes the boundaries of what is possible, or stretches contradiction to the limit. A panel discussion.

Join us for a showcase in the best of local Scottish talent! Be prepared for show stopping live performances from all age groups and special guests appearance’s including BBC Radio 1 DJ Fred MacAulay. The evening includes a combination of spoken word, singing, rap, breakdancing, beat-boxing, live music and spectacular surprises, hosted by BAFTA Nominated NorthernXposure’s SweeTs. The official ‘Youth on The Fringe’ is an exciting opportunity to experience Scottish twenty-first century performance art, that is sure to leave you wanting more.