Children’s Fest List
Children’s Festival Listings
Here are the full listings for Imaginate’s Edinburgh International Children’s Festival 2024. The festival also features a day of free pop-up performances at the Museum of Scotland on Saturday 25 May.
The 14 shows on offer come from nine different countries, including a regional focus on Catalonia, with three productions representing the unique vision of artists from this region: Univers, An-Ki and Black.
A scene from The Unexpected Gift. Pic: Andrew Perry.
Scotland has four shows represented at this year’s festival. The Imaginate commission, So Far, So Good, from Superfan; a new piece by Zoë Bullock from Independent Arts Projects in association with National Theatre of Scotland, Shō and the Demons of the Deep; Tashi Gore’s tale of her uncle’s escape from Paris, Yellow Canary; and Barrowland Ballet’s adaptation of their 2022 hit The Gift for an ASN audience: The Unexpected Gift.
Festival Director, Noel Jordan said: “I am delighted that once again, this year’s programme pushes the boundaries of what’s expected of children’s theatre and dance, and that the bold themes explored by the artists is equally matched by the appetite of the young audiences attending their shows.
“Young people are at the heart of this Festival and I’m looking forward to welcoming them, their teachers and their families, for what promises to be a Festival full of special moments – moments that make you gasp, that make you pause and consider, moments of aspiration and sheer artistic inspiration.”
Listing
Click on the name of the show or the Tickets and Details link to go to its ticketing site.
Univers (Engruna Teatre)
Assembly Roxy, 2 Roxburgh Place, EH8 9SU
Mon 27 – Wed 29 May 2024
Daily: 10am, 11.30am, 2pm.
Target age: 0-2 years (40 Mins)
A sensory experience for early childhood where performers and beautiful objects move around and slowly draw the children into the space to observe or interact. Tickets and details.
Be Kind (Emilie Weisse Circustheater)
The Studio, 22 Potterrow, EH8 9BL.
Thurs 30 May – Sat 1 June 2024
Daily: 10am, 11.30am, 2pm.
Target age: 6-18 Months (40 mins)
A performance of sound, colour and movement where babies experience acrobatics and juggling up close, following the rhythm of the day. Tickets and details.
So Far So Good (SUPERFAN)
Assembly Roxy, 2 Roxburgh Place, EH8 9SU
Thurs 30 May – Sun 2 June 2024
Thurs: 4pm; Fri10.30am, 2.30pm; Sat/Sun: 11am, 2pm.
Target age: 3-6 years (50 mins)
An adventurous circus show which celebrates the joy of dancing along the edge, scaling the heights and discovering the secret places and views along the way. Tickets and details.
By Trial and Error (Le Cirque Content Pour Peu)
Traverse, 10 Cambridge Street, EH1 2ED.
Fri 31 May – Sun 2 June 2024
Fri: 10am, 6pm; Sat: 2pm, 6am; Sun: 11am, 2.30pm.
Target age: 4-10 years (45 mins) Trav 1.
A delightful show full of humour, where two disorientated circus artists stumble to try and save a seemingly well-oiled routine gone wrong. Tickets and details.
Cabinet of Miracles (The Naive Theatre Liberec)
The Studio, 22 Potterrow, EH8 9BL.
Mon 27 – Wed 29 May 2024
Daily: 10.45am, 1.15pm.
Target age: 5-9 years
An introduction to the miracle of life and planet Earth, as a team of scientists examine some curious objects which come to life via puppet tricks and theatrical magic. Tickets and details.
An Ant Called Amy (Julie Sharkey Production)
Traverse, 10 Cambridge Street, EH1 2ED.
Fri 31 May – Sun 2 June 2024
Fri: 9.45am, 11am, 3.30pm; Sat/Sun: 11am, 1.30pm, 3.30pm.
Target age: 5-9 years (40 mins) (Trav 2)
A charming and moving story that sensitively explores sibling loss, through the tale of a hard working ant who learns to slow down. Tickets and details.
Kish Kush (Teatrodistinto)
Lyceum Studio, 30B Grindlay Street, EH3 9AX
Thurs 30 May – Sat 1 June 2024
Thurs: 1.30pm, 6pm; Fri: 10am, 4pm; Sat: 11.30am, 2.30pm.
Target age: 5-10 years (50 mins)
Separated by a paper wall bisecting the space, two performers face cultural and linguistic differences, unable to communicate. Through shadow games and sounds, they gradualy get to know each other. Tickets and details.
An-Ki (Cia. Ortiga)
Summerhall, 1 Summerhall, EH9 1PL.
Mon 27 May – Sun 2 June 2024
Mon – Thurs: 9.30am, 11.30am, 2pm; Sat/Sun: 11am, 1.30pm, 3.30pm (4pm Sun).
Target age: 7-10 years (60 min).
An immersive promenade performance about humankind, greed and deforestation, set in an intimate and magical tent featuring intricate puppetry and stunning visual design. Tickets and details.
The Unexpected Gift (Barrowland Ballet)
Lyra, Artspace, EH16 4NX
Tue 28 – Fri 31 May 2024
Tue-Fri: 10.30am; Tue-Thurs: 1.30pm.
Target age: (ASN) 7-15 years (45 mins)
This show for children with complex needs such as autism, is a multi-sensory wonderland bursting with acrobatic dance, textures, sounds and colour. Tickets and details.
Shō and the Demons of the Deep (EAP/NTS)
Traverse 10 Cambridge Street, EH1 2ED.
Mon 27 – Thurs 30 May 2024
Mon/Tue: 10am, 1pm; Wed: 1pm, 7pm; Thurs: 9.45am.
Target age: 8-13 years. 70 mins. Trav 2.
Shō’s city has been plagued by nightmares for as long as she can remember, but hers are the worst of all. One day, Shō has had enough. She throws her nightmares away into the river, where they wash out to sea. A visual adventure story about overcoming fear, climate crisis and how the actions of one generation can affect the next. Tickets and details.
Suppose you Had a Portable Gramophone (Teatret Gruppe 38)
Lyceum Studio, 30B Grindlay Street, EH3 9AX.
Mon 27 – Wed 29 May 2024
Daily: 11.am, 1.30pm.
Target age: 8-13 years
A magical tale created out of (almost) nothing. Three performers sitting at a table tell the story of a tiny village in the far north, where people dressed in black look down and speak quietly… until a stranger comes to town. Tickets and details.
The Yellow Canary (Tashi Gore)
Scottish Storytelling Centre, 43-45 High St, EH1 1SR
Tue 28 – Sat 30 May 2024.
Tue: 1pm & 7pm; Wed/Thurs: 10am & 1pm.
Target age: 9 – 15 years. (70 mins).
Performance maker Tashi Gore uncovers the real-life journey her uncle Bernard took as a young Jewish boy, forced to leave his home city of Paris with just his parents and his pet canary for company. Tickets and details.
TRASHedy (performing:group)
Traverse, 10 Cambridge Street, EH1 2ED.
Mon 27 – Thurs 30 May 2024
Mon/Tue: 7pm;Tue/Wed 1.15pm; Wed/Thurs: 10.15am.
Target age: 11-15 years (50 min) (Trav 1)
Two performers explore the story of our strange evolution and take a humorous look at our freedom of choice and consumerist behaviour, encountering an ever-growing mountain of rubbish along the way. Tickets and details.
Black (Oulouy)
Dance Base, 14-16 Grassmarket, EH1 2JU
Thurs 30 May – Sat 1 June 2024
Thurs/Fri: 10am; Thurs 1pm; Fri/Sat: 7.30pm.
Target age: 12+ years (45 min)
An emotional dance, visual and music chronicle of the freedom movement which reflects on the violence and emancipation of being Black in today’s world. Tickets and details.
ENDS
