6 unmissable events for the whole family at Perth Festival of the Arts 2025

The Courier

15-05-2025

Looking to break out of your weekend routine?
Look no further than Perth Festival of the Arts 2025.
In one packed weekend (May 23-25) it hosts 16 vastly different events to choose from, as well as open air concerts and art exhibitions from ArTay and Perthshire Photographic Society.
Here are six events to look out for that weekend.
Those of an older disposition will remember Sir Derek Jacobi in the TV adaptation of I Claudius.
But his career spans six decades and his versatility ranges from classic Shakespeare characters, cameos in both Gladiator films, The Crown, Day of the Jackal and lots more.
Richard Clifford's longevity in the acting world mirrors that of Sir Derek, and with him in the driving seat for the evening there will be incredible insights and anecdotes – as he has also been Derek's partner since the 1970s.
What better way to kick off the weekend?
Perth Theatre, 1a Mill St, Perth PH1 5HZ.
Friday May 23, 7.30pm.
Tickets are £29 each; concessions £27.
Council parking in Perth city centre is free after 6pm. Thimblerow car park is a short walk away from the theatre and usually has plenty of space.
Lauder tells the tale of the legendary Scottish entertainer Sir Harry Lauder, who by 1911 had become the highest-paid performer in the world and an international star.
MacDougall might be more familiar as the voice of classical music on BBC radio, but his versatility will bring Lauder to life, revealing a man of mischief and ingenuity and the creator of classics like Roamin' in the Gloamin' and I Love a Lassie.
Winston Churchill called Lauder 'Scotland's greatest ambassador'. Jamie's one-man show, written by Jimmy Logan, will give ample proof that this was no over-exaggeration.
Perth Theatre, 1a Mill St, Perth PH1 5HZ.
Sunday May 25, 3pm.
Adults £22.50, concessions £20.50, under-18s £5.
This performance is dementia-friendly, with adapted sound and lighting for comfort and a relaxed approach to sound an movement.
The festival is never purely secular – the sacred side of things plays an equally important part.
The magnificent St Ninian's Cathedral, one the city's finest buildings, hosts choral evensong on Sunday, sung by the cathedral choir.
The setting of the Magnificat and Nunc Dimittis will be by Noble and the anthem chosen is The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, by Sir Edward Elgar.
But the music doesn't end there.
At 5pm, the Cathedral's Director of Music, Geoff Bolton, will perform an organ recital, with music by JS Bach, Healey Willan, Messiaen and Eugene Gigout.
Perth Cathedral (St Ninian's), N Methven St, Perth PH1 5PP
Sunday May 25, 4pm.
Free.
If you miss this performance, don't fret – the choir will also be singing at a Choral Mass to mark Ascension Day at 7pm on May 29.
World class symphony orchestras are common visitors to the festival, some international, some home-bred.
This year, Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra are set to bring an eclectic mix of the familiar and the less well-known.
Under the baton of Grzegorz Nowak, the concert opens with a brand-new work by Jeffrey Ching, Il Maestro di Capella, commissioned for the orchestra's UK tour.
The orchestra will perform two of the most popular works from the operatic and ballet repertoire including Bizet's scintillating Carmen Suite and music from perhaps the greatest of all ballets – Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake.
Then follows Vaughan Williams' Lark Ascending and Tchaikovsky's Rococo Variations, before the concert ends with Beethoven's mighty fifth symphony.
Perth Concert Hall, Mill Street, Perth, PH1 5HZ
Saturday May 24, 7.30pm.
Tickets range from £22.50 to £41.50, concession £19.50 to £38.50 Under-18s are £5.
Perth Concert Hall and Perth Theatre are on the same street, but they're different buildings – the concert hall is the round building.
Children are always catered for by the festival organisers, and there's a double-dose of fun this year.
Opera singers Colleen and Katie combine classical music's best loved arias and duets with singing games, sensory play and puppet friends.
Perth Theatre, 1a Mill St, Perth PH1 5HZ.
May 24-25, various times between 10am and 2pm.
£8 per child, with one adult included. £3 per extra adult.
Performances are split into 0-2 years and 2-4 years brackets. See festival website for specific times for each version.
Prokofiev's music is specially arranged for wind quintet by Children's Classic Concerts.
This team of musical animals, led by Owen Gunnell, will move effortlessly from madcap mayhem to virtuosic performances, with plenty of audience participation along the way.
Perth Theatre Studio, 1a Mill St, Perth PH1 5HZ.
Saturday May 24, 1pm and 3pm.
Tickets £16, concessions £14, under-18s £8.
Carers go free when accompanying the person they care for, as is the case for many of the events at Perth Festival of the Arts.
Perthshire Brass, who for the past 40 years have been promoting their style of music in Perth and Kinross, will perform an outdoor concert in St Paul's Plaza this year.
And Perth Festival's chairman Craig Dennis will be taking his customary seat with fellow tuba players.
However, he will have one eye on the music and one on the weather. He knows only too well what performing outdoors in a Scottish summer can be like!
St Paul's Church Plaza, S Methven St, Perth PH1 5NU
Saturday May 24, 11am.
Free
Perthshire Brass forms one act on the Community Stage programme. Other acts will take place in various venues across the city, including cafe cabaret performances, pop-up drumming concerts and adventure circus workshops!
For more information and ticket prices of each performance, visit the Perth Festival website or phone [phone].