14 great children's shows at this year's Edinburgh Festival Fringe to take the little ones too
A family friendly show for both hardcore circus lovers and artistically inclined audiences alike. The Genesis explores authentic and profoundly touching topics as it leads their audience through emotional highs and lows and ultimately leaves it joyous and excited with a new outlook on how far human collaboration could take our society. Since premiering debut show The Genesis less than a year ago, fledgling acrobatic company The Copenhagen Collective has dazzled audiences across Europe with this moving contemporary work that uses breathtaking feats of circus artistry to explore themes of togetherness, conflict, integration and collaboration, all while leaving audiences gasping for more. The Genesis, at Assembly Hall, Main Hall, 12.30pm, July 31 - August 25, except August 6, 11 and 18. | David Poznic Photography
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BBC News
5 days ago
- BBC News
Luton 1960s band The Genesis releasing album six decades later
A 1960s band is finally releasing an album after its music was accidentally discovered by a Stokes, from Luton, sold an electric piano on eBay and included some of his band's sound clips in the Genesis – not to be confused with the globally famous progressive rock band starring Phil Collins and Peter Gabriel – recorded music in the 60s and who is now 80 and lives in Essex, said: "If I hadn't sold the e-piano for £10, all of this music would have ended up in landfill." The piano was picked up by music producer Will Twynham, who is based in Bishop's Stortford in Hertfordshire, and goes under the name Dimorphodons."I was browsing eBay for weird and semi-working musical gear, when the sound clip on Chris's old Hohner electric piano stopped me in my tracks," said Will."It was a great song, and as a fan of 60s and 70s obscurities I knew it was unknown." After meeting Chris in person, Will was "absolutely astounded" to hear 80 more tracks from between 1964 and 1974."I couldn't believe that this quantity and quality of music had gone unreleased for such a long time and immediately decided to rectify the situation," said Will, who is releasing some of the material under his record label Hand of Glory. The band was originally called Genesis, but did not register its name and had folded by the time the group fronted by Gabriel shot to said their only connection with the other Genesis was via record producer Jonathan King."Jonathan King was managing a band called Hedgehoppers Anonymous, and we did a gig supporting them. Later Jonathan King went on to become the first manager of Genesis," said Chris. The five Luton men formed the band in 1966, including two workers from the Vauxhall factory."We rehearsed at the local church and started gigging. We used to do a pretty wild version of Bob Dylan's Like a Rolling Stone and Vanilla Fudge You Keep Me Hanging On," said of just performing covers, The Genesis wanted to write and record their own music, including a pop opera that tells a story."Over a period of three months we came up with this thing. We were blundering around in the dark, we didn't know what the hell we were doing."It was nothing like we'd heard another pop group do. "We managed to con an afternoon with this new studio in King Street – it was a guy with a mixer and tape recorder."In that same studio, Chris recalls meeting another band rehearsing for a gig."It just happened to be Ian Anderson and Clive Bunker, Mick Abrahams … who became Jethro Tull."Luton back then was a phenomenal place to grow up, music wise. Both Luton and Dunstable had huge international acts coming to perform." Chris said the remaining band members "think it's insane" that their music is being released."They're mildly amused that anybody is taking any interest whatever."It appeals to the inner ego, that somebody has finally listened to the nonsense I was writing 40 to 50 years ago and thinks there is any worth in it."Will believes the music is waiting to be discovered."Somehow Chris managed to have a really great stab at all the music of the era, including moody mid-60s beat group sounds like The Zombies, psych, prog, glam and of course a historic, pioneering rock opera!"There's even a fully orchestrated 15-minute Brit-jazz track featuring a saxophonist from the John Barry Seven."Chris concluded: "I have described my life many times as being a series of happy accidents, and this is just another one. It's a funny old thing." Follow Beds, Herts and Bucks news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
Scotsman
02-08-2025
- Scotsman
Multinational acrobatic troupe Copenhagen Collective on their dazzling Fringe debut
With a 17-strong cast from 14 different countries, communication is key for the energised members of the self-described 'Chaos Collective'. By Susan Mansfield Sign up to our Arts and Culture newsletter, get the latest news and reviews from our specialist arts writers Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... 'How many acrobats can you fit around a table?' quips someone as five members of Copenhagen Collective fit themselves into a nook in a popular cafe in Galway. The answer comes back fast: 'Always one more!' The 17-strong company are performing their show The Genesis at the Galway International Arts Festival on a tour that has already taken them to nine countries in their first year. By the time you read this, they'll be in Edinburgh making their Fringe debut. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad To form a new acrobatics company from scratch on this scale, with a completely international cast, is almost unprecedented. The 17 performers come from 14 countries. Just over a year after their first performance, they hope the Fringe will be the right platform to take their work to another level. Copenhagen Collective | David Poznic Photography At the cafe table, the bond between them is already clear. 'From the get-go, I had a sense that something really special and fairly unique was happening,' says David Ullrich from Germany. 'I think it's something that shines in the project and makes each and every one of us fall in love with it.' In was in late 2023 that invitations started to circulate in the acrobatics world to attend a series of 'jams' (informal gatherings of performers) in Copenhagen. The performers didn't know it at the time, but the jams were auditions hosted by circus school tutor Søren Flor, who had received backing from millionaire software developer and philanthropist Joachim Ante to fund a dream project: a new acrobatics company which would be run by its members. Flor was selecting not only the best acrobats but those who would be most committed to realising the idea of the collective. Make sure you keep up to date with Arts and Culture news from across Scotland by signing up to our free newsletter here. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'Then pretty quickly madness ensued,' says Ullrich. No wonder the company refer to themselves as the Chaos Collective. 'The scale and the scope of this project beat everything I had experienced before. It's almost a social experiment that we're doing: how do you get 20 or 25 total strangers together and collaborate and make art?' Within a matter of weeks, the new company members had relocated from around the world – Canada, France, Germany, Argentina, Uruguay – to live and work together in a former aircraft hanger outside Copenhagen. They had just three intense months to make a show. It became a tribe, a family. 'Or you could say 'cult'!' says Marilou Verschelden, from Montreal, Canada, to widespread laughter. The first steps were to learn to work together, to work through the differences in the systems in which they had trained, learn to trust one another, and master the dexterity needed when 17 people are moving fast in a confined space. 'The communication was hard,' says Verschelden. 'It was fascinating because when we were working on the mat I could always communicate with people. But when we were eating together, someone would say one sentence, and I would be: 'What the hell did she say?'' Soon they were creating work and devising sequences. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the themes of cooperation and collaboration emerged powerfully. 'I think the theme of the show is getting past our differences,' says Ronan Jenkinson, from Northern Ireland. 'We've not saying we're perfect and we've figured it out by any means, but at the end of the day, what really matters? Is it our differences, or is that going to get in the way of us achieving new things and pushing what is possible in the world?' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad When director/choreographers Patrick King and Johan King Silverhult came in to help develop the show, they brought those themes to the fore. Ullrich says: 'I think they realised at some point that it would feel almost wrong to put a narrative that isn't ours on top of that. There are metaphors about individuals coming together, getting to know each other, celebrating collaboration and the strength that comes from it. This is a very authentic thing for us because this is our story.' Copenhagen Collective at the La Strada festival in Austria | Contributed Copenhagen Collective tours with a manager, a technician and often a childminder, to look after the two children of founding members Sónia Cristina and Alfred Hall Kriegbaum, Zoe, three, and one-year-old Marley. 'The children really make it a family,' says Jenkinson. 'Everyone has an eye on them. Yeah, it does get difficult when a child is running around and you're trying to mark a rehearsal for something that you're going to do in three days, but it's also something we're able to tolerate and understand.' Nicolás Gonzalez (Nico) from Chile says: 'It's amazing seeing them grow. When I joined the company, Zoe was just beginning to speak, now she calls 'Nico!' which I come in the room and wants me to play with her. I am really far away from my family and I really appreciate having this connection.' Meanwhile on the mat the company is learning about the benefits of working together long-term. Nico is what is known as a flyer, one of the lightest members of the company who is often at the top of a tower. 'When you can put your confidence and your body into these hands, I think you can go beyond your limits,' he says. 'You think your limit is here, but then you realise your limit is over there. In two years I have done a lot of things I never imagined before.' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad David says: 'Now that the technique clicks and the bodies work well together, I'm able to look past my personal horizon. I have 16 colleagues who are very good at what they do, somebody will always know how to help me, and often there is something I can help somebody with. We are so many that we can keep pushing our technique and keep getting better. The skill level keeps rising.' Communication is still a challenge. 'This is the hardest part of the collective,' says Verschelden. 'But we have to remind ourselves that our best asset is our differences. The mix of cultures is really what Copenhagen Collective is. You could have a show with five people from the same country, but you've probably already seen that show.' The future is still being dreamed about around the cafe table: on the one hand the kind of technical development long-term collaboration makes possible, on the other, the potential for year-round work, a stable financial base. 'We've had the opportunity to start something at almost the top end of the scale,' says Jenkinson. 'We don't know what it looks like to develop that. It's up to us to work that out. That's why the show's called The Genesis. It's really just the beginning.'
The Herald Scotland
26-05-2025
- The Herald Scotland
Hogmanay events return as winter festival is valued at £198m
They have been given the green light to return as the producers of the winter festivals for the city revealed that an overall audience of 2.8 million was recorded across a seven-week season of official Christmas and new year events last winter. Read more: They have revealed they are exploring ways to 'weather-proof' this year's main Hogmanay events to avoid them falling victim to bad weather again. However this may need extra funding for the four-day new year festival, which is mainly paid for via an Edinburgh City Council contract worth £812,456 a year, but is now said to generate £48m for the economy. The torchlight procession, which was due to be staged on December 29, was called off shortly before thousands of revellers were due to set through the city due to the worsening wind conditions along the parade route. Edinburgh's Hogmanay street party, open-air concert and midnight fireworks display fell victim to bad weather last year. The other main outdoor events were called off the following day, including a 'Night Afore Disco Party' in Princes Street Gardens on December 30, and the 45,000-capacity street party and the flagship Hogmanay Concert in the Gardens, which was due to be headlined by Texas. However a series of indoor events went ahead in indoor venues during the four-day festival, including the Assembly Rooms, the Assembly Hall, St Giles' Cathedral and the National Museum of Scotland. A new report from Unique Events and Assembly, the two companies who have led the organising of the city's winter festivals since 2022, has revealed that a key factor in the cancellations were concerns over the safety of staff who were due to build infrastructure in the city centre, as well as the risk of temporary structure already built being damaged by the forecast high winds. It reveals that although the weather forecast for Hogmanay itself did not pose a threat to the planned fireworks over midnight it was decided to pull the plug due to concerns over large crowds gathering to watch the display without any public safety measures being in place. The report added: 'Despite the cancellation of all planned outdoor events due to extreme weather conditions both experienced and forecasted during the build periods and event dates, Edinburgh's Hogmanay indoor programme played to packed audiences with many ticketed events sold out and free to enter events full, welcoming an estimated audience of more than 26,000 over four days.' A spokeswoman for the festivals said: "In light of last year's extreme weather conditions, we will continue to adapt and evolve the four-day events programme to maintain the city's reputation for having a premier new year celebration." The new research found that almost a third of tickets were sold internationally for the Hogmanay festival, with a third of tickets sold in Scotland and 36 per cent sold elsewhere in the UK. Visitors to the city over the Hogmanay period were said to have stayed for an average of two and a half days and spent an average of £958 each during their time in the city. The Christmas festival drew 37 per cent of its audience from Edinburgh and the Lothians, 21 per cent from the rest of Scotland, 32 per cent from the rest of the UK and 10 per cent internationally. The event, which ran from November 15-January 4, has been valued at £150 million for the economy. Around 70 per cent of visitors said the Christmas festival was their main reason for travelling to Edinburgh, with the average spend £537 across attractions, shops, restaurants and pubs. Unique Events director Alan Thomson said: 'We take a lot of heart from this report that even having lost our outdoor Hogmanay events to weather, the winter festivals have still delivered not just wonderful and joyful opportunities for people to come together, but also huge benefits for the people of Edinburgh and for Scotland across traders, local families, communities and charities and our tourism businesses. 'We are working on our plans for this coming winter's celebrations and look forward to sharing those very soon.' Margaret Graham, the city council's culture convener, said: "The findings of this report demonstrate that Edinburgh's world-famous winter festivals don't only draw a huge international crowd, boosting the economy and adding to the city's vibrant calendar of events, but, crucially, they deliver significant benefits to Edinburgh's local communities, businesses and charities. 'This is despite the cancellation of last year's outdoor events, showing just how far reaching the programme events is.' Roddy Smith, chief executive of city centre business group Essential Edinburgh, said: 'Edinburgh's winter festivals are a crucial period for our city centre and again it is very pleasing to see our residents and visitors coming in such large numbers. 'With such a varied and appealing programme, combined with the high-quality hospitality and retail offering in the city centre, Edinburgh continues to be an attractive destination to enjoy the festive season.'
