Edinburgh International Festival (EIF) has announced its full programme for 2025, which promises to reflect on a world in which fact and fiction are increasingly difficult to unpick. Consisting of seven world premieres, eight UK premieres and two European premieres, this is the third edition (Friday 1–Sunday 24 August) with celebrated Scottish violinist Nicola Benedetti as festival director, and will welcome more than 1700 artists from 42 nations across 133 performances. 

Programme highlights include the blockbuster theatre production Make It Happen, a James Graham-scripted take on the 2008 financial crisis set in Edinburgh and starring Brian Cox and Sandy Grierson. Also enjoying a world premiere is Mary, Queen Of Scots (pictured above), the story of one of Scotland’s most famous women, choreographed by Sophie Laplane in a dance piece that ‘blends classicism with modernity’ with costumes that make nods to ‘haute couture and punk’.

Also in the world of dance is the Scottish premiere of Figures In Extinction from the internationally-acclaimed Nederlands Dans Theater, which aims to confront the truth about humanity’s impact on the world and the meaning of art in an increasingly perilous time. That will be joined by Dance People from Maqamat and Omar Rajeh; Breaking Bach, a combination of hip hop choreography and compositions from the genius German composer; and The Dan Daw Show, an EIF debut from Australian disabled dancer Dan Daw which focuses on identity and kink. 

This year’s EIF will also mark the 60th anniversary of the Edinburgh Festival Chorus, who’ll perform at the Opening Concert alongside the Monteverdi Choir and the National Youth Choir Of Scotland, offering a rare chance to hear all eight hours of John Tavener’s The Veil Of The Temple, which is being performed in full in the UK for only the second time. 

Operatic works include a fully-staged reimagining of Gluck’s Orpheus And Eurydice featuring acrobatics; The Book Of Mountains And Seas from Chinese composer Huang Ruo, puppeteer Basil Twist and Ars Nova Copenhagen, which will be enjoying its UK premiere; Mozart’s La Clemenza performed with the Scottish Chamber Orchestra and Chorus; and Puccini’s Suor Angelica performed with the London Symphony Orchestra and a line-up of international soloists. 

Making its EIF debut is Aurora Orchestra, which will perform Shostakovich’s Fifth Symphony on the 50th anniversary of the composer’s death. Also in the orchestral programme is the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, Budapest Festival Orchestra and the NCPA Orchestra. In their first visit to the festival in a decade, The London Philharmonic Orchestra will perform both Rachmaninoff’s Rhapsody On A Theme Of Paganini and Holst’s extraordinary The Planets, a seven-movement journey through the cosmos. 

Theatre-makers have been invited to explore the theme of truth via the climate emergency, colonialism and politics, with Cliff Cardinal’s As You Like It A Radical Retelling; the nonverbal piece Work And Days; and a remount of the acclaimed play Faustus In Africa! 30 years after its original premiere.

Also in the mix is a series of intimate performances from artists like Kathryn Joseph and Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith; intimate morning recitals at The Queen’s Hall; a substantial programme of Polish artists, including Piotr Anderszewski and Bomsori Kim; and a handful of collaborative singalongs and ceilidhs.

Benedetti said of the programme, ‘Our 2025 Edinburgh International Festival invites you to explore The Truth We Seek – a journey into the elusive nature of truth in our personal and public lives. In an era of "alternative facts" and manipulated narratives, the arts offer us something deeper: a poetic and metaphorical wisdom that is both more nuanced and more precise.

This Festival – born in the city of Enlightenment – has championed artistic expression as a means of discovery, insight and mutual understanding. Join us this summer as we seek and find the truth together. Your curiosity will be rewarded with thought-provoking, and potentially transformational, experiences that you simply won’t find anywhere else.’ 

More than half of all tickets available at this year’s festival are priced at £30 or less, while thousands of free tickets will be available for young musicians, NHS staff and community groups, and £10 affordable tickets are available for all performances ‘for anyone who needs them’. 

Edinburgh International Festival, various venues, Friday 1–Sunday 24 August; main picture: Mihaela Bodlovic.