As the first acts on the 2025 Edinburgh International Festival (EIF) programme are announced, festival director Nicola Benedetti said “the toughest battle of all” is innovating while at the same time preserving tradition.

The 78th edition of the world-famous performing arts festival has the theme The Truth We Seek, and will invite audiences to examine their relationship with truth through a curated programme of music, dance, theatre and opera.

The festival will include the world premiere of Scottish Ballet’s Mary, Queen Of Scots, which explores the stories around Mary’s life and legacy from the perspective of Elizabeth I.

It will also see the European premiere of a “bold re-imagining” of Orpheus And Eurydice by Australian Opera, featuring acrobatic artistry by circus ensemble Circa and performances by the Scottish Chamber Orchestra and Scottish Opera Chorus.

Audiences will also have the opportunity to see the European debut of US-based National Youth Orchestra 2, showcasing “the next generation of musicians” and inaugurating a new three-year creative programme with Carnegie Hall in New York.

As well as international performers, Benedetti said the festival organisers were “really proud” the programme includes all five of the Scottish national arts companies, and “within that some really exciting premieres”.

She continued: “One in particular that we’re announcing now is from Scottish Ballet, the Mary Queen of Scots premiere, which will be, I’m sure, absolutely spectacular.

The 2025 festival will see the European debut of the National Youth Orchestra 2, inaugurating a three-year partnership with Carnegie Hall in New York The 2025 festival will see the European debut of the National Youth Orchestra 2, inaugurating a three-year partnership with Carnegie Hall in New York (Image: (Fadi Kheir/PA))

“Scottish Ballet has been so innovative in their new productions, and we’re just honoured to be presenting this work for the first time.”

The organisers said involving national arts companies would support artists, create jobs, and showcase homegrown talent on an international stage, something Ms Benedetti said reflected the “solidarity” of the festival with a Scottish arts sector that finds itself in a “precarious” position financially.

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At the same time, she said, the festival was “putting our money where our mouth is” when it came to making performances affordable, pointing out that in 2024 50% of tickets were £30 or under, with £10 tickets being available for every performance.

Benedetti, who is now in her third year as director, continued: “I joined the festival with as much of a mandate to impact who our audience is, and make sure that what it is we present is as openly available to the widest range of people as possible.

“I was as focused on that as I was about protecting our artistic identity and artistic excellence, so you’ll see that we continue to be extremely ambitious with what we make available.”

Benedetti described the theme of the 2025 festival, The Truth We Seek, as “somewhat facetious”, explaining that “I’m really wondering whether we do seek the full truth and perspective of another.”

A ‘bold re-imagining’ of Orpheus and Eurydice will feature acrobatic artists from circus ensemble Circa A ‘bold re-imagining’ of Orpheus and Eurydice will feature acrobatic artists from circus ensemble Circa (Image: (Keith Saunders/PA))

She said: “Within our homes or workplaces, amongst loved ones or colleagues, we all experience trying to piece together indignantly expressed, absolutely believed, yet utterly contradictory truths.

“How often are we able to rise above our own bubble?”

She added: “The world of the arts is always one that can open those doors in a way that is less divisive than when we try to bring people from varying perspectives and cultures and backgrounds together.

“It can be an area of where that conversation can be had with a lot of curiosity and less damage done.”

Reflecting on why the EIF remained such a global success, Benedetti said there were “so many factors” feeding into it.

She continued: “But I also think you need the humility to go ‘what is it that we don’t understand about the specific mix of people that were put in positions of influence?’

“And what is it about the vibration and the undercurrent of the walls and streets of Edinburgh that allowed for that standing to grow in the way that it has?'”

Nicola Benedetti is in her third year as director of the Edinburgh International Festival Nicola Benedetti is in her third year as director of the Edinburgh International Festival (Image: (Andrew Perry/PA))

She said the challenge now was discovering a future for the festival where it felt innovative and current while at the same time preserving tradition.

“There’s always huge amounts of explosive energy that that centre around change and around newness,” she said.

“But when you are also preserving tradition, that’s the toughest battle of all.”

The 2025 Edinburgh International Festival takes place from August 1-24 2025.

The full programme for the festival will be announced with tickets going on sale in March 2025.