University staff and students feature in world’s largest arts festival

Date posted

5 August 2016

14:00

Staff and students from Edinburgh Napier will be displaying their talents for the world to see at this year’s Edinburgh Festivals. A number of our academics and students representing subjects as diverse as microbiology, acting, music and business will be taking to the stage to entertain some of the estimated four million visitors who flock to the capital during August.

Highlights of this year’s programme include academics Clare Taylor and Grahame Steven starring in the legendary “Cabaret of Dangerous Ideas”. On 17 August, Business School lecturer Grahame headlines “Tax Powers? Careful What You Wish For!” before microbiology expert Clare will delight and terrify in equal measure with “The Antibiotic Apocalypse Threatens Us All!” on 27 August. Both shows are at the Stand in the Square.

Our Acting students and staff have six official Fringe productions, including “Prestwick Elvis”, written and directed by Acting lecturer Ian Dunn. It’s described as “a heart-warming comedy based on a fan’s love for the King of rock and roll” and features students who have trained and graduated from Edinburgh Napier’s Stage and Screen Acting programme.
Edinburgh Napier productions at The Fringe
Elsewhere, lecturer Donna Soto-Morettini directs “A Royal Flush”, a new and topical comedy that follows “the aftermath of a mistakenly lifted Portaloo” and features graduates from our Acting & English course.

Other plays featuring Edinburgh Napier talent include “I am Yours”, “My Romantic History”, “Some Voices” and “We Are Not Criminals”, all staged at theSpace on the Mile throughout August.

If music is more your thing, two Edinburgh Napier students will be performing a classical piano recital at St Vincent’s on 25 August while Music student Luke Cunningham is performing as Luke Closely in a one-man show featuring “magic, music and comedy – all in a kilt” as part of the Free Fringe at The Voodoo Rooms.

At Summerhall, Edinburgh Napier alumnus Simon Thacker will be performing as part of the Made in Scotland showcase for an unprecedented third consecutive year representing Scotland to international audiences and promoters. He will be performing Karmana, Songs of the Roma, with cellist and fellow Edinburgh Napier alumna Justyna Jablonska and singer/violinist Masha Natanson. The programme consists of original instrumental music by Simon ("Karmana") and his reimaginings of Gypsy songs ("Songs of the Roma"). It runs until 20 August.

The University is also represented at the Edinburgh International Book Festival where Stanley Odd, “Scotland’s finest hip hop band” featuring Edinburgh Napier music staff, play Unbound in the Spiegeltent on 24 August. The University is also sponsoring an event at the Book Festival, where “Edinburgh’s Cultural Freedom Fighter” Jim Haynes will talk about his memoir “How I Came to Dine with Vladimir Putin” on 21 August.

The Edinburgh Napier Students Association' (ENSA) is also getting in on the act with “One Musical to Rule Them All”, an all-singing, all-dancing, contemporary parody of The Lord of the Rings. Embark on a misshapen parody adventure with Froyo, Gundalf and more as they go through the non-specific fantasy world, dodging villains and plot holes alike on their quest to destroy curiously powerful jewellery, all while singing catchy songs. The Drama Society’s show is on at Greenside @ Infirmary Street at 6.25pm every day from 5 to 20 August, excluding 14 August.

Looking for our 2017 line-up?

Our staff and students are back in 2017 for another round of plays and performances.