Eight of the biggest fringe venues – Assembly, Dance Base, Gilded Balloon, Just the Tonic, Pleasance, Summerhall, Underbelly and Zoo – said they expected to sell 1,486,746 tickets this year, up from 1,965,961 in 2019. Together as EdFest.com, the venues said lower sales represented a “major threat” to their financial viability. A spokesperson for EdFest.com said: “There has been a real appetite and energy for shared, live experiences in Edinburgh over the past few weeks and the quality of the program has been incredible – however, our projected ticket sales are down 25% compared to with 2019, which poses a significant threat to everyone involved in the festival.” Citing the cost of living crisis, the lingering effects of the pandemic and the summer travel holiday as “very real ongoing challenges for our industry”, the spokesman said the biggest issue was “the rising cost of living in Edinburgh in August”, which has priced our audience and artists alike. Accommodation costs have soared this year due to changes to Scottish law banning fixed-term tenancies, which has led to more students keeping their accommodation over the summer months. Next year, restrictions on short-term rentals will mean fewer Airbnbs in the city, too. Artists and punters who spoke to the Guardian said accommodation costs had doubled compared to 2019, leaving many to reconsider attending or performing at the festival. The EdFest spokesperson added:[It is] It’s clear to anyone who spends time in Edinburgh that there are fewer people in the city this year than in 2019.” The venues are asking for the public’s support to enable the festival to gradually return to normal over several years, including supporting people who have suffered losses, dealing with accommodation costs and launching a major marketing campaign. William Burdett-Coutts, the Assembly’s artistic director, estimated that venues had lost £7m in revenue because ticket sales fell by a quarter, resulting in a “significant loss[es]”. This has “really hurt” the companies that deliver the shows, with some unable to survive without fundraising or government support, he said. In a normal year, Burdett-Coutts said he would expect 10% of the companies he booked would not be able to cover their costs, but this year it would be more like 60%. Archie Bland and Nimo Omer take you to the top stories and what they mean, free every weekday morning Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain information about charities, online advertising and content sponsored by external parties. For more information, see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and Google’s Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. He urged the Scottish Government to consider adjusting accommodation rules for the festival. This would include an exemption from the ban on fixed-term rentals for students – as already applied to university accommodation – as well as a six-week window during which Airbnbs are not required to have a licence, alongside the introduction of a price cap. Burdett-Coutts said the fringe and Edinburgh City Council had to step up their marketing to ensure “we get people’s enthusiasm and ability to spend money”, adding that the fact the fringe scheme did not start until July was wrong”. “It’s an Olympic-scale event that happens every year and we can’t afford to take it for granted,” he said, noting that this year each visitor bought an average of five tickets, up from eight, and that the Convention had half the usual number of entries. journalists. Shona McCarthy, chief executive of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe Society, said this year’s event was the first step in what would be “a long road to recovery and renewal” and had taken place in “one of the most challenging summers we’ve ever had”. have been recorded”. . He added: “We recognize the significant amount of work still required to support the long-term sustainability of this amazing festival. As we consider and discuss all the lessons from this year, our focus this autumn will be on planning for the Edinburgh fringe 2023. Collectively we will work to advocate greater support for those at the heart of the fringe – our artists ».
