The Edinburgh Festival does not officially refer to a particular single festival event. Rather, it is a group or series of simultaneous cultural and arts festivals that take place every month of August in Edinburgh, Scotland. The festivals included are organized by several formally unrelated clubs or associations.
The Edinburgh Festival is known to be the world's largest arts and cultural festival, which started in the year 1947, the time when the Edinburgh International Festival (EIF) was founded. That same year, other theatrical companies organized their own events and joined the festivities. Since then, the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and many other festivals have been established in this particular Scottish capital city.
Some of the festivals held in Edinburgh every August of the year include the following:
a. The Edinburgh International Festival - It is a performing arts festival in Edinburgh City, Scotland, which starts around mid-August and lasts for more than three weeks.
The General Director of the EIF invites top class performers of theater, dance, opera, and music (especially classical type of music) from all over the world. Aside from the performances on the Festival itself, there is also a range of outreach and education workshops, seminars, and lectures that happen throughout the year.
Common venues for the Edinburgh International Festival are The Hub, the Royal Lyceum Theater, The Queen's Hall, the Festival Theater, the Usher Hall, and The Edinburgh Playhouse, which can house 420 up to 2,900 people.
b. The Edinburgh Festival Fringe - It is renowned as the largest arts festival in the world, which also takes place for three weeks every month of August.
The Fringe includes mostly of performing arts events, especially drama and comedy. However, the music and dance performing arts have the greatest significance. It showcases a vast variety of theatrical events, ranging from the classic works of ancient Greece, Samuel Beckett, and Shakespeare up to the contemporary works of today's artists.
Any type of event is actually possible in this festival, primarily because no committee is set up to review entries for approval/rejection. Oftentimes, the Fringe presents experimental works that other more formal festivals may not include.
c. The Edinburgh Military Tattoo - This event also takes place every year, in the month of August, as part of the famous Edinburgh Festival. The festival features Military tattoos given by the Commonwealth, British Army, and International military teams and bands annually.