EMT presents Chess: The Musical

The board is set, the pieces are moving: Edinburgh Music Theatre (EMT) will perform Chess: the Musical at the Church Hill Theatre next week (10-14 March)!

With music by ABBA’s Bjorn Ulvaeus and Benny Anderson, and lyrics by Tim Rice, Chess has one of the greatest musical theatre scores of all time including One Night in Bangkok, Pity the Child, Anthem, You and I and I Know Him So Well (made popular by Elaine Paige and Barbara Dickson).

The musical follows the story of two of the world’s greatest chess masters as they battle it out at the world chess championships, but their greatest contest is for the love of one woman. Amidst political intrigue and international conspiracies, the American and the Russian fight to win her heart in a romantic triangle that mirrors the heightened passions of the Cold War.

A highly successful concept album of Chess was released in 1984. The first theatrical production of Chess opened in London’s West End in 1986 and played for three years.

EMT was formed in 1982, to perform large-scale musicals in major theatres. They perform a yearly musical and also present two cabaret shows at the Fringe. Past shows include Boogie Nights, How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, and a run of Sweeney Todd that incorporated British Sign Language into every aspect of the performance, including choreography.

The cast of amateur performers have been in rehearsals for Chess since October last year, working together in their spare time to put together a musical spectacular.

Mike Davies, the director, said: “We can’t wait to bring Chess to the Church Hill Theatre this March. “A team of over fifty performers and crew has been involved in putting together this fantastic, unmissable show.

“While ‘I Know Him so Well’ was the breakout song from Chess, the score is packed with stunning ballads, intricate chorus numbers and spellbinding duets. Grab your tickets while you can.”

Performances of Chess will take place in the Church Hill Theatre from 10-14 March at 7:30pm, with a matinee performance on Saturday 14 March at 2:30pm. Tickets are available through the Usher Hall website and booking line 0131 228 1155.

Listing Details:

Edinburgh Music Theatre presents Chess: the Musical.
The Church Hill Theatre, Morningside Road, Edinburgh.
7:30pm (Saturday Matinee 2:30pm)
Tickets: Tues and Sat Matinee – all tickets £12; Wed – Sat £14 (£12 conc.).

www.edinburghtheatre.co.uk

www.facebook.com/edinburghmusictheatre

Scottish Youth Parliament Elections: it’s time to vote!

‘We’ve seen from the success of young people voting in the Independence Referendum that there’s a real appetite out there for them to engage in politics’ – Cllr Cathy Fullerton

Young people in Edinburgh are being urged to vote in the Scottish Youth Parliament elections which start today – and for the first time young voters will be able to cast their vote online from today until Friday 13 March.

Anyone aged between 12 and 25 in the Capital is eligible to vote and to get involved young people can log onto the Young Scot website and use their Young Scot number to vote (temporary numbers for voting are also available from a selection of schools and community venues across the city).

There are 12 seats representing Edinburgh open to candidates who receive the most votes at the elections in March. These are in six city areas: Central, Eastern, Northern & Leith, Pentlands, Southern and Western.

The Scottish Youth Parliament is a non-party political organisation made up of 150 young people representing every constituency in Scotland. It campaigns to highlight the views of Scotland’s young people on a national and international stage.

Its members meet three times each year at a range of different locations, including in the main chamber at Holyrood’s Scottish Parliament.

Councillor Cathy Fullerton, Vice Convener for Education for the City of Edinburgh Council, said: “We’ve seen from the success of young people voting in the Independence Referendum that there’s a real appetite out there for them to engage in politics.

“The Scottish Youth Parliament offers an ideal chance for young people to be heard on both national and local issues and I would urge everyone eligible to cast their vote next week.

“It’s great that modern technology means our young people can vote online for the first time for their preferred candidate. These elections are a great opportunity to develop young people’s citizenship and debating skills as well as demonstrating democracy in action.

“The council is committed to involving young people fully in the life of our city, so they feel that Edinburgh is a place where they can really make a difference. That’s why we are also actively encouraging them to come up with petitions which can be put to our Petitions Committee for consideration.”

Anyone interested in voting should visit the Young Scot website or contact the CEC Young People’s Participation Team on 0131 529 6502.

It’s National Digital Learning Week

#DigiLearnScot

What’s it all about?

National Digital Learning Week is your chance to give digital technology a go and join the national debate on how digital tools can help transform the way pupils learn.

We are encouraging all schools to make a pledge to develop their digital practice in school. These will be shared on our blog. This could range from trying a blog for the first time to using augmented reality to make your walls come alive!

Find out more – click on the links below:

https://vimeo.com/120819144

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8cmVLUU43f8&feature=em-share_video_user

The Yard is Tesco Bank local charity of the Year

Local children’s charity The Yard is one of three childrens’ projects that will be supported by Tesco Bank over the coming year.

Tesco Bank ‘colleagues’ from each of the three Bank’s three regions choose a local children’s charity to support, and this year the lucky recipients will be:

The Yard (Edinburgh)

The Yard is a playground for children with physical disabilities or learning difficulties. It gives children space to explore, join in and make friends – things that they can be excluded from in other environments.

The large outdoor playground is a perfect place to build dens, climb trees and charge around on one of their specially adapted bikes and trikes. Indoors there is also room to paint, bake, draw, smile, chat and be with others or be alone in the calming sensory room.

The Yard’s specialist Playworkers look to encourage children and young people to explore and be themselves, promote risk and challenge to help children overcome barriers to inclusion, and nurture natural curiosity.

HOPE For Autism (North Lanarkshire)

HOPE for Autism is a charity set up by parents who didn’t feel their children’s needs were being met. They have a great understanding of what is required to support the whole family, as they have been through it themselves.

HOPE for Autism currently offers services to families affected by an Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), including evening groups for children and young people, parents’ group meetings and services for carers, such as one-to-one and group support, free training and social nights.

Grace House (Sunderland)

Grace House is a purpose-built children and young person facility in Sunderland which will offer short break and respite care services for children and young people with complex disabilities, health needs and life limiting conditions.

They are presently planning to increase the number of their en-suite bedrooms to eight before their planned opening in May 2015 which will allow them to have up to eight children visiting at any one time. Eight bedrooms will allow them to help between 250-300 children every year.

Congratulations to you all!

New sign language video call service rolled out

New video call service removes barriers to participation.

The nationwide roll-out of a new online interpreting service will allow deaf people across Scotland to use sign language to contact public sector services.

The Scottish Government has announced today the extension of the current NHS 24 online British Sign Language (BSL) Video Relay Interpreting Service pilot to the rest of the public sector in Scotland.

The new Scottish Government-funded service, contactSCOTLAND, will mean deaf people can now speak to public services, such as their local council, doctor’s surgery and the Scottish Government, without the need for someone to call on their behalf. This project is unique in the UK and is the first nationally funded public sector Video Relay Service.

Minister for Sport, Health Improvement and Mental Health, Jamie Hepburn, welcomed the new contactSCOTLAND service which is available from today. He said:

“There are estimated to be around 6,500 people living in Scotland who use sign language and these people deserve to have the same access to services as everyone else.

“By extending this programme to cover all public sector services in Scotland, we are removing the barriers that some deaf people face when trying to get in contact with their local services.

“For the majority of people who rely on sign language to communicate, they need to arrange to have someone to call on their behalf. This new project will mean deaf people can video call an interpreter at contactSCOTLAND directly who will then speak to the relevant public sector organisation and act as an intermediary for the deaf person.

“This is a fantastic project and gives British Sign Language users equal access to public sector services, allowing them to enjoy greater participation in daily and public life.”

Andrew McCafferty and his wife in are both profoundly deaf, The Greenock couple recently used the video relay service to call NHS 24 – receiving treatment that saved Andrew’s life.

He said: “My wife and l are profoundly deaf and use British Sign Language to communicate. It can be really difficult and frustrating to communicate with doctors, police officers and workman from the council that come to carry repairs in our home.

“Recently l took seriously ill and contacted NHS 24 through the online BSL interpreter service. The online interpreter assisted me throughout the call and later when l received treatment at the hospital, the doctors said the treatment saved my life.

“Being able to use contactSCOTLAND is amazing – it means my wife and l can understand what is being said, which makes us feel much more confident. This is a great service which Deaf people can use when they need it, no matter where they live in Scotland.”

Janis McDonald, Chief Officer, Scottish Council on Deafness (SCoD), said: “SCoD is proud to have been involved from the early days of the pilot work and sees many benefits to Deaf People wishing to access services that are readily available to hearing peers. It is terrific; accessible, discreet and confidential, designed with people in mind. Many have already received information and treatment because of it.

“We can see this type of access would have wider benefit – to help interaction with other public bodies and could be applied to many other situations of day to day life. It greatly reduces the inequality and access barriers Deaf, BSL Users face daily.

“We therefore welcome that the service is now being extended to all national and local public bodies ready to promote and support BSL and Deaf Users across Scotland and that Deaf users have access to public services like everyone else.”

The service is free and can be used to contact all public sector bodies in Scotland. It is not for emergency 999 calls. More information on how the BSL Video Relay Interpreting service works can be found on the contactSCOTLAND website www.contactscotland-bsl.org

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_WygONuSkdA

Granton’s Walled Garden – update

Hi all,

A quick update to say the deputation to the City Chambers went really well with a decision made to review the outdated ‘minded to grant’ planning permission for the 17 luxury townhouses.

I didn’t expect local councillors to be so surprised by this garden’s existence, age and rarity, or the fact that it was a council arms-length company’s responsibility. Heartening indeed was their decision to review the individual planning application by WEL from 2003, in light of new planning policies meant to protect the Historic Environment and Scotland’s Cultural Heritage. Hopefully this time they will refuse it in recognition of the value of this garden as incredibly rare and valuable heritage greenspace.

STV News wrote a good covering article on our deputation (link below):

plea-to-save-grantons-forgotten-walled-garden-put-to-council

Next meeting

Thursday 12 March

6-7.30pm at Royston Wardieburn Community Centre.

Please send in any agenda points you wish discussed.
Hopefully some of you can make this date and time.

Kirsty Sutherland,

Friends of Granton Castle Walled Garden

PS: Can everyone fill in a membership form if you haven’t done so already, postcode is handy to identify areas support is coming from, full address isn’t needed unless you wish to receive correspondence by post rather than e-mail.

For more information check out Friends of Granton Castle Walled Garden on FaceBook

Showcase: Raising the roof to support cancer charity

Showcase25 Launches!

Last week saw the launch of Showcase25, with the cast of a hundred finding out what is going to be in the 25^th anniversary celebration of Showcase on 29 and 30 May in the King’s Theatre.

Showcase is a musical theatre company which has performed annually since 1990 to raise money for charity using the musical skills and talents of some of the best ‘non-professional’ performers in Edinburgh and the surrounding area. Their aim is to produce a highly entertaining and professional show incorporating a wide variety of musical styles.

Cast member Amanda Hendrie, said: “Showcase25 will be my ninth show performing with Showcase and I cannot wait to perform on the King’s Theatre stage in May! The programme for this show is very strong and I am excited to be getting into rehearsals and putting it all together.”

Showcase25 will be a musical extravaganza paying tribute to Showcase past, present and future. It will feature a selection of the very best of Showcase including songs by Queen and Adele, as well as musical numbers from Les Miserables and Wicked.

Director, Andy Johnston, said: “It has been very difficult compiling a show that accurately represents 25 years worth of Showcase hits – our first draft programme would have run for nearly four hours! – but we feel this show will be an accurate representation of where Showcase came from, and of where we are now.”

While everyone involved performs in Showcase because of their love of the theatre, there is also a very serious side. Showcase is an important fundraiser for Macmillan Cancer Support in Scotland, having raised over £220,000 to date.

Andy Johnston added: “Each and every one of our cast gives so freely of their talents and time all to benefit Macmillan Cancer Support – I often remind the cast that as a company, we are in a very special position that we have a hobby than can genuinely change someone else’s life – and what can be more important than that?’

With 310,000 people diagnosed with cancer in the UK every year, many of the cast and supporters of Showcase have been affected by cancer and have first-hand experience of the support Macmillan gives.

Jayne Forbes, Macmillan Cancer Support Fundraising Manager, Edinburgh said: “We are extremely grateful to Showcase for their considerable support to date. They have raised an incredible amount of money which has helped us make a real difference to the lives of people affected by cancer.

“We help people in many ways, from specialist nurses and doctors, to help and advice for people who have financial worries as a result of their cancer diagnosis.

“In Edinburgh there are 53 specialist Macmillan nurses and health care professionals, helping people living with cancer and their families receive essential medical, practical and emotional support.

“None of this would be possible without supporters like Showcase. 98% of our funding comes from public donations. Quite simply, we couldn’t provide our services with support of local people.”

With over 100 voices singing in glorious harmony, it is bound to raise the roof of the King’s Theatre. Tickets are from £15 and are available at www.edtheatres.com/showcase.

Youth parliament candidate enjoys hustings event

The joint Edinburgh Central and Edinburgh Northern and Leith hustings that took place at the Out of the Blue Drill Hall was a fantastic night.

The questions asked from the audience were excellent and covered a huge range of issues. We heard questions raised regarding educational attainment, votes at 16 and homeless children, just to mention a few.

I even had a disagreement with Councillor Cammy Day on a Youth Parliament for Edinburgh Council, which I believe should be something that exists, whereas he doesn’t because he believes it was ‘a waste of time!’

It was a truly great experience to hear from young people on issues that mean something to them and an honour to be able to answer the questions to such an engaged crowd.

Kieran Reape

Candidate for Edinburgh Northern & Leith

Scottish Youth Parliament

Edinburgh College strikes gold

Gold for Edinburgh College at the College Development Network Marketing Awards

Edinburgh College scooped a top marketing award to recognise the success of a campaign to promote courses to prospective students this week.

The college won gold in the Integrated Marketing Campaign Award at the College Development Network (CDN) Marketing Awards 2015 on Wednesday (25 February), in recognition of a marketing campaign it ran to promote applications for college courses starting in January 2014.

The college also received two bronze medals at the awards, which celebrate the excellent marketing and communication practice taking place in colleges across Scotland.

The judges praised the college’s courses marketing campaign for its ‘bold creative approach and strong integration of messages and visuals tailored for different audiences’.

This campaign helped the college achieve its target for course applications and as well as the highest attendance recorded for an open day at Edinburgh College or at any of its legacy colleges.

The college also received two bronze medals in the following categories:

The Internal Communications Award, for communications around the college’s first staff conference in June 2014. The staff conference brought all the staff together to take part in workshops around the theme of innovation, covering technology, sustainability, teaching and learning, the workplace of the future and outward innovation. The judges felt the project highlighted that the college management had made a major effort to communicate with all staff appropriately to build buy-in and involvement.

The Customer Experience Award, for the college’s Centre for Creative Industries Student Employability Day. The day, which involved workshops and talks from industry professionals, was designed to develop students’ understanding of employers’ needs, give them insight into how they can make themselves as employable as possible, and promote positive destinations. The judges felt the event was well structured and that it gave the students access to industry practitioners. The project also enabled the college to engage with a number of employers.

The awards evening took place at The Caves in Edinburgh and featured two performances by the college’s HND Acting and Performance students, while attendees were treated to chocolates made by professional cookery students.

Edinburgh College interim principal Elaine McMahon said: “I am delighted that the efforts of our Marketing and Communications staff have been recognised with a gold and two bronze awards. It is satisfying to see that the judges recognised and appreciated the work put into planning and executing the extremely successful course marketing campaign, which resulted in the college meeting student recruitment targets for the year.

“It is also great to see the creative work put into supporting and communicating with staff and students recognised with two bronze awards.”

Last year, Edinburgh College achieved a silver award in the Internal Communications category and bronze in the Event category in the CDN Marketing Awards 2014.

Pictured: L-R Deborah Robertson, head of marketing, Moira Findlay, head of communications, Jon Buglass, head of the Centre of Creative Industries, and Lee-Anne Mackay, marketing manager.

John heads up service delivery

The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) has appointed John Miller as head of Service Delivery for the East of Scotland.

As the new Deputy Assistant Chief Officer (DACO) John (pictured) will oversee the Local Senior Officers (LSO’s) who work with individual Local Authorities and community partners to maintain dedicated local fire and rescue services across the area.

The three Service Delivery DACO posts – for East, North and West Scotland – were created in January to support the Director of Service Delivery for Scotland, Assistant Chief Officer Dave Boyle, in the delivery of fire and rescue services across the country.

John, who began his Fire Service career in 1992 said: “I’m delighted to have been given this opportunity and I look forward to working with colleagues in the East, including our fire board members, to help shape and deliver the best possible service to the communities in the East of Scotland.

“We work alongside various partners to ensure the best deployment of local frontline services and we have a commitment to build on the positive outcomes that have already been delivered through the antecedent fire and rescue services. In particular we will continue to focus on our prevention activities whilst ensuring an operational response where required.

“My role is to promote consistency and make sure we continue to deliver the excellent fire and rescue services that the public expect and deserve.”

John, who was the former LSO for North Lanarkshire, lives in Motherwell and has served 22 years in the service. He has had a number of national roles during his career including Road Safety with the Chief Fire Officer’s Association in Scotland (CFOAS) and a four year period in Fire Investigation where he helped draft the National Occupational Standards. He was also secretary of the Business Engagement Forum where he worked closely with key partners to help develop a national business plan.

John added: “I’ve been taken out my comfort zone and I’m looking forward to the challenges that come with this new role. I’m very fortunate in that I’m surrounded by a range of expertise across the east which I’m sure will be a great benefit to me. I’ll be out and about meeting staff and finding out what’s important to them during what is a huge period of change.”

John’s passion lies within Community Safety and with that he would like to remind everyone of FREE home fire safety visits.

“Our visits are designed to be a straightforward process for householders; the visits are easy to arrange and will be conducted at a time suitable for the individual.

“They only take around half an hour to complete and see local crews assess risks before providing advice to householders and families. The crews also fit smoke alarms where needed.

“Encourage those around you to get a free home fire safety visit. Call the SFRS freephone number 0800 0731 999 or text ‘FIRE’ to 80800. You can find out more by visiting

www.firescotland.gov.uk

or by contacting your local fire station.”