LA Phil at Tynecastle: final free tickets released this morning

• Final tickets to Edinburgh International Festival’s opening event available from 10am on Friday, 26 July;
• This family-friendly event will see the legendary Gustavo Dudamel conducting the world-class LA Phil at Tynecastle Stadium, performing Hollywood’s biggest film scores, including Harry Potter series, Star Wars and Casablanca;
• Edinburgh International Festival’s ambitious community engagement programme includes Gorgie’s very own Walk of Fame celebrating local children’s talents.
• Edinburgh International Festival is delighted to continue the sponsorship partnership with Aberdeen Standard Investments and to have the ongoing support of EventScotland.

TODAY (Friday, 26 July) Edinburgh International Festival releases its final wave of tickets for the completely free 15,000 capacity Aberdeen Standard Investments Opening Event: LA Phil at Tynecastle. The tickets are available from 10am at www.eif.co.uk.

The Opening Event sees the LA Phil, one of the world’s leading orchestras conducted by the legendary Gustavo Dudamel, perform some of the best-loved film music in front of a vast crowd at the iconic Tynecastle Stadium, home to Hearts football team.

Due to an earlier start time, informal environment, world-famous and widely accessible musical programme, and significant capacity, the concert is expected to attract a mix of families, music lovers, and first-time classical music audiences.

To accompany this world-class event, the Festival’s Learning and Engagement team has devised an ambitious community engagement programme. It saw the team working with local community groups and primary schools to help break down the barriers to attend the concert and engage with the event.

Through one project in Gorgie and Dalry, local primary school pupils had the opportunity to design their own stars in the style of those in Hollywood’s Walk of Fame, each celebrating the individual children’s talents. These will be unveiled in Tynecastle Stadium’s concourse on 2 August. Gustavo Dudamel himself has a Walk of Fame star which was unveiled in January 2019 in the presence of composer John Williams.

The photo marks the final release of tickets for the Aberdeen Standard Investments Opening Event at Hearts’ Tynecastle Stadium.

Jessica Cunningham and Annie Clark (both 9 years old) of Craiglockhart Primary School are joined by Hearts legend Gary Locke, who, as the club captain, lifted the 1997-1998 Scottish Cup. Gary is also HMFC’s Principal Ambassador.

Pictures: Ryan Buchanan