Edinburgh International Festival announces first Community Connections Hub

eif.co.uk / @edintfest  

The Edinburgh International Festival unveils the first Community Connections Hub following an  open call out earlier this year 

Space @ The Broomhouse Hub will work with the Edinburgh International Festival over a period of  at least 18 months to explore opportunities for collaboration and connection 

In August, the Community Connections Hub will host a free VR Experience where visitors can use a  VR headset to be fully immersed in a 360° concert by the Philharmonia Orchestra 

The Edinburgh International Festival today announces Space @  The Broomhouse Hub as the very first Community Connections Hub.

Space @ The Broomhouse Hub  was chosen following an open call out by the International Festival for an Edinburgh-based community organisation for a partnership that will last at least 18 months and will explore opportunities for collaboration  with the International Festival and the local community in Broomhouse. 

In August, Space @ The Broomhouse Hub will host a free VR experience from resident orchestra  Philharmonia. This 360° experience of Vaughan Williams’s The Lark Ascending makes its UK premiere  and features Festival Director Nicola Benedetti as the solo violinist.

This will allow the user to sit right in the heart of the orchestra through Virtual Reality, allowing them to experience the performance in  astonishing detail.  

As well as hosting the Philharmonia VR Experience, this partnership will be a fully collaborative process, and will be entirely shaped by Space @ The Broomhouse Hub and the International Festival’s shared ideas  and activities. 

This new residency model is designed to deepen understanding between the International Festival and the  local community, strengthen connections and enrich the local community and the spirit of the Festival. 

The Edinburgh International Festival is committed to developing long-term connections with Edinburgh’s Communities by exploring what our core values of discovery and connection mean for Edinburgh’s citizens whilst finding ways to reflect the ideas, ambitions and creative interests of different communities within our organisational commitments.

The International Festival wants to build long-term and sustainable  connections and have chosen a residency model working with one focused partner to allow for deepening  two-way understanding, allowing time to mature connections and realisation of joint ambitions. 

Caroline Donald, Head of Discovery & Participation, Edinburgh International Festival said: “The Edinburgh International Festival are really looking forward to working with our new community  partners Space @the Broomhouse Hub and working together to make new connections, getting to know all  the families and people in the community to create and share cultural experiences.” 

Neil Hay, CEO, Space @ The Broomhouse Hub, said: “This is fantastic news for Broomhouse and Southwest Edinburgh. This partnership will open up the  Edinburgh International Festival to new audiences, allowing local people and families to enjoy cultural  experiences our communities don’t normally access.

“We look forward to seeing all the exciting things the  partnership will bring this summer and the coming year.” 

More information on the Edinburgh International Festival’s Discovery and Participation programme, which runs year-round, can be found here:

https://www.eif.co.uk/social-impact.