The Edinburgh International Festival presents a rich programme of classical music, theatre, opera and dance in six major theatres and concert halls and a number of smaller venues, over a three-week period in late summer each year.
In addition to mounting the annual three week programme of events, the Festival has a year-round programme of education and outreach work, aimed at all ages from primary school pupils to adults.
The Festival began in 1947, with the aim of providing 'a platform for the flowering of the human spirit'. Right from the start it inspired people to put on shows of their own outwith the official Festival, and soon these grew into the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. Since then half a dozen or so more festivals have grown up around it in August and early September, and collectively these are often known as 'the Edinburgh Festival'.