International poetry and performance festival themed 'The Space Between', with opening night cabaret, a festival gig and three new poetry-led performance commissions.
Push The Boat Out returns to The Pleasance from 12 to 15 November, with the opening night cabaret kicking off on Thursday 12 November from 8:00 pm to 10:00 pm. It's the latest edition of Scotland's newest poetry and multi-arts festival, which runs alongside a year-round programme and a community-engagement side. This year's theme is The Space Between, and it looks at liminal and transitional spaces — the places where people, ideas, identities and art forms meet, and the possibilities that open up in moments of transition, connection and change. The theme also reaches the festival's 'Shorelines', and the cultural significance and climate threats facing them.
At the heart of the programme are three new poetry-led performance commissions created with the National Theatre of Scotland, each pairing poetry with a different discipline: Tits by Gray Crosbie and Guy Woods brings together spoken word theatre and birdsong; Terror Error by Sunnah Khan works with archive and testimony; and Spatial Murmurs by Catherine Street and Nancy Burns combines voice and film. Festival director Emma Collins says the festival invites audiences to discover poetry in unexpected places and forms.
The line-up is a long one. The opening night cabaret features Luke Wright, and Saturday night brings a gig with Anthony Joseph and band. Joining them are Jackie Kay, Joseph Coelho, Marjorie Lotfi, Henry Normal, Sarah Howe, Karen Solie, Naomi Shihab Nye, Fady Joudah, Kwame Dawes, Joelle Taylor, Dean Atta, Kirsty Logan, JL Williams, Peter Mackay, Lorna Goodison, Nick Makoha, Don Mee Choi, Hannah Lavery, Bee Asha, EmmaClaire Brightlyn and Kim Moore. The main hub is The Pleasance, Pleasance Courtyard, 60 Pleasance, Edinburgh EH8 9TJ, with satellite venues around the city.
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Push The Boat Out is an award-winning arts and poetry charity whose mission is to increase diversity in poetry, in form and in the artists it spotlights, and to bring the art form to new audiences. Tickets range from £5 to £55 before booking fees, with free and pay-what-you-can options available, and festival passes for £55.
