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It's a week before the official Edinburgh Festival starts that the afternoon sun is in full swing in the bustling heart of the Royal Mile.
But no matter who arrives in the city for the first time could be forgiven as the world's largest arts festival is in full blast, so are the crowds of tourists and public entertainers outside of its seat.
Inside, last-minute preparations are made by the Fringe Society for its 20th year of high street management. , which will be revamped to coincide with the birthday.
One year after Fringe's 70th anniversary celebrations, everything indicates that the event is getting stronger, with more shows than ever before. staged on a record number of 317 locations.
But inside her modest office above the busy festival box office, Fringe Society CEO Shona McCarthy warns that complacency over the success of the event is with nearly 2.7 million Fringe notes staggered last year, it is not surprising that she is responsible for the vast majority of the 313 million pounds of economic impact that festivals have. Edinburgh today believe to be generated.
But the success of Fringe has had a boost for the Fringe Society and the hundreds of companies it works with every year.
The high cost of accommodation has been identified as the main obstacle to participation in the event. It is considered a more serious threat than the imminent prospect of Brexit.
The concerns raised by artists, artists, producers, and promoters are so seriously addressed by McCarthy that they have prompted him to warn that the "life force" of Edinburgh in August could be destroyed by the dramatic cost of staying in the city.
Rather than lowering the cost of accommodation, the opening of the new economy hotels in the city center and the Airbnb boom for the private accommodation sector simply seem to have pushed up prices even further.
McCarthy launched a "city-wide effort and commitment" to curb
She also wants us to make a collective effort to make sure that Edinburgh is considered a cultural capital of the year by all the major agencies of the city and that the arts are similar.
Appointed two and a half years ago, McCarthy had been responsible for the year of Derry-Londonderry as the first British city of culture and had led Belfast to become a European Capital of Culture. 19659003] As she prepares to take the lead of the event for the third time, she admits with some frustration that the composition of the Fringe is "misunderstood".
"I do not think people realize that the Fringe Society is a charity" There are big halls with great commercial acts, but there are also hundreds of free and paid organizations. you want shows, and free street events. It's such an eclectic mix of all possible business models. It's a phenomenon.
"I think people just make assumptions about what it is and how it works, we need to do more to articulate in a clear and transparent way how this festival works." This festival is not organized and financed by public funds. "
Although there are still many homes available in many hotels in the city this weekend, prices are hovering around £ 500 for a stay. One night, budget channels require more than £ 200 for a room on Princes Street or the Royal Mile.
Lowering the cost of housing in Edinburgh in August has been identified as one of the highest priorities for the Fringe in a new five-year McCarthy, who told tourism industry leaders earlier this year that the city needed to be more careful to offer a "favorable landscape" to the Fringe, admits that the problem n & # Is not new.
But she ins iste on the fact that there has never been any collective pressure to tackle the high cost of accommodation in order to ensure that the event remains " affordable and accessible to all. She said, "At the heart of the Fringe are the artists and creative people who come to work here."
"They are driving all the other economic impacts across the city in August – the moment it becomes too expensive for artists to spend the whole month here, or even be part of a race to Edinburgh, will kill the very thing that animates it first.
"A city that is proud of its festivals because of their positive global reputation, their economic impact, their their cultural impact and their social impact, they must take care to preserve them.
"The cost of accommodation could be the barrier" I know some people think, "Well, there is nothing you can do, it's up to market forces and what can the Fringe Society do about it? "
think it's just complacency. If we do not take a leadership role around him, who will? "
The launch of the Fringe 2018 program last month is accompanied by the unveiling of a five-year plan for the future of the event.
include the extension from a program launched last year to ensure the distribution of free tickets for shows to local charities, to ensure that artists have a status without a license to participate in the event after the Brexit and find a new home for all the year.the event in the heart of downtown.
The vision was born from several months of discussions with the participants of Fringe, who did not left no doubt to McCarthy and his team on the priority issue to be addressed over the next few years
. "The cost of accommodation was by far the thing that was most raised in the conversations we had , "she said." Now we have to make an effort. oncert to remedy it.
"We know we have a responsibility ourselves.That's why we have frozen our registration fees for a twelfth year and we are committed to them being frozen for the next five years and, ideally, they will never increase again – and if anything really decreases.
We are committed to reducing the commission we take on ticket sales from 4% to 3%.
"The Fringe Society can not do everything alone. We are the ones who say, "This is going to be a problem, you are going to kill the life force of these festivals if you do not do anything about it."
"It's very simple.If you are an artist and that you can not find housing in a place that offers you a platform for up to a month no matter how much you want to do.If you can not afford it, you can not get it allow.
"You can not continue to raise prices. "
" Some people in the industry have been prepared to work with us and adopt more ethical positions, but we just put that on the market.
] "But how would it have been necessary to open a conversation about the problems, the barriers, the worries and the threats and when they come back and say that they are concerned about the increasing cost of hosting for then ignore it and say nothing? "
William Burdett-Coutts, founder of the Assembly Festival, said:" We are already experiencing problems bringing shows to Edinburgh because of the costs involved "
" There are countless shows that we have talked about, so we can come here.
"With bigger shows and high quality work, we have to help cover their costs for Make sure they do not go away with a big loss. He would not be in Edinburgh otherwise.
"If you look at the festival circuit and what people can do elsewhere in the world, the costs in Edinburgh are legendary.It's already a real hindrance.I was talking to someone about 39, another night whose accommodation costs in Edinburgh are higher than their plane ticket from Australia.
"The costs for everyone are huge in Edinburgh, but this Is not a commercial environment. You do not come to Edinburgh to make money unless you are a great comedian. But we can not have the same acts every year. To encourage newcomers to come here, people need to be viable.
Karen Koren, founder of Gilded Balloon, said: "This is not the only challenge we face during the Festival, but the costs of accommodation. The people who increase the prices and the exploitation of Fringe artists is not something we agree with, and we would like to have a plan to fix it in the years to come. "
A spokesman for the Edinburgh City Council said: working with festivals, accommodation providers and halls and all other stakeholders to address the problem of affordability faced to a strong real estate market and continued pressure on public money. "
Fringe from last year on controversy over claims Edinburgh was the last city to suffer from over-tourism
The groups have requested that steps be taken to explore the impact of the tourism industry on the city during peak festival periods in summer and winter, an official report released by City Council in January warned that Edinburgh was struggling to cope with the "choking bottlenecks" of crowds in old and new cities, a lack of space for pedestrians, pressure on roads and public transport networks , and an inability for many people to "continue a normal life".
McCarthy said, "For me, festivals and heritage are interconnected, they should not be in conflict, they should be absolutely hand in hand and work together."
"The story tells the story History of Edinburgh and the contemporary representation of Scotland in the world.
"But the Fringe has been around for 70 years and is now part of the city's heritage, and it's as much a part of the city's reputation as the castle."
"I would like to see much more important collaborative efforts among all the organizations in the city to make everything work for the good of all.
"We should see Edinburgh as a culture capital year-round to make sure everything is working properly and have a planning process all year round, not just three months before the start. festivals. "
McCarthy rejects the public wrath of the Edinburgh festivals is growing.
"You have to weigh things in. Edinburgh is a busy city all year now.I can walk around in June and September and I feel as busy as in August.
" D & D Other people come here all year long and want to understand the model and how to do it for them.For me, the Fringe should be more valuable and valued than to complain about it. 19659003] "I would like people in the city to have more opportunities to work together and say," What are the problems here? "
" The reason Edinburgh Festivals work and make it a festival town beyond any other city in the world is the backdrop.It is the landscape, the castle, the walkability, the beauty, the heritage and the back-story
"I sincerely believe that the Fringe is more accessible than ever to the public. It's all about communication and messaging. Sometimes myths and legends about the event do not help. But the reality is that you can do the Fringe without a budget and see an incredible mix of work.
"Two years ago, my two daughters came here with a budget of £ 50 each, they managed to go out and see four or five shows every day, they knew each movement."
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