Storm Floris: 72 Edinburgh Festival Fringe shows cancelled at Pleasance Courtyard as amber wind alert hits
The Pleasance has cancelled shows and closed its Courtyard and Plaza
One major Fringe venue cancelled 72 shows and closed its main hub for more than seven hours in the face of an amber wind warning for Storm Floris.
The Pleasance, which was due to reopen at 7.30pm on Monday, said it had shut its Pleasance Courtyard and Plaza for the first time in the venue’s 41 year history and cancelled all shows on Monday afternoon. Venue organisers also cancelled eight shows at its Arcade venue, which is in a shipping container.
Earlier, seven shows scheduled for The Green, a temporary tent-like structure, at the Pleasance were scrapped.
Shedinburgh, at the Edinburgh College of Art, also closed for the day, cancelling planned events in the afternoon. Underbelly temporarily closed its Circus Hub, stopping show The Ruckus after it had begun. Flying Bubbleman and Flip Fabrique were also been called off. However, the venue said it hoped to reopen later.
An amber weather warning is in place for the majority of Scotland between 10am and 10pm on Monday as Storm Floris batters the north of the UK.
Pleasance director Anthony Alderson told The Scotsman: “We’ve never closed the Pleasance Courtyard for this amount of time before, this is the first time in 41 years.
“This is entirely precautionary. It’s a complicated site, the Pleasance Courtyard. It’s a lot of little theatres around an enclosed space and they’re historic buildings. We have a very thorough safety management plan in terms of wind.
“We’re all different, every venue has its own plan.”
Mr Alderson said the financial impact of a day’s closure would be “significant”, with up to 15,000 audience members potentially affected.
Announcing the reopening, he said: “We are delighted to announce that the Pleasance Courtyard will reopen from 7pm this evening with shows resuming from 7.30pm.
“It’s never easy to close, especially during such a busy time in the festival. We’re incredibly grateful for everyone’s patience and understanding and we encourage audiences to return to the Courtyard this evening and continue showing their support.
“We can’t wait to welcome you back to experience the incredible shows and electric atmosphere that define the Pleasance.”
Other Pleasance venues, including the Dome on Bristo Square and the Edinburgh International Conference Centre (EICC), remained open.
The venue said earlier it was “investigating exchanges” for any audience members who had shows booked at any Pleasance venues, but were unable to attend due to the weather, which has caused widespread transport cancellations.
The update came after Fringe by the Sea cancelled all shows for Monday, while the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo called off its 9.30pm performance.
The Edinburgh International Festival’s Ceilidh Sessions event on Monday night was also cancelled because of the city council’s decision to close Princes Street Gardens due to the storm.
A spokeswoman for Fringe by the Sea said: “With Storm Floris incoming, we have taken the decision to close Fringe By The Sea tomorrow. We will reopen on Tuesday 10am.
“Ticket holders for events on Monday 4th August will be notified by email of cancellations or rescheduled events [where possible]. Cancelled events will be refunded automatically – please bear with us while we work with our ticketing agent to process these transactions.”
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