EURO SUMMIT FEATURE
OK, so you’ve not been able to get to work all week
for the cavalcades of limos forgetting which side of the road to drive on, but it’s time to make amends with a day of free outdoor celebrations in Central Edinburgh. Mark Fisher, Alastair Mabbott and Carol Main guide you through the non-stop events of Saturday 12 December.
THE ITINERARY
Start the afternoon at the Grassmarket Fair (noon—6.30pm). walk up to St Giles Cathedral for the early-evening concert (6.30pm). catch the first spectacular performances in Parliament Square at 8pm. enjoy curious happenings on the Royal Mile on your way to the bill of Scottish music at the Tron. and finally choose between Sean Hughes at the Royal Lyceum (10.30pm) or ail-night entertainment at the new Traverse Theatre from 11pm.
THE GRASSMARKET
I Grassmarket Fair Noon—6.30pm. The
an afternoon‘s worth of stalls and street entertainment. A chance for M. Delors to get in a spot of Christmas shopping.
I Kiih and Kin 3.45pm. Eclectic sounds from the Scottish rockers who draw on multi-ethnic styles to enhance their brass. fiddle. guitar and drum line-up.
I Flipside During the afternoon. Grassmarket East. Gravitational comedy from the Glasgow-based trio who have performed their off-beat juggling routines around the world as well as on the local comedy circuit.
I The Hump" Family During the afternoon. The acoustic thrash oftrad Scots groovers promoting their second album will have you dancing in the street. I Michaelangelo During the afternoon. The Summit in the City reaches new heights as Michaelangelo puts on his stilts to straddle the Grassmarket.
m‘ :3}: .. I Bio Rory During the afternoon. Kilted stiltsman with high-level entertainment.
I Jester During the afternoon. No market celebrations would be complete without a
man dressed in pointy shoes and carryinga bladder on a stick.
ST GILES CATHEDRAL
' I The Concert at the Cathedral St Giles'
1 Cathedral. High Street. Tickets: 668 2019 (Queen‘s Hall Box Office)/Cathedral
, Shop. 6.30pm. £5. As part of the Summit ; in the City programme. the St Giles‘
Singers and Orchestra perform Part I of
The Messiah. Zadok the Priest with John
Kitchen as soloist in Handel‘s ()rgan
‘ Concerto ()p 4 N02.
PARLIAMENT SQUARE
Grassmarket Area group has co-ordinated ;
I Antibody Between 8pm and 11pm. A drummer and three singers are joined on stage by seven life-size androids powered by lawnmower and windscreen wiper motors and lit up with 12v car lights. A set made up of scrap metals and plastics is illuminated by fluorescent lights in a colourful and witty show.
I Plasticiens Volants Between 8pm and 11pm. Striking visuals. giant inflatables
. and stunning pyrotechnics characterise the style of this major French company which
you may have seen at the opening ceremony of the Barcelona Olympics earlier in the year. The name of the show
; is Giganlo Maehie. a hit throughout ‘ Southern Europe. but previously unseen
in Britain. One not to miss. though it‘s
unlikely you'll have much say in the matter.
ROYAL MILE
I Flipside During the evening. See Grassmarket above.
I The Humpii Family During the evening.
See Grassmarket above. I XIII! and Kin Two sets duringthe
evening. See Grassmarket above.
I Michaelangelo During the evening. See
Grassmarket above.
I Inner Sense Percussion Orchestra During
the evening. Eight-piece percussion ensemble from Manchester who appeared here in the Festival. Their rhythms have a Latin American influence. so they‘re highly danceable.
I Living Portraits During the evening. Artist Duncan Whiteman has created
9" if ‘1' V
“A
these coloured sculptures whose energy and emotion causes them to burst out of the solidity ofconventional sculpture. Whiteman‘s human models are given a second skin of lycra fabric that simplifies their shape and conceals their identity.
I The Kiss Signet Library. Duringthe evening. Another Duncan Whiteman ‘living sculpture‘. See Living Portraits above.
I Busking Pipers During the evening. Traditional Scottish entertainers earning their keep in less than traditional style.
I Headless People During the evening. The Whalley Range All Stars have already stunned the EEC Summit in Birmingham
1 with this comic and sinister apparition.
and they've been specially invited to Edinburgh for a performance that is head and shoulders above the rest.
I Urban Strawberry Lunch Duringthe
' evening. ‘ 100 per cent trash dance music
for the let century" is the speciality ofthis four-piece band who combine world-music rhythms with contemporary pop melodies. Regulars at large-scale outdoor events. Urban Strawberry Lunch make noise from the most unlikely of objects — water piping. scrap metal, hub caps — and are augmented by a singer. a poet and a three-strong brass section.
THE TRON
I Capercaillie Between 9pm and 11.15pm. 1992 has been Capercaillie's year. in no uncertain terms. Few could have anticipated that their traditional Gaelic melodies. married to the textures ofclassy adult rock. would have captured the public‘s imagination the way it has. Least ofall. that they would manage it singingin the Gaelic tongue. A fitting end to the day’s proceedings.
I The Silencers Between 9pm and 11.15pm. Currently enjoying a higher profile in Europe than they do at home. The Silencers have nevertheless been seen at most major Scottish musical events over the last five years. The rockiest band on tonight's bill. but possessed ofsubtlety and songwriting ingenuity.
THE CITY
Flipside F
I Hue 8: Cry Between 9pm and 1 1 . 15pm. Lack of major label support did little more than slow the Kane brothers down a little. and they bounced back this year with the independently-released Truth And Love. another slab of sophisticated. reflective blue-eyed pop.
I My Bain and Phil Cunningham Between 9pm and 11.15pm. The country's leading traditional fiddler (and star of The Shetland Sessions) teams up with his regular partner. accordionist Phil Cunningham.
I Dick Gaughan Between 9pm and 11.15pm. lndisputably one of Scotland‘s greatest songwriters and most compelling performers. whose controversial subject matter has no doubt denied him the wider attention he merits.
TRAVERSE
I Inner Sense Percussion Orchestra f Traverse Theatre. Cambridge Street. ‘ Between 11pm and 4am. See Royal Mile above.
I The Peristalsis Brothers Traverse Theatre. Cambridge Street. Between
11pm and 4am.
ROYAL LYCEUM ;
I Sean Hughes Royal Lyceum. Grindlay Street. 229 9697. 10.30pm. £8.50 (£7.50). Ireland‘s brightest. silliest and downright . cutest comedy export comes to town with ai special gig to round off the day's events—J
The List—ti— name; 1992 o