Edinburgh fringe event organisers urged to capitalise on Oasis and AC/DC gigs

Organisers of Edinburgh fringe events have been urged to be “pretty smart” and capitalise on the decision by Oasis and AC/DC to play gigs in the city midway through the festival.There was surprise and irritation when it emerged the bands would be staging four concerts at Murrayfield stadium in mid-August when the world’s largest arts festival is in full flow.Tony Lankester, who recently took over as the Fringe Society’s chief executive, said fringe companies should see the concerts as an opportunity rather than fret about downsides.About 75,000 fans are expected for each concert – three by Oasis and one by AC/DC, putting the city’s trains, buses and trams under even greater strain, with visitors competing for already scarce and expensive hotel beds.Lankester, who previously ran South Africa’s national arts festival, said fringe venues should tempt Edinburgh residents who may “want to hide” when the concerts take place with discounted tickets or free wine

‘We will not stay silent’: Ariana Grande and Pedro Pascal among supporters of LGBTQ+ suicide lifeline

Pedro Pascal, Ariana Grande and Jamie Lee Curtis are among the names included on an open letter aimed at protecting federal funds for LGBTQ+ suicide prevention.In collaboration with nonprofit organisation The Trevor Project, the letter has been released during Pride month and also features names such as Dua Lipa, Daniel Radcliffe, Troye Sivan, Sabrina Carpenter and Nathan Lane.“As artists, creators, and public figures, our platforms come with responsibility,” the letter reads. “And today, that responsibility is clear: we must speak out to protect the mental health and lives of LGBTQ+ youth. We will not stay silent

‘It was an I Will Survive for the 1990s’: how McAlmont & Butler made Yes

‘David only had words for one verse. “Just sing it twice,” I said. “We can worry about that later.” But we never got around to it – and people don’t seem to notice’I’d just left Suede and was living in a basement flat in Highgate, London, making music in my tiny box room. It was a lonely time, but a lovely summer and I decided to do something uplifting and joyous

‘We need new numbers’: Comedian David Cross cracks jokes to spread climate crisis awareness

David Cross is many things: a famed comic, an Emmy award winner, and a New York Times bestseller. But he is not a climate scientist.That fact might make him the perfect person to communicate the urgency of global heating to mass audiences.“You’ve got to speak to people in a way they can understand,” he said.That’s the purpose of a new video in which Cross co-stars with the renowned environmental scientist Michael Oppenheimer

Each night, a 14-year-old tasks two actors with playing her parents. They haven’t seen the script

One evening in June last year, actor Ewen Leslie rocked up at Sydney’s Belvoir St theatre to find out what show he was performing that night and meet his fellow actors for the first time. All he had was an email telling him to prepare his best Werner Herzog impression, to wear comfortable clothes, and to expect content around “childhood, parenthood and mental health disorders”.A couple of hours later he was on stage, script in hand, being directed by a 13-year-old in front of an audience and struggling not to cry.The assignment was POV: a micro-budget, 70-minute show which follows a teenager named Bub, who is making a documentary about her parents. Each night, two adult actors who have not rehearsed or seen the script before step into the role of the parents, guided on stage by the young actor playing Bub

From Van Gogh to Superman: Keep cool with our guide to the summer’s best arts and entertainment

From a very hungry crocodile to some equally famished zombies, a superstar Compton rapper to a Smallville superhero: our critics choose the eye-opening arts events that will dazzle you over the next few monthsA Midsummer Night’s DreamBridge theatre, London, to 20 August Nicholas Hytner’s theatrical blockbuster returns to the Bridge theatre, which has developed a real knack for folding the audience into the action. This promenade version of Shakespeare’s romantic comedy was a smash hit six years ago and is light on its feet and effortlessly charming. The new cast includes Susannah Fielding as Titania and Emmanuel Akwafo as the hapless Bottom. Miriam GillinsonHow to Win Against HistoryBristol Old Vic, 19 June to 12 July Bristol Old Vic and Francesca Moody Productions revive this flamboyant musical based on the bonkers life of the 5th Marquess of Anglesey, who blew the family fortune on diamond dresses, lilac-dyed poodles and endless extravagances. When he died at 29, his outraged Edwardian family scrubbed him from the records