Thanks to all of you who joined us for the International Festival 2018. We had a blast and hope that you did too. Join us in reliving some of the magical performances this August with these snapshots that we've been capturing throughout the month.

The experience at the Aberdeen Standard Investments Opening Event Five Telegrams 2018

We started things off with the spectacular Aberdeen Standard Investments Opening Event: Five Telegrams, a multimedia composition by Anna Meredith and 59 Productions that was projected onto the outside of Usher Hall.

To celebrate Scotland's Year of Young People 2018, this event featured costume designs by ECA students, performances from a flashmob choir, and input into the event's management from young aspiring arts workers and filmmakers. Watch this snapshot of their experiences on the night below.

You can watch the full performance of Aberdeen Standard Investments Opening Event: Five Telegrams here.

Light on the Shore with Edinburgh Gin Seaside

Under the recently rediscovered roof of Leith Theatre, we showcased the vitality and eclecticism of Scotland's contemporary music scene. With performances from Karine Polwart, The Jesus and Mary Chain, Mogwai, and much much more, Light on the Shore with Edinburgh Gin Seaside was a joyful celebration of the artists who have put Scotland squarely on the international stage.

Theatre

This year's thought provoking programme asked potent questions about the world today while also celebrating the personal and everyday. Productions like Waiting for Godotand Midsummer re-imagined past classics to critical acclaim, while others like HOME showed how new writing can delight with beautiful choreography and a little bit of magic.

Dance

Spotlighting some of the most innovative contemporary choreography from across the globe, we hosted Wayne McGregor's Autobiography - a dance piece inspired by genetics and McGregor's own genome sequences - and Akram Khan's final full-length solo dance performance XENOS. Marking 100 years since World War One's Armistice, Khan also devised the dance piece Kadamati to be danced by hundreds of local young dance groups in a powerful gesture of unity. Commissioned by 14–18 NOW: WWI Centenary Art Commissions, Kadamatiwill also be performed in September in Paris.

Orchestral Music & Opera

In honour of Leonard Bernstein's birth centenary, we celebrated the much-loved composer and his continuing legacy with a a series of concerts, including a performance from the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra led by his ex-student Marin Alsop on what would have been his 100th birthday. We were also joined once again by the Hallé Orchestra for a concert performance of the third installment of Wagner's Ring Cycle Siegfried, featuring a spectacular performance from Christine Goerke as the shield maiden Brünnhilde, and played host to the visually stunning The Barber of Seville.

Contemporary Music

On a rare visit to Scotland, art rock star St Vincent delivered the "blistering, disturbing rock show" from her I Am A Lot Like You tour to the Edinburgh Playhouse.

Same time next year? Join us for the next Edinburgh International Festival between 2-26 August 2019.