Baillie Gifford announces new partnership with Edinburgh Festival

A long-term sponsor of the International Festival, the Edinburgh-based investment house has significantly increased its support in a partnership beginning this year.

The partnership will support a dance production in the 2017 and 2019 International Festivals.

In 2018, enhanced investment will be around a dance programme focussed on promoting new talent, the firm said.

Details of this year’s programme, and the event sponsored by Baillie Gifford, will be announced next week when the 2017 International Festival programme is made public on Wednesday.

The partnership marks a new chapter of the relationship between these two Edinburgh organisations.

Baillie Gifford has supported the International Festival for 29 years, in an association going back to 1988, and has backed a number of landmark productions and artists in that time, across dance and classical music at the Festival.

In recent years, Baillie Gifford has focussed on investment in the dance programme, and supported a number of high-profile artists and ensembles including; ballet icon Sylvie Guillem, Scottish Ballet, Benjamin Millepied’s L.A. Dance Project, the National Ballet of China and Brazil’s Grupo Corpo.

In a statement, Baillie Gifford said the new partnership is part of “a focus at the International Festival to work with Edinburgh headquartered companies who share an objective to promote the city as an exceptional place to live, work and do business.

It added: “This ongoing, and now enhanced relationship, supports the International Festival to bring a world-class programme to the city, and to invest in the next generation of talent that will shine on Edinburgh’s stages in the years to come.”

International Festival director, Fergus Linehan, said: “We have a long standing relationship with our partners at Baillie Gifford and are delighted to have them on board for the next three years. Brand and business partnerships are an important part of our overall development strategy, and those that extend over multiple festivals support our sustainable planning. We look forward to our continued work together, and to announcing our full 2017 programme on Wednesday 15th March, including details of the world-class event supported by Baillie Gifford.”