Tattoo to pay tribute to Robert Burns

Published on Friday 21 November 2008 21:02

ONE of Robert Burns' most dramatic works is to take centre stage at the 60th Edinburgh Military Tattoo.

Extracts from Tam O'Shanter, the bard's celebrated poem, will be staged on the castle esplanade as the centrepiece of next year's show to mark the Year of Homecoming. Dramatic scenes will also be beamed on to the walls of Edinburgh Castle during the Burns tribute.

The Tattoo will also be going on tour for four free showcases around the country as part of the Homecoming – a year-long series of events to coincide with the 250th anniversary of the birth of Robert Burns.

Tattoo organisers have revealed that, despite the financial downturn, interest in next year's show is "very encouraging" from the travel trade, even though tickets do not go on sale until 1 December.

Alan Smith, the marketing manager, said Homecoming was expected to help offset the impact of the credit crunch on the event. VisitScotland has spent months pushing Homecoming around the world and has pledged that Burns Night in January will be promoted more than ever before.

Next year's Tattoo will feature a drumming military band from Switzerland, an all-male Canadian choir, Tongan musicians and students from the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama in Glasgow.

The Homecoming celebrations kick off on Burns Night, with Glasgow's Celtic Connections festival hosting a series of major showcases, and will run until St Andrew's Night.