Edinburgh’s International Poetry Festival, Push the Boat Out (PTBO), returns from 20–23 November, bringing its signature blend of poetry, performance, and innovation to a new home at the Pleasance. With over 120 artists and 63 events, the festival once again blurs the boundaries between page and stage — and theatre lovers will find plenty to dive into.
A special collaboration with the National Theatre of Scotland takes centre stage, debuting three newly devised works ranging from film to electronica with new performances from Iona Lee, Nikki Kent, Garry Mackenzie, Sam Firth, Taylor Dyson, James Wyness, Callum Kelly and Craig Aitchison. Each piece explores the festival’s Anthropocene theme, delving into the human impact on our planet through vivid, performative storytelling.
New theatre collective What Now? will premiere bold new work in a powerful lineup of Scottish talent, with new commissions from Hannah Lavery, Zinnie Harris, and William Letford, that’s unafraid to tackle the urgent questions of our time by responding to today’s shifting political and social landscapes.
Elsewhere, Tim Wells and Jay Mitra promise an evening of punk-infused poetic rebellion, while Ellen Renton and Lord of the Isles bring a dreamlike fusion of sound and spoken word in a show that transforms the stage into a sonic poem.
Tinderbox Orchestra see out the festival with a finale of rappers, poets, strings and bass which will feature the first live sharing of a new single, Echoes of Creation, written in collaboration with performanc poet, Hannah McCooke.
For audiences seeking theatre that challenges, provokes, and mesmerises, PTBO 2025 offers a weekend where poetry takes on new dramatic life: performed, embodied, and unbound.
📅 Push the Boat Out: 20–23 November 2025
📍 The Pleasance, Edinburgh
🔗 Full programme: www.pushtheboatout.org