Nostalgia: All singing, all dancing!

AS dull winter weather continues to take centre stage in the Capital, it is to be hoped some summer sunshine will soon appear from its wait in the wings.

And with that creeps ever closer festival season and all things singing and dancing across the city to make us smile.

News this week that Susan Boyle is planning to be one of the first big names to perform at the revamped Odeon cinema on Clerk Street will undoubtedly lift spirits, with the talent show superstar pledging to support her brother’s ambitious plans to reopen the mothballed venue.

The singer is due to perform at the former cinema on August 11, just days after Jerry Boyle has transformed it into an entertainment complex to draw in Las Vagas cabaret acts.

The venue will find itself right at home in Edinburgh with its long-held reputation for providing entertainment excellence.

Pictured here, fellow superstar Alan Cumming marked his place in that tradition back in September 1987 when he brought a slice of cabaret to the stage of Musselburgh’s Brunton Theatre.

Performing as an infatuated young writer in Cabaret, a musical based on Christopher Isherwood’s Berlin stories and John Van Druten’s play, he was joined by actress Anne Smith in her first appearance at the theatre.

Countless acts have tread the boards before and after, despite some venues drawing their curtains for the final time.