THE TOWER | PORTOBELLO
Fringe Festival Venue in Edinburgh
Host your Edinburgh Fringe show in one of the city’s most distinctive creative spaces. The Tower Portobello offers an intimate, design led venue for small performances, previews and pop up shows throughout August, with the possibility of a full month residency.
During August, Edinburgh is electric and inspiring, but also intense. The Tower sits slightly apart from the chaos, in Portobello, the city’s creative seaside neighbourhood. It is close enough to feel the festival energy, yet far enough to give both performers and audiences something rare during the Fringe: peace, personality and sea air.
With one beautiful room per floor, a rooftop terrace and a private courtyard, The Tower is ideal for immersive storytelling, small theatre, acoustic gigs and spoken word. Shows feel more like gatherings in a beautiful private home than performances in a traditional black box venue. The building becomes part of the experience.
Designed for Small Scale, High Impact Performances
The Tower’s rooms are intimate by design, giving each performance a cinematic, immersive quality. Audiences are close enough to feel every gesture and shift in tone, making the space perfect for work built on presence and connection. Ideal for:
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Comedy previews and one person shows
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Spoken word and poetry
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Storytelling and immersive theatre
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Short film screenings and multimedia work
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Rehearsals, workshops and podcast recordings
Each hire includes full privacy, a host on site and access to Wi Fi, power and flexible seating layouts. There is no competing sound bleed or constant venue turnover. Just your show, your audience and an environment you control.
Venue Spaces and Atmosphere
You can use the entire building as a vertical performance journey or select one main floor with others as support.
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Ground Floor - Entry-level welcome space, ideal for box office, first impressions, small installations or pre-show gatherings.
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Mid Floors Flexible performance areas with natural acoustics, adjustable lighting and seated or standing capacity for up to ~20 guests. Perfect for comedy, spoken word, small theatre or intimate gigs.
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Rooftop Sea-view platform for sunrise or sunset performances, press interviews, photo calls or post-show celebrations. It’s pure Edinburgh Fringe magic – with the beach and skyline as your backdrop.
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Courtyard Outdoor breakout space for audience mingling, pre-show drinks, pop-up installations or press moments.
Capacity: around 15–20 seated (depending on setup)
Access: stairs between levels (no lift)
Fringe Performance Hire Packages
Full Fringe Residency: Tower Takeover
While short runs work beautifully, The Tower is at its best when one company adopts the building for the entire month of August. This model allows you to:
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Use the building as your Fringe home base
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Programme your own shows, workshops, readings and press moments
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Keep your ticket revenue and monetise the space your own way
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Host VIP events and content days
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Create a fully branded, atmospheric Fringe experience
This approach works especially well for international companies who want a distinctive Edinburgh Fringe venue rather than a generic black box space. It offers room to perform, create, meet audiences and host collaborators under one roof.
We generally welcome one primary company per Fringe, or two aligned partners sharing intentionally. This allows the building to become part of your storytelling rather than just another room on a festival schedule.
Full Fringe Residencies are priced on application.
Short Run
Ideal for 2–5 consecutive performance days.
Price on Request
Optional Add Ons
Lighting or sound equipment
Technician or stage manager
Press photographer or videographer
Catering or drinks partner setup
Rooftop after-show drinks
Location and Access
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Situated in Portobello, around 15 minutes from Edinburgh city centre
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Steps from the beach and close to cafés and independent shops
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Quiet residential setting ideal for natural light and controlled sound
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On street parking nearby and simple ground floor load in
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Multiple floors provide varied angles and backdrops without moving equipment across town
Please note that The Tower is a heritage building and is not wheelchair accessible. All floors are connected by stairs.
Bring your Fringe show, or your entire season, to a venue as unique as your performance. Whether you are exploring a full month takeover or a short run, share your company details, preferred dates and your show concept. We will return with availability, format options and a tailored Fringe proposal.
Address
The Tower | Portobello
Beach Lane
Edinburgh
EH15 1HJ