ARTICLE: Out in the Hills Festival

Festival report

Pitlochry Festival Theatre: Fri 16 – Sun 18 January 2026
by Rebecca Mahar

Article commissioned by, and originally published on All Edinburgh Theatre, 26 January 2026. Edited by Thom Dibdin.

This month saw Pitlochry Festival Theatre launch Out in the Hills, a brand new festival celebrating all those LGBTQIA+, that “invites everyone to find new ways to look at the world, and each other.”

Rebecca Mahar was able to get along on the Saturday and here reports from her day out at the Theatre in the Hills – where the weather couldn’t dampen the events indoors.

Ian McKellen performing in Equinox. Pic: Tommy Ga-Ken Wan.

Over three days packed with theatre, music, film, dancing and conversation, Out in the Hills brings together world-famous stars and up-and-coming artists; researchers and musicians; young and old and in between. In the darkness of January, Pitlochry Festival Theatre blazes as a beacon of light and joy, with the festival representing Artistic Director Alan Cumming’s first piece of new programming, curated by Lewis Hetherington.

Visit All Edinburgh Theatre to read the full report!

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