Klassics for Kids: The Ugly Duckling meets Peter and the Wolf

Following their ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ and sold-out show in the Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2024:

"enlightening" "Matthew Shiel has ‘composed’ a most enchanting concert" (⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Edinburgh Guide)

"A ripping good yarn. Sim and Shiel both are masters of their crafts." (⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Binge Fringe)

"an atmosphere which is all too often missed in our digital world" (⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Corr Blimey)

Moonlight Concerts return to the Edinburgh Fringe 2025 with a new children's concert! A fun, interactive and educational classical concert experience designed especially for children! Join acclaimed author and storyteller Alastair Sim and Usher Hall emerging artist and pianist Matthew Shiel as they compose a new musical and storytelling setting of Hans Christian Andersen’s iconic fairy tale ‘The Ugly Duckling.’ Programme also includes Prokofiev’s hilarious symphonic tale for children – “Peter and the Wolf” and a sing-along of favourite children's songs.

Matthew Shiel

'Matthew Shiel shone' (Three Weeks) and 'Matthew Shiel 'composed' a most enchanting concert. 5 stars!' (Edinburgh Guide) - reviewers are applauding Matthew for his unique, creative and fresh approach to music performance which push the boundaries of what a piano recital can be. Matthew Shiel is an award-winning concert pianist, Usher Hall and Live Music Now Scotland emerging artist who has performed at Usher Hall, The National Portrait Gallery of Scotland, St Gile's Cathedral (Edinburgh), The Glasshouse International Centre for Music (Newcastle) and Glasgow City Halls. Matthew is a graduate of the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland and has collaborated with festivals including the Åben Festival (Copenhagen), Music at Paxton (Berwick) and a sold-out show at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe.

Alastair Sim

Alastair Sim BA(Hons) (Oxford) MA MPhil FRSA is the acclaimed author of two internationally published novels: ‘Rosslyn Blood,’ a fast-paced thriller set round the mysteries of Rosslyn Chapel, and ‘The Unbelievers’ is a detective novel set in Edinburgh and the Highlands during the 1860s. Alastair has just completed a third novel of drug-smuggling and the occult on a Scottish island. After a senior career in government and universities, most notably the Director of Universities Scotland, he now enjoys leading ghost tours that unveil the secrets of Edinburgh Old Town to tourists. He has also performed as an actor in several successful stage productions, following in the footstep of his great uncle, the celebrated British actor Alastair Sim who played Scrooge in the original Dickens film ‘A Christmas Carol’ (1951).