One of the showpiece concerts of the Edinburgh International Festival and a host of events in venues across the city face cancellation next week as strike action by the local government union Unison looms over planned budget cuts by the city council.

The most prominent victim of Edinburgh’s financial crisis is likely to be Usher Hall, the international festival’s best-known venue, which could shut next Thursday, forcing the cancellation of productions of Stravinsky’s Orpheus and Oedipus Rex, performed by the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra and the Edinburgh Festival Chorus.

All council-run museums, including the Writers' Museum in Lawnmarket and Huntley House Museum in Canongate, may also be forced to shut, along with the City Art Centre which is currently hosting exhibitions about the arts and craft movement and Scottish painting, including works by John Bellany and the Boyle family.

The strike by 8,000 Unison members is directed against budget cuts that will result in the closure of 16 schools across the city. It involves council workers in social care, health and education professions, some of whom provide services to the very young, the old and the infirm. But Unison’s membership also includes front- of-house, technical and support staff in all arts venues run by the council.

John Ross, the service conditions convener for the union, said it was almost inevitable that Usher Hall would close if the strike went ahead. “We have advised the council of our intention to take action next Thursday and it now lies with them to come back with any exemptions,” Mr Ross said.

He added that workers exempted from strike action would normally be involved in the care of vulnerable people. “In terms of the Usher Hall, I would hardly look on that favourably. It’s not threatening life and limb, it’s not putting anybody at risk if we pull the plug,” he said.

Mr Ross added that issues of building control, health and safety and licensing that might arise in any of the theatres in the city would not be dealt with on the day of the strike, raising fears that other performance spaces could have to shut temporarily. For the Fringe, where purpose-built structures and converted premises abound, the economic consequences are potentially disastrous for some promoters and performers.

The strike comes as Edinburgh councillors face a growing budget crisis, amid claims and counter claims from political parties about who is to blame. In June, a £10 million deficit was revealed in the city’s budget, which is predicted to rise to £13 million by the end of this financial year

Members of the ruling SNP/Liberal coalition and even its Conservative opponents blame the former Labour Administration for setting an unrealistically low council tax in February of this year as an election sweetener ahead of the local government elections in May.

Within weeks of Labour being ousted from power it was apparent that the city faced severe financial difficulties. In June council officials were asked to make spending cuts to avoid an 8 per cent rise in next year’s council tax.

Yesterday the identities of the schools that are facing permanent closure were revealed. Six nurseries and four community centres will also shut, with a total saving estimated at £3 million. The proposed strike is timed to coincide with a council meeting in which further cuts will be considered.

The loss of Usher Hall, even for a day, is potentially disastrous for the festival, according to Andrew McAuley, Professor of Marketing Management at the University of Stirling. “Any disruption to a major festival which has a global reputation is unfortunate, but clearly such action is designed to have an impact. The damage potentially to the brand is immense in the short term,” he said.

A spokeswoman for Edinburgh City Council said: “We will try to protect the use of all of the festival venues, such as the Usher Hall. We have to assess the impact of strike action across all council buildings and we should learn more about that next week.” Meetings are planned next week to try to avert the strike.