Category: Fringe

More Fringe Notes

    • Well-respected theatre tour-de-force Ken Brown collected his observations on the changing philosophies of the Fringe, printed in the Letters section of the Edmonton Journal today.

 

  • I didn’t get a chance to stop by the festival grounds of the Calgary Fringe on the weekend. I did read about it though, and it seems this is the second crack for Cowtown’s summer theatre festival. It seems the company that pioneered the first Fringe in 2000 fell on hard times, but a revitalized group endeavored to bring it back last year. They have apparently secured enough funding until 2010. It would be exciting to be a part of such from-scratch development. I was spoiled in Edmonton to have stepped into an already established and successful event.

 

 

  • I was separated from my beloved Fringe program for a few days, and I now realize how difficult it is to plan beyond one show when using the online information system. No show lengths are listed, so it’s difficult to schedule one after another.

 

 

 

Notes on the Fringe

  • Frequent and Double Fringer passes sold out ahead of last year, reported Metro today. It no doubt has to do with the fact that for the first time ever, the passes can be used to purchase advance tickets. I myself bought a Frequent Fringer pass, committing myself to ten shows. But considering the savings of $4 per ticket, it is unbelievably worthwhile.
  • I did experiment with the new online box office, and I am not impressed. I not only had error messages preventing me from logging in, but also, when I did get to the purchase screen, I found that I was only given the option of buying one accompanying ticket per show. I resorted to falling back on ordering tickets over the phone. Somehow it’s more reassuring to speak to a representative anyhow.
  • Reviews from the Winnipeg Fringe and the Saskatoon Fringe are available, including those that rated five stars in the Winnipeg Free Press and Saskatoon’s 10 best. I’m annoyed that TJ Dawe didn’t get a slot in Edmonton’s festival – Maxim & Cosmo sounds like it would have been a riot.
  • In addition to watching Die-Nasty for this first time this year, I also think it’s about time I attempted a deep-fried twinkie. And after reading the description gleaned from the New York Times as referenced on that Wikipedia page…well, you’ll see: “Something magical occurs when the pastry hits the hot oil. The creamy white vegetable shortening filling liquefies, impregnating the sponge cake with its luscious vanilla flavor. . . The cake itself softens and warms, nearly melting, contrasting with the crisp, deep-fried crust in a buttery and suave way. The piece de resistance, however, is a ruby-hued berry sauce, adding a tart sophistication to all that airy sugary goodness.” Whoo.

See you there!

The Calgary Fringe

I was poking around the internet, looking for things to do while in Calgary this weekend, and I stumbled upon the website for the Calgary Fringe.

Running from the 10th to the 19th (stepping on Edmonton’s toes! Yes, I’m a snob), the Calgary version of the festival includes films and art exhibits in addition to the requisite theatre offerings. It seems they too have set up an online ticketing system this year.

Programs have been on sale for as long as I’ve attended the Edmonton Fringe, so the expense is really a non-starter. And as the funds go towards keeping the festival alive, patrons end up with a souvenir and (hopefully) a sense of contributing to something. Of course, for newbies or those just dabbling in theatre, the same information is available on the website, or at the booths on site, while volunteer gatekeepers collect donations from anyone willing to part with change.

I write about this because the Calgary Fringe has introduced a Fringe button. Priced at $5, this button is required for entrance to all shows in addition to the actual ticket. While it operates on the same fundraising principle as Edmonton’s $6 programs, I think the buttons would really deter any green patrons from taking a chance on a show. The cost for two people to attend a performance becomes, at the very least, $30 ($10 per ticket, plus $5 each for buttons), not taking into consideration surcharges. Unless one is planning on attending multiple shows, I wouldn’t think it very worthwhile purchase, and I would quite frankly feel ripped off.

The programs are free in Calgary, and really, with a much smaller line up than Edmonton, it may be a more difficult expense to swallow. When it comes down to it, I’m sure the team behind the Calgary Fringe are just doing whatever they deem necessary to keep their festival alive. So as a fan of theatre, I can’t be too critical. Perhaps I’ll pop down to the site this weekend to check out the atmosphere.

More Fringe Buzz

Colin Maclean wrote an article in Friday’s Edmonton Sun that further describes how the addition of the online ticketing system may affect the Fringe. An excerpt:

“…some feel strongly that the essence of the event is being destroyed. Will the creative mayhem disappear? Will people just buy tickets to, say, the latest David Belke play (The Headshot of Dorian Gray – Holy Anglican Church) and then go home when it’s over? Isn’t much of what drives the Fringe the discussion in the beer tent or in the lineup, the comparing of notes, the excitement of finding something new and the development of unexpected hits as the 11 days go on?

“Or how about just hanging out? Will you still be able to make up your own Fringe as it goes along aided by the buzz of friends (and strangers)? Will the popular ones (The Power of Ignorancethe annual Grant MacEwan MusicalRainer Hersch) sell out before the Fringe even begins and if you can’t get into at least one of the biggies, is it worthwhile going down at all?
I have talked to a number of people who feel so strongly about it they are not Fringing this year.”

He does go on to say that the possibility exists that even more tickets will be sold with the new system – more friendly for first-time Fringers, for example, and without the headache of anticipatory lineups at the door.

A friend of mine called me an “old biddy” when I expressed my hesitations at embracing this change. I know I said that I would hold out judgment until the end of the Fringe, and I will do my best, but I am enjoying reading and debating about this pre-festival buzz nonetheless.

On a related note – I recorded my one and only podcast around this time last year, to test out Mack and Dickson’s Podcast Spot. You can listen to my Fringe podcast here.

2007 Live & Let Fringe: the Countdown Begins!

Only two weeks left until the 26th annual Fringe kicks off! I picked up my program today, and have already had a cursory glance at this year’s lineup. Belke’s back (was there ever any question?), there is no doubt The Power of Ignorance will sell out again, there are a surprising number of burlesque shows, and I am very happy to see that some of my stage favorites (namely, Davina Stewart, Leona Brausen and Matt Alden) will be making an appearance at the festival.

Back in April, Executive Director Julian Mayne announced that an on-line ticketing system would be used this year. At the time, I wasn’t sure if this technology would translate into higher ticket sales, and I guess we won’t know until the final numbers are in. However, I think the 100% advance ticket release policy will make it even more difficult to get into the “hot” shows near the end of the festival. In the past, plays that garnered a four or five star rating typically sold out of its advance tickets, but by lining up at the venue, there was still a chance of purchasing one of the 25% of the tickets held at the door. I don’t want to speak too soon, but this new policy potentially gives even more power to mainstream reviewers, something many in the Fringe community are wary of.

I’ve played with the new website a little since it went live this afternoon, and it isn’t a bad first version. I’m sure I’ll have more to say once I use it to actually order tickets.

I can’t wait!

Fringe’s New Frontier: Online Ticketing

An article in the Edmonton Journal today revealed an exciting new development for this year’s Fringe Theatre Festival. It seems the new executive producer wants to jumpstart ticket sales by releasing “100 per cent of our inventory on sale right off the bat” in a brand new online system. The rest of the piece was unclear with regards to how exactly they intend to balance between what Liz Nicholls describes as “spontaneous hustle and administrative convenience.” A meeting was called on Tuesday night to solicit the opinions of local Fringe artists, but no concrete resolutions were arrived at.

I understand the reasoning behind allowing potential audience members to surf ticket availability before heading down to the grounds, but I’m not sure if ease of use will translate directly into higher numbers. This conundrum has been talked about to death, but Fringe organizers have always had trouble luring those who go exclusively for the “free” busker entertainment, food and retail stalls, and festive outdoor atmosphere into the theatre venues. As I’m too far down the rabbit hole to know what it’s like on the “other side” (for non-theatre goers) I’d still like to think that lineups outside of random buildings scattered across the site would make some of the wanderers curious as to what the hype is all about, and potentially buy a ticket to try it out.

At any rate, I’m willing to keep an open mind about this for now, and at the very least, an online ticketing system is quite a significant milestone for our little festival that could.

“The name is Fringe. Edmonton Fringe”

While I can’t take credit for the clever post title (I gleaned it from an Edmonton Journal article), I was happy to read about news from the Fringe front.

The Edmonton International Fringe Festival has chosen its new theme: “Live and Let Fringe,” a play on the 1973 James Bond film, Live and Let Die. Not a bad connection, as it will be 2007 (the year of double-0-7). When I told a coworker about it, she rolled her eyes, but we both agreed that anything would be better than last season’s “Hi Yo Fringe…Away!” My personal favorite, however, would be 1998’s “A Clockwork Fringe,” though I didn’t start attending the festival until the following year.

As for companies drawn from the lottery, I will be looking forward to Chris Gibbs’ return, Matt Alden’s new play, and the Screwed & Clued production. Only eight more months to go!