About Fringe
Guelph's Annual Fringe Festival was established in 2015.
The limitations and opportunities that the Fringe festival format presents lead to some common features.
Shows are not judged or juried. Depending on the popularity, some fringe festivals may use a lottery system to determine which shows are selected.
Shows are typically technically sparse. They are commonly presented in shared venues, often with shared technicians and limited technical time, so sets and other technical theatre elements are kept simple. Venues may be adapted from other uses.
Casts tend to be smaller than mainstream theatre; since many of the performing groups are traveling, and venues (and thus potential income) tend to be fairly small, expenses must usually be kept to a minimum. One-person shows are therefore quite common at Fringe festivals.
Fringe festival productions often showcase new scripts, especially ones on more obscure, edgy or unusual material. The lack of artistic vetting combined with relatively easy entry make risk-taking more feasible.
While most mainstream theatre shows are two or three acts long, taking two to three hours with intermissions, fringe shows tend to be closer to one hour, single-act productions. The typically lowered ticket prices of a fringe theatre show permit audiences to attend multiple shows in a single evening.
Performers sometimes billet in the homes of local residents, further reducing their costs.
(Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fringe_theatre)
The Guelph Fringe Festival is manned by a small group of volunteer administrators, as well as volunteer technical persons, staff, and all around extra-help.
Tickets are 10$ per show at the door, no student pricing available.
Donations graciously accepted at the venue.
The limitations and opportunities that the Fringe festival format presents lead to some common features.
Shows are not judged or juried. Depending on the popularity, some fringe festivals may use a lottery system to determine which shows are selected.
Shows are typically technically sparse. They are commonly presented in shared venues, often with shared technicians and limited technical time, so sets and other technical theatre elements are kept simple. Venues may be adapted from other uses.
Casts tend to be smaller than mainstream theatre; since many of the performing groups are traveling, and venues (and thus potential income) tend to be fairly small, expenses must usually be kept to a minimum. One-person shows are therefore quite common at Fringe festivals.
Fringe festival productions often showcase new scripts, especially ones on more obscure, edgy or unusual material. The lack of artistic vetting combined with relatively easy entry make risk-taking more feasible.
While most mainstream theatre shows are two or three acts long, taking two to three hours with intermissions, fringe shows tend to be closer to one hour, single-act productions. The typically lowered ticket prices of a fringe theatre show permit audiences to attend multiple shows in a single evening.
Performers sometimes billet in the homes of local residents, further reducing their costs.
(Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fringe_theatre)
The Guelph Fringe Festival is manned by a small group of volunteer administrators, as well as volunteer technical persons, staff, and all around extra-help.
Tickets are 10$ per show at the door, no student pricing available.
Donations graciously accepted at the venue.