We’re the Best… But We Need Your Help!

October 4, 2018

Keep the Fringe Spirit Alive Year-Round!

Become a monthly donor before the end of October and your first month’s donation will be matched thanks to the generosity of Austin Property Tax Consultants!

If you sign up to be a monthly donor until the end of October, your first month’s donation will be matched! Photo of montly donors, Russ and Elaine, by Jane Levene.

As we look towards our 35th Festival and our year-round commitment to Theatre for Everyone, we’re looking for people like you—who believe in the Fringe—to become monthly donors. The Fringe is uniquely able to support local emerging artists and Fringe favourites through an unjuried and uncensored platform and by giving the ticket revenue directly to the artists—but we need your help to make it all possible!

During the Festival, we had a generous matching donation from Austin Property Tax Consultants, and we’ve been lucky enough to be able to extend matching through October! When you become a monthly donor, your first month’s donation will be doubled!

Monthly giving is easy, cost effective, and sustainable. You can give any amount you’d like, and your donation can come from a credit card or your bank. Support the Fringe and Fringe Artists by becoming a monthly donor today!

You can donate online here, call us at 604.257.0350 ext . 107, or e-mail our Sponsorship Manager, Chelsey Stuyt, at sponsorship@vancouverfringe.com to start supporting Fringe artists and the Fringe today!

We’re Vancouver’s Best Performing Arts Festival

We did it—again! Thanks to your votes in the 23rd Annual Georgia Straight Best of Vancouver, we’ve won first place in the Best Performing Arts Festival category for yet another year—our 15th year as the first place winner! Congratulations to all the winners, and thank you for all your votes! Fringers are truly the best community one can have.

Just some of the 2018 Artists who contribute to the Fringe being named the Best Performing Arts Festival in Vancouver!: Karen Jang from FIX. Photo by  Adrian Ruigrok.

Just some of the 2018 Artists who contribute to the Fringe being named the Best Performing Arts Festival in Vancouver!: Sara Vickruck from Poly Queer Love Ballad. Photo by  Al Ricard.

Just some of the 2018 Artists who contribute to the Fringe being named the Best Performing Arts Festival in Vancouver!: Laurel Trueman from Hardly Trying and James Melcher from One Step at a Time. Photo by  Al Ricard.

Just some of the 2018 Artists who contribute to the Fringe being named the Best Performing Arts Festival in Vancouver!: Adelina and Sonia Suvagau from Box of Freedom. Photo by  Al Ricard.

Just some of the 2018 Artists who contribute to the Fringe being named the Best Performing Arts Festival in Vancouver!: Fiona Ross from Is That How Clowns Have Sex? Photo by  Al Ricard.

Just some of the 2018 Artists who contribute to the Fringe being named the Best Performing Arts Festival in Vancouver!: Carlyn Rhamey from The ADHD Project. Photo by  Al Ricard.

Just some of the 2018 Artists who contribute to the Fringe being named the Best Performing Arts Festival in Vancouver!: One of the artists from TrudeauMania. Photo by  Al Ricard.

Just some of the 2018 Artists who contribute to the Fringe being named the Best Performing Arts Festival in Vancouver!: Jennifer Pielak from Inside Voices. Photo by  Al Ricard.

Just some of the 2018 Artists who contribute to the Fringe being named the Best Performing Arts Festival in Vancouver!: Denise Yeo and Garth Martens from La Palabra en el Tiempo. Photo by  Alvin Roxas.

Just some of the 2018 Artists who contribute to the Fringe being named the Best Performing Arts Festival in Vancouver!: Gemma Wilcox from Magical Mystery Detour. Photo by  Nandia Cahlandari.

Speaking of Fringers, we want to hear from you! Were you at this year’s Festival? Please fill out our Audience Survey! Not only does the Survey help us get to know you better, but it also helps us report to our funders and donors!

Looking to re-live the Fringe? We’re uploading photos from this year’s Festival on Facebook. Check it out and don’t forget to tag yourself!

You Can Tour the Fringe

Do you want to take your Fringe show from coast to coast next year? Then the Canadian Association of Fringe Festivals Touring Lottery might just be for you!

Awkward Hug, this year’s winner of the BC Touring Council Award, was also one of the shows selected through the CAFF Touring Lottery! Photo by Shawn Major.

The CAFF Touring Lottery makes Fringing easier for artists by giving selected companies a guaranteed spot in a minimum of five Fringe Festivals of their choosing across Canada and/or the United States. To be eligible for this Lottery, artists must have previously participated in a CAFF Member Festival. Click here to start your application process, and submit by October 24, 10:00am (CST). Make sure to check out CAFF’s website for more details on the CAFF Touring Lottery. And if you’re hoping to apply to put on a show at the Vancouver Fringe, sit tight. The application period will be announced via the Fringe newsletter in the coming months!

Explore New Horizons with Diwali in BC

Now in its second year, the second Diwali in BC will ignite the province with theatre, dance, and cultural celebrations during the festival of lights. Behind the event is Jessie Award-winning director (and Fringe alumnus) Rohit Chokhani, who aims to expand Diwali festivities across British Columbia over the next five years. This year, Diwali in BC’s programming extends to Vancouver, Coquitlam, Vernon, Maple Ridge, and Nanaimo.

Rohit Chokhani’s production of Anosh Irani’s Bombay Black will be remounted in three cities as part of Diwali in BC. Photo by Michael Levy.

Some of the events include a staging of A Vancouver Guldasta and The Believers Are But Brothers at The Cultch’s Culture Lab, a Bharatanatyam interpretation of Rabindranath Tagore’s Shyama at York Theatre, a celebration of Diwali in Coquitlam, and for the first time Diwali in BC will be in Vernon and Maple Ridge. Chokhani’s 2017 Public Market Pick of the Fringe-winning show, Anosh Irani’s Bombay Black, will also be staged in Coquitlam, Nanaimo, and Vancouver.

For more information on Diwali in BC’s full schedule and to buy tickets for the events, click here.

There’s Still More

September 20, 2018

The Public Market Pick of the Fringe is on now through Sunday!

We’re bringing back Fringe favourites for one performance only! Check out the Public Market Pick of the Fringe, which is on now until Sunday, September 23. Last night, we kicked things off with Paco Erhard’s 5-Step Guide to Being German 2.0. Here’s a sneak preview of the rest of the shows coming up:

You only have until Sunday to see our Public Market Pick of the Fringe winners! Photo by Al Ricard.

Classy Little Bitch Productions’ SELF-ish returns to the stage tonight at 8:45pm! Afterwards, you don’t want to miss two double features: on September 22, starting with the multi-awarded show, Poly Queer Love Ballad will be on at 6:45pm, followed by Squeeze My Cans at 8:45pm; and finally, on September 23, Unscriptured will start at 6:00pm, followed by The Lady Show at 7:45pm!

The Pick is on through Sunday, September 23, at Performance Works on Granville Island. Tickets are $25 and are available online or at the venue 45 minutes before the show starts. Click here for more details.

Don’t Forget to Fringe More

The Birdmann and Egg will be closing Pick Plus with The Birdmann FINALE. Photo by Phillip Dovey.

If you’re getting the post-Fringe blues, don’t fret! There’s still the Pick Plus! Running now through to Friday, September 21, Pick Plus features a handpicked selection of past Fringey hits from Vancouver or from other Fringe Festivals. Pick Plus is perfect for those craving to Fringe even more!

Last night, Nico Dicecco hit the stage with 50 Shades of Vinyl, which Two Cents & Two Pence describes as “an incredible naughty tribute to Stuart McLean’s Vinyl Cafe.” Tonight, Habitats, a poetic work featuring a clown and an acrobatic stilt dancer, will be showing at 7:00pm. And we have a double feature coming up on Friday, September 21: first, Kahlil Ashanti’s Basic Training comes on at 7:00pm, while The Birdmann FINALE starts at 8:45pm.

They’re all happening at Performance Works, so you don’t have to go far! Tickets are $25 each and are available online or at the venue 45 minutes before the show starts. Find more information on our Pick Plus shows here.

How to Get 20% Off Pick Plus Tickets

Thanks to Pick Plus, you get four more Fringey shows (on top of the Public Market Pick of the Fringe) this week! We’ll sweeten the deal even more: what if we told you that you can Fringe more AND save money?

That’s right—if you buy tickets to three or more Theatre Wire Package shows—which includes Pick Plus shows, you’ll save 20% off your tickets! (Discounts will apply automatically, but you must purchase your tickets via the Theatre Wire site.)

Soul Samurai is part of the Theatre Wire Package. Did you know that it was also part of the 2017 Fringe? Photo by Jordan Ting.

And even though we close the curtain on our Pick Plus shows on September 21, you can still see independent theatre year-round thanks to Theatre Wire.

If you need a little more Fringe in your life, you can check out Theatre Wire shows by Fringe alumni and local independent theatre producers. When you’re ready, just add tickets to three or more Theatre Wire Package shows (click here to see all the eligible shows) to your cart, and the discount will be applied automatically. If you have more questions about the Theatre Wire Package or Theatre Wire in general, e-mail us at boxoffice@theatrewire.com!

Thank You Volunteers!

Volunteers are the backbone of the Festival’s success, and we couldn’t be more grateful for all their help. Rain or shine (but especially rain!), these volunteers worked hard to make sure the Festival was running smoothly. This year, we had a stellar group of volunteers coming from all over the world, including Germany, Iran, China, New Zealand, India, and Indonesia!

Thank you to our volunteers for making this a great Fringe! Top left photo by Al Ricard, top and bottom right photo by Nandia Syabrina, and bottom left photo by Jenna Owen.

Our Volunteer Department and the entire Fringe team is very thankful for all the volunteers’ work. Assistant Volunteer Coordinator Nena Pierre says, “This year in particular, the Fringe volunteers really held this Festival together.” And Volunteer Supervisor Hillary Kaplan adds, “Our already incredible volunteers really stepped up and went above and beyond, and we couldn’t be more grateful. We can’t express our gratitude enough.”

We would also like to thank the sponsors who support the Fringe’s Volunteer Program: Phillips Brewing and Malting Co., Wards Cider, Foodora, Road 13 Vineyards, The Keg, Mobi, Hardbite,  Boston Pizza, Habibis Mediterranean Foods, Clif Bars, Georgian Bay Spirit Co.,Rush Order Tees, and Shear Comfort Seat Covers Ltd.! Thank you for giving our volunteers a great Fringe experience!