 Halifax Fringe in 2018 | |
| Location | Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1991 |
| Type of play(s) | Fringe festival, performing arts |
| Festival date | September 3-13, 2020 |
| Website | Official website |
The Halifax Fringe Festival, formerly known as the Atlantic Fringe Festival, is held annually in late August and early September in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. Since 1991, the festival has been a showcase for non-mainstream theatre. A wide variety of original plays, shows, and presentations are performed.
Atlantic Fringe Festival Society was incorporated in 1990 and the first Atlantic Fringe Festival took place in 1991. Ken Pinto ran the festival from its inception for twenty years. After an open letter of complaint by performer Mikaela Dyke, [1] Pinto stepped down amidst controversy about the future of the festival after the 20th edition of the festival in 2010. [2] A new board of directors assumed responsibility for the 21st edition of the festival in 2011. Thom Fitzgerald assumed the position of Festival Director that year, succeeded by playwright Lee-Anne Poole in 2015.
In 2011 the #1 Atlantic Fringe Hit was "Rainer Hirsch's Victor Borge".
In 2012 the #1 Atlantic Fringe Hit was "Confessions of a Mormon Boy" by Steven Fales
Performances take place at different venues in downtown Halifax and change year to year. Atlantic Fringe Festival more than doubled its audience between 2010 and 2012, with 9,393 individual tickets issued for the 22nd edition.
The name was changed for Halifax Fringe Festival in 2017 for the 27th edition. [3]
The 2008 festival featured over 250 performances of more than 40 different shows, including musicals, dramas, comedies, and dance. The 2012 festival featured over 300 performances of more than 50 different shows, including musicals, dramas, comedies, and dance.
Tickets for each performance are sold individually. Price per ticket ranges from $2-$15 Canadian (2020).
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to theatre:
Canada's contemporary theatre reflects a rich diversity of regional and cultural identities. Since the late 1960s, there has been a concerted effort to develop the voice of the 'Canadian playwright', which is reflected in the nationally focused programming of many of the country's theatres. Within this 'Canadian voice' are a plurality of perspectives - that of the First Nations, new immigrants, French Canadians, sexual minorities, etc. - and a multitude of theatre companies have been created to specifically service and support these voices.
The Edinburgh Festival Fringe is the world's largest performance arts festival, which in 2019 spanned 25 days and featured more than 59,600 performances of 3,841 different shows in 322 venues. Established in 1947 as an alternative to the Edinburgh International Festival, it takes place in Edinburgh every August. The Edinburgh Festival Fringe has become a world-leading celebration of arts and culture, surpassed only by the Olympics and the World Cup in terms of global ticketed events. As an event it "has done more to place Edinburgh in the forefront of world cities than anything else" according to historian and former chairman of the board, Michael Dale.
The Edmonton International Fringe Festival is an annual arts festival held every August in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Produced by the Fringe Theatre Adventures (FTA), it is the oldest and largest fringe theatre festival in North America. The Edmonton Fringe is a founding member of the Canadian Association of Fringe Festivals.
A revue is a type of multi-act popular theatrical entertainment that combines music, dance, and sketches. The revue has its roots in 19th century popular entertainment and melodrama but grew into a substantial cultural presence of its own during its golden years from 1916 to 1932. Though most famous for their visual spectacle, revues frequently satirized contemporary figures, news or literature. Similar to the related subforms of operetta and musical theatre, the revue art form brings together music, dance and sketches to create a compelling show. In contrast to these, however, revue does not have an overarching storyline. Rather, a general theme serves as the motto for a loosely-related series of acts that alternate between solo performances and dance ensembles.
Kenneth Victor Campbell was an English actor, writer and director known for his work in experimental theatre. He has been called "a one-man dynamo of British theatre".
Buxton Opera House is in The Square, Buxton, Derbyshire, England. It is a 902-seat opera house that hosts the annual Buxton Festival and the International Gilbert and Sullivan Festival, among others, as well as pantomime at Christmas, musicals and other entertainments year-round. Hosting live performances until 1927, the theatre then was used mostly as a cinema until 1976. In 1979, it was refurbished and reopened as a venue for live performance.
Thomas "Thom" Fitzgerald is an American-Canadian film and theatre director, screenwriter, playwright and producer.
The Minnesota Fringe Festival is a performing arts festival held in Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States, every summer, usually during the first two weeks in August. The eleven-day event, which features performing artists of many genres and disciplines, is one of many Fringe Festivals in North America. Minnesota Fringe is the largest nonjuried festival in the United States and the third-largest Fringe festival in North America. In 2013, Minnesota Fringe ran August 1–11 and featured 176 shows with a total of 895 performances in multiple venues around the city and distributed 50,007 tickets over the eleven-day event. In 2007, attendance and box office revenue were adversely affected by the collapse of the I-35W bridge the day before the festival opened.
The Camden Fringe is a comedy festival in London, taking place over four weeks in the summer as an alternative to the Edinburgh Fringe. The first Camden Fringe took place in 2006 at the Etcetera Theatre. In 2017, the Camden Fringe sold 30,000 tickets for 1000 performances across 25 venues.
The Orlando International Fringe Theatre Festival is a 14-day annual arts festival that takes place in Orlando, Florida every May. The festival features 850 ticketed theatrical performances on indoor and outdoor stages, produced by local, national and international artists. It is an open access performing arts festival, meaning there is no selection committee, and anyone may participate, with any type of performance.
Donovan King is a professional actor, teacher, historian, and tour guide from Montreal, Quebec. As the founder of Haunted Montreal, a company that researches ghost stories and offers haunted tours, King hires professional actors to lead the tours and publishes a new ghost story every month on the Haunted Montreal Blog. King is also a performance activist and experimental theatre artist who juggles acting, teaching, directing, dramaturgy, and theory to create dramatic projects that challenge systemic oppression. Known for his commitment to education and community, King assisted with the establishment of the Montreal Fringe Festival in 1991, is the author of Doing Theatre in Montreal and he set up the Montreal Infringement Festival in 2004.
Bill Carr is a Canadian stage and screen actor. He is remembered for his role as Possum Lodge cook and wannabe actor and singer Eddie Johnson on the second season of The Red Green Show. as well as numerous live performances. Carr is also known for his work with the CBC's The Journal and Midday and received two Atlantic Journalism awards for his satirical commentaries.
Bryony Kimmings is a British live artist based in London and Cambridgeshire. She is an associate artist of the Soho Theatre, and, in 2016, was commissioned to write The Pacifist's Guide to the War on Cancer for Complicite Associates.
The Sacred Fools Theater Company is a Los Angeles-based theatre company and nonprofit organization. Founded in January 1997, it's a member organization of the LA Stage Alliance.
Ronald Pederson is a Canadian (Métis) actor, comedian and theatre director who has worked extensively throughout Canada and in the United States. He has performed with most of Canada's major theatres including The Stratford Festival, The Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre, The Citadel Theatre, Alberta Theatre Projects, The Arts Club, The Vancouver Playhouse, The Young Centre, The Canadian Stage Company, The Tarragon Theatre, Theatre Passe Muraille, Soulpepper and The SummerWorks Festival. Pederson has also worked extensively in television and may be best known for his Canadian Comedy Award-Nominated work and his three seasons on Fox Television's MADtv.
Michael Bawtree is a Canadian actor, director, author and educator.
The Rochester Fringe Festival, held annually in Rochester, NY since 2012., is one of the three most-attended fringe festivals in the United States. In 2019, the festival attracted more than 100,000 attendees. Held for 12 days in September, the festival features more than 500 performances -- more than a quarter of which are free of charge -- in established venues such as theatres, art galleries and cafes, as well as pop-up, site-specific shows in streets, parking lots, and tents throughout Rochester's East End and Neighborhood of the Arts districts near Downtown Rochester.
Jonny & the Baptists are an English musical comedy duo consisting of Jonny Donahoe and Paddy Gervers. Initially founded as trio in 2011, founding member Amy Butterworth left after their first live tour and album, and the duo of Donahoe & Gervers have since released two studio albums, multiple live albums and several digital singles, as well as gaining attention for their podcast series Making Paddy Happy which began in 2020 during the COVID-19 lockdown.
The Atlantic Fringe Festival is going into its 27th year with a new name: The Halifax Fringe Festival.
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