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Indie theatre made on a shoestring budget. Improv. Circus acts. Stand-up comedy. One-person shows about personal trauma\u2014with puppets. Every imitator of Fleabag\u00a0<\/em>under the sun. With the Edinburgh Fringe Festival<\/a> well underway, we thought it was a perfect time to talk about the important of fringe festivals in an actor\u2019s career. Few things challenge you as an artist, or inspire you as an audience member quite like a good fringe season. It\u2019s a time to open your mind and take chances: whether you\u2019re up on stage or showing up to watch.<\/p>\n Fringe festivals are important cultural events for actors to attend, both as artist and audience. As participants, actors can take part in challenging, unusual material\u2014often produced on low budgets by early-career writers\/producers\/directors. While these productions might lack polish, they are often creatively bold; this allows the ideas and artistry of the involved team to shine. As audience members, actors can discover new potential collaborators in the shows they attend. Fringe festivals are excellent ways of expanding one\u2019s views on what exists in their local creative industry.<\/strong><\/p>\n Even though we kicked this article off talking about one of the world\u2019s best-known fringe festivals, you may be pleased to learn that there are hundreds of similar events taking place around the world. If you can\u2019t get yourself to Scotland each August, a quick search online should show you that there are countless other options closer to home.<\/p>\n A fringe festival is an event that showcases the work of independent artists\u2014usually native to its area but open to international acts as well. The programme may consist of theatre, cabaret, comedy, circus, dance and even film; what tends to unify acts is their creation by early and mid-career artists with independent (read: very litte) institutional or government support.<\/p>\n The term \u201cfringe\u201d can be traced back to its use by independent theatre companies who, in 1947, found themselves uninvited to the established Edinburgh Festival<\/a>. They created a \u201cFestival Fringe\u201d event\u2014independent to the main festival\u2014to perform. The name, and the sentiment of free and independent expression, stuck.<\/p>\n This leads us to another important distinction: fringe festivals are known for their open nature, inviting artists to apply regardless of a pre-existing career. Many festivals are curated (or \u201cjuried\u201d) by a panel of organisers that carefully select the artists in attendance. Fringe festivals are open to one and all: resulting in a mix of work that is amateurish, extremely polished and everything in between.<\/p>\n There are two ways to answer this question: for actors as artists and actors as audience. Regardless of the answer that best suits you (we\u2019ll look at both in detail below), let us say that it is extremely important, if you have a fringe festival local to you, that you lend it your support.<\/p>\n Fringe festivals are incubators for new talent in our industry. They invite participation from people who may not feel comfortable with traditional career paths such as drama school<\/a>, or the wider independent theatre scene<\/a>. This may well describe you\u2014and if it does, then go start planning your fringe show now! But even if you find yourself comfortable enough in your career, in your creative community, think what it does to lift up the voices of those you\u2019d not normally hear from.<\/p>\n This is the way to strengthening our industry: with greater numbers and diversified voices. And you can never be quite sure what strange little show might find an audience, gather a good review or two and end up changing the entire face of entertainment. Here\u2019s one you might have heard of\u2026<\/p>\nWhat is a Fringe Festival?<\/h2>\n
Why Should Actors go to Fringe Festivals?<\/h2>\n