Fringe Festival Review 2016

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FESTIVAL REVIEW 1

VANCOUVER FRINGE FESTIVAL 2016

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MESSAGE FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR 2016 was a huge year for the Fringe—our highest attended Festival of all time. The 2016 Fringe broke records with attendance reaching upwards of 43,000—and approximately 16,000 unique visitors! We’re also proud to say that we paid out the most revenue to artists ever—more than a ¼ of a million dollars—that’s an 11% increase over 2015 artist payouts. Obviously more and more people are discovering the Fringe and we are happy to welcome them into the fold!

2016 welcomed in a new home for the Big Rock Brewery Fringe Bar at Ocean Art Works on Granville Island. Having outgrown our previous bar, we were thrilled to unveil a new and expanded bar this year. We anticipate this location will allow our important social hub to grow to its full potential!

We heard great feedback from volunteers, artists, and audiences about the health of our Festival. Over the past ten years the Festival has experienced steady incremental growth.

With this year’s jump, I anticipate our rate of growth is poised to accelerate to make us the fastest and most steadily growing major festival in Vancouver. What this says to me is that the type of live theatre that we are presenting—rough and ready, unfiltered, and fresh—is something that people are craving more and more in our digitized and packaging heavy world.

They want to laugh, to cry, and to share these experiences with others face to face. Our faith in our Festival format grows! Here are just a few voices from our audience and how they experienced this year’s Festival in their own words: “Fringe is my favourite time of year. I always look forward to the Festival. It’s one of the most inspiring, unique, and fun experiences/festivals in Vancouver.”

“It is my most favourite event of the year. I take the whole week off from work to attend.”

“Weird and wonderful. Always fun and entertaining and supporting small artists and their odd, brilliant minds.”

“Wonderful. Haven’t been in years, so glad to come back.”

We look forward to doing it all again next year—we’re already working on making it an even more exciting experience!

Fringefully yours, David Jordan, Executive Director

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The 2016 Fringe Staff!

TABLE OF CONTENTS

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About the Fringe

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Partnership Opportunities

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Our Program Guide

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Hub

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Events

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Bar

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Fringe-For-All

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Why Sponsor?

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Artists’ Cabaret

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Become A Sponsor

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Awards Night/Raffle

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Thanks Partners!

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Workshops

Opening Night

VANCOUVER FRINGE FESTIVAL 2016

Volunteer Centre

ABOUT THE FRINGE

2016 DEMOGRAPHICS

Our Vision: Theatre for Everyone!

ATTENDANCE Attendance: 43,000+ Unique Visitors: 16,000+ Approximate Number of Granville Island Visitors During September (the Festival’s month): 350,000+

Our Mission: Cultivating artists and audiences to create an open and vibrant independent theatre community.

The Vancouver Fringe is a celebration of all kinds of theatre.

Produced annually by the Vancouver Fringe Theatre Society (VFTS) over 11 days in September, with over 500 volunteers supporting 700+ performances and attracting over 40,000 attendees, the Vancouver Fringe Festival is consistently voted Vancouver’s Best Performing Arts Festival by Georgia Straight readers.

The Fringe employs an “everyone is welcome” selection technique—the Mainstage shows are literally drawn out of a hat, giving all artists, from novice to veteran, a chance to participate. The Fringe strives to break down traditional boundaries and encourage open dialogue between audiences and artists by presenting live un-juried, uncensored theatre in an accessible and informal environment. All artists receive 100% of regular box office revenues generated during the Festival.

The Fringe revels in its identity as part theatre, part party.

Every night of the Festival, Fringe artists, audiences, and volunteers are invited to take in live music and performance at the Big Rock Brewery Fringe Bar. Vancouver Fringe Festival Mainstage shows feature some of Vancouver’s best venues including the Revue Stage, Performance Works, and Waterfront Theatre, all situated on and around Granville Island. The Bring Your Own Venue (BYOV) category allows artists to stage original work in unconventional places and in 2011, we added a site-specific program in collaboration with The Only Animal, offering mentorship to Fringe artists as they create and develop their own site-specific work.

FRINGE and FRINGE FESTIVAL are registered trademarks of the Canadian Association of Fringe Festivals.

History The VFTS was formed in 1983 with the mission to produce “Theatre for Everyone” in Vancouver, which led to the first Vancouver Fringe Festival in 1985. Now, more than 30 years later, the VFTS has established itself as a leader in the BC arts community and a fixture in Vancouver’s event calendar. The Vancouver Fringe Festival is now BC’s largest theatre festival.

We are a Charity The Vancouver Fringe Theatre Society is a registered not-forprofit charitable society (Charitable tax #11891 9547 RR0001).

With 100% of regular ticket sales going to the artists, our donors and sponsors help make the Festival happen. Contact our Director of Patron Development, Robyn Kurtz, at robyn@ vancouverfringe.com to make a donation.

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SOCIAL MEDIA

21,000+ Recipients

7,340+ Fans

10,300+ Followers

AGE AGE <18 1%

18–35 42%

HOUSEHOLD INCOME Below 26% $30,000 $30,000 15% to $50,000 $50,001 23% to $100,000 $100,001 16% to $250,000 Over 1% $250,000 Rather 19% Not Say

EDUCATION High 10% School Trade School 16% Bachelor’s 46% Degree Masters 25% or PhD Rather Not Say

3%

36–49 20%

50–65 26%

>65 10%

OUR PROGRAM GUIDE Our 64-page Program Guide is an essential means of communication between the Fringe and its patrons!

Every year, Fringers wait for the Program Guide to learn about the Festival shows and check the performance schedules.

In 2016, we printed 25,000 copies which were primarily distributed at Blenz Coffee locations in Vancouver at the end of July and remained on stands and in stores through the end of September. The fantastic cover design

by Saint Bernadine Communications attracted 62,000+ online impressions and 40,000+ reads. Program Guide ads receive a lot of attention from our audience both online and offline.

STATISTICS

25,000 Copies

62,000+ Online Impressions

40,000+ Reads

VANCOUVER FRINGE PROGRAM GUIDE 2016 SPONSORS

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EVENTS

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EVENTS

OPENING NIGHT September 6, Performance Works | Capacity: 300 People

The 2016 Festival welcomed its patrons with a noir-esque Opening Night. For just $50, Fringe lovers enjoyed the Opening of the 2016 Festival with one of the wildest characters in Fringe history, Butt Kapinski, and a delicious reception from Fringe Partners which included: • Hors d’oeuvres from Emelle’s Catering, Dockside Restaurant, and The Keg • Hand-crafted artisanal spirits from The Liberty Distillery • Wine from Barefoot Wine & Bubbly • Ginger beer from The Great Jamaican • And a cask beer from Big Rock Urban Brewery specially crafted for Opening Night!

OPENING NIGHT WAS SPONSORED BY:

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The Night included five “hidden” special prize baskets from The Great Jamaican and a live auction for Motorino’s Electric Bike, which was won by Alison Bell.

Opening Night was MC’d by our Executive Director David Jordan, decorated by Olla Urban Flower Project, and captured

by My City Photos.

THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT FRINGE-FOR-ALL September 8, Performance Works | Capacity: 300 People Every year The Georgia Straight Fringe-For-All takes place on the first night of the Festival and it is the best way to preview shows that are part of the Festival! This year, 40 of our 110 shows signed up to perform a two minute preview! Or 41, since Fringe mainstay and local magician Travis Bernhardt pitched his show while sharing the stage with the surreal physical comedy, Bella Culpa! The house was packed for this sold out show, with over 300 people joining us at Performance Works! Patrons, volunteers, and artists were treated not only to 41 short performances, but our host David C. Jones had them engaged and excited with his multiple costume changes,

THE 2016 FRINGE-FOR-ALL WAS SPONSORED BY:

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signs that asked the audience to cheer in different ways (“At a football game!” “At a ‘70s disco party!”), and with his comedic flare. New this year, we invited members of the media to come to the venue before the show to interview the artists! This was a great addition to the excitement and we’re thinking we might add a red carpet in 2017! Not only did the media get a chance to gather some Fringey quotes, they were invited in to watch the show and film it for their shows. This fundraiser brings out all the Fringers, and is a fun and Fringey kickoff to the Festival!

EVENTS

ARTISTS’ CABARET HALDEMAN AND ERLICHMAN’S CABARET OF BULLSHIT September 17, Performance Works Capacity: 300 People We can’t tell you everything that goes on at this sort-of-butnot-really-top-secret event—it’s the kind of once in a lifetime event that only the people in the room will truly experience!

The Cabaret of Bullshit first took place in a café on Granville Island, with only about 30 patrons in attendance and a handful of artists taking part. Through the years it has grown to be one of the most anticipated shows of the Festival, selling out Performance Works year after year. In 2016, over 300 Fringe Fans brought (or bought) flashlights and took their seats in a dark theatre. Then, for the next few hours were treated to one off performances by almost 50 Festival artists.

Using their flashlights as the only light in the room, patrons lit up wild and crazy acts like local actor and long time Fringe star TJ Dawe dressed as a pile of clothes, going on a rant. Or magician, mind reader, and comedian Travis Bernhardt doing a card trick while crowd surfing. Or one half of Mind of a Snail projecting her face onto the naked torso of her partner.

This Cabaret is a Fringe fundraiser, a sell out show, a one of a kind theatre event, and a quintessential Fringe experience!

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AWARDS NIGHT/RAFFLE September 18, Performance Works | Capacity: 200 People

Once again, the Festival officially closes with the famous Fringe Awards Night! Tickets to the event were by donation to Performing Arts Lodges Vancouver, which provides subsidized housing for retired artists. At the Fringe Awards Night, we present the year’s Awards—some of which are sponsored (The Georgia Straight Critics’ Choice Award by the Georgia Straight, BC Touring Council Award by the BC Touring Council, and The 2016 Public Market Pick of the Fringe Awards by the Granville Island Public Market)—and we also do the draw for the Festival Raffle. Our Raffle is an important fundraiser for the Festival. Because 100% of regular tickets revenues are paid directly to the Artists, the proceeds generated from the Raffle support Festival operations.

The night was hosted by the local comedian and Fringe artist Morgan Brayton who kept us entertained all night and ended with the Raffle draw and the announcment of the winners: Grand Prize: A 9-day trip for 2 to Peru from G Adventures L.D. Matlow 2nd Prize: A Motorino XMb Electric Scooter from Motorino Vivian Chen 3rd Prize: A Vancouver Fringe Festival Kick Ass Pass for the 2017 Festival!

Addison Lanier

Here are the Awards and the artist/show that took each one home: Cultchivating the Fringe Award 2016 Winner: The After After Party Joanna Maratta Award 2016 Winner: RAGMOP Theatre (Falling Awake)

The Georgia Straight Critics’ Choice Award 2016 Winners (tie): The After After Party and The Orbweaver: A Dark and Twisted Folktale About a Mildly Farfetched, Highley Illegal Immigration Across Metaphysical Borders The Fringe New Play Award 2016 Winner: Deneh’Cho Thompson (The Girl Who Was Raised by Wolverine)

BC Touring Council Award 2016 Winner: Hip.Bang! (Hip.Bang!

Improv and Hip.Bang! Presents the History of Romance) NEW! Mollie Bradley Award 2016 Winner: RAGMOP Theatre (Falling Awake) Artistic Risk Award 2016 Winners:1st Place Cameryn Moore (Nerdfucker) 2nd Place: Mind of a Snail (Curious Contagious) 3rd Place: Michelle/Ryan (“Ze”: Queer as Fuck!)

FRINGE AWARDS NIGHT WAS SPONSORED BY:

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Volunteer Choice Award 2016 Winner: The Orbweaver: A Dark and Twisted Folktale About a Mildly Farfetched, Highley Illegal Immigration Across Metaphysical Borders The SOFA (Spirit of the Fringe Award) 2016 Winner: Bon Dos Remedios from Walk the Talk The 2016 Public Market Pick of the Fringe Awards 2016 Winners Charlatan!, And Bella Sang With Us, The After After Party, Curious Contagious, Sink or Swim, and Carry On: A Musical

EVENTS

WORKSHOPS

For Artists and Aspiring Artists The Fringe is a place for learning. Staff, volunteers, and artists are all situated to challenge themselves to learn and to teach others—informally and formally throughout our organization.

Among other impacts, the Fringe has long been a cornerstone of development for emerging artists and, more recently, we’ve begun creating similar, supported opportunities for youth.

Fringe Street Promo 101 Lessons in Spreading the Word Tuesday, September 6 at Picnic Pavilion It’s not enough to have a great show. People need to know about it. This workshop will help you feel more confident promoting your production, whether you are flying solo or have a double-digit cast. You’ll learn to find relationships, tell your story, be courteous to patrons and fellow artists, and weather the tough spots. Bring flyers for your show, and be ready to talk: this is definitely an interactive session. Facilitated by touring Fringe artist, Cameryn Moore.

Plays Well With Others Building Our Community Thursday, September 15 at Studio 1398 A continuation of the equity and inclusion conversations happening in the theatre community, “Plays Well with Others” provides theatre artists, producers, and administrators from any/all lived experiences a space to foster inclusive practices that target community building. The forum will feature selfidentified under-represented Fringe artists, and is open to all.

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PARTNERSHIP OPPORTUNITIES

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PARTNERSHIP OPPORTUNITIES

FRINGE HUB Located outside between Waterfront Theatre & the Festival House on Granville Island

The Fringe Hub is where the Fringe Box Office, Info Centre, and Raffle Centre are. Located near the main entrance to Granville Island, it’s a very busy spot! Many Fringe patrons frequent the Hub to purchase tickets to shows, raffle tickets, and to learn more about what shows are at the Festival—plus there are all those

SPONSORS IN THE FESTIVAL HUB IN 2016:

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passers-by who just happen to be visiting Granville Island as well.

The visibility in the Hub is huge! The Festival Hub is an excellent location for sponsor activations, exposing your brand to thousands of Fringe and Granville Island visitors.

BIG ROCK BREWERY FRINGE BAR & THE BAREFOOT WINE & BUBBLY STAGE 1531 Johnston Street, Granville Island | Open from 7pm till late Located at Ocean Art Works, in front of Ocean Concrete and next to the Creekhouse on Granville Island, this is the best place to meet fellow Festival-goers and artists from across the country and around the world. For the 11 days of the Festival, the Barefoot Wine & Bubbly Stage at the Bar presented Vancouver’s hottest local music! No Fringe experience is complete without a trip to the Big Rock Brewery Fringe Bar! This year, site activations included Big Rock Urban Brewery’s new Citradelic beer on tap, free wine samples from Barefoot Wine & Bubbly, delicious cocktails made with The Great

Jamaican’s ginger beer, fresh sparkling water from Sparkling Ice, the very popular interactive photobooth from My City Photos, food trucks, and Raffle prize support from G Adventures and Motorino.

BeatRoute Magazine provided online music support for the live music and DJs and Cubeit Portable Storage helped us manage operations smoothly by providing safe storage space.

The Fringe Bar wouldn’t be possible without the support of CMHC Granville Island.

THE VANCOUVER FRINGE BAR 2016 WAS SPONSORED BY:

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PARTNERSHIP OPPORTUNITIES

VOLUNTEER CENTRE 1398 Cartwright Street Since performers collect 100% of the base ticket price (the advertised price of $14 includes fees and taxes), volunteers are the lifeblood of the Vancouver Fringe Festival. Each year, over 500 people from all walks of life take on volunteer roles. Volunteers do everything from helping set up venues, to answering artists’ and audience members’ questions, to serving drinks at the Fringe Bar, to selling tickets and ushering. We have a very small staff team, so the Fringe simply could not function without volunteers.

The Volunteer Centre is an excellent opportunity for product sampling! Plus, volunteers roam around Granville Island during the Festival—their t-shirts are ideal for logo placements and brand awareness.

We reward our volunteers with an amazing party right after the Festival. This year the party was held at the Big Rock Brewery Fringe Bar, located at Ocean Art Works. There were special performances, a BBQ, and volunteer awards and prizes! It is surely another great spot for activations and product sampling.

FRINGE VOLUNTEER CENTRE 2016 WAS SPONSORED BY

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WHY SPONSOR?

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WHY SPONSOR?

BECOME A SPONSOR Businesses like yours form a key part of the success and growth of the Festival, enabling the Fringe to take the Festival to the next level. As the Fringe adds to its audience base and enhances their experiences, new and renewed strategic partnerships with sponsors play an indispensable role.

In turn, when you sponsor the Fringe, you reap the benefits of associating your company with the Best Performing Arts Festival as voted by Georgia Straight readers year after year while developing a meaningful relationship with our large, diverse audience. With extensive social and print media exposure, an attendance of 43,000, unique attendance of approximately 16,000 and an additional 350,000+ Granville Island visitors during the Fringe month of September, the extent of your reach can be huge!

We invite you to become a Fringe sponsor. We pride ourselves on tailoring sponsor relationships to embrace each Partner’s unique vision and goals. To give you a sense of what is possible, here are some highlights of what you, your company, and its VIPs can enjoy.

Tailor-made Sponsorships may include: • Exclusive venue or event co-branding with the Fringe and associated marketing • Category exclusivity • Site activations (e.g., the Fringe Bar; Box Office Hub; within events) • Sampling or branded product/merchandise distribution (in addition to or as part of site activations) • Venue and event titling and curtain speech recognition • Festival-wide and/or Pick of the Fringe/Pick Plus curtain speech recognition • Profile at our Opening Night and other special events, with podium recognition and other associated marketing • E-newsletter feature article (20,000+ recipients) and/or advertising • Contest opportunities • Structured social media co-promotion (7,340+ Facebook Fans and 10,300+ Twitter followers) • Micro-activations with related advertising • Product/Services endorsements • Tickets to Opening Night, Pick of the Fringe, and special events All Sponsors enjoy:

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• Logo placement in Festival Program Guide, on Partner Recognition Boards, website, and in select print ads and posters • Social media interaction • Advertising in Festival Program Guide (25,000 printed; over 60,000 online visits) • Tickets to Mainstage performances • Invites to VIP and Sponsor meet and greet events

THANKS PARTNERS! Our sponsors help make the Festival one of Vancouver’s most anticipated events of the year! Strategic cash and in-kind support from returning and new Partners take us from being a great Festival to an especially memorable one.

Whether it was at the Big Rock Brewery Fringe Bar, the Opening Night, the Fringe-For-All, special VIP events, in the Volunteer Centre, or Festival-wide through a number of initiatives, you make the difference!

We extend a huge welcome back to our returning sponsors: our hosts, CMHC Granville Island, the Georgia Straight, Big Rock Brewery, Saint Bernadine Communications, G Adventures, RBC Foundation, Blenz Coffee, Shear Comfort, Barefoot Wine & Bubbly, Motorino, Dockside Restaurant, The Great Jamaican, The Liberty Distillery, My City Photos,

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PrintPrint.ca, BeatRoute Magazine, Emelle’s Catering, The Keg, Cube it, and Olla Urban Flower Project. With so many combined years backing the Festival, you form a key pillar of our success and we thank you for joining us once again!

Our new Partners made important impacts too, by supplying volunteers and artists with tasty treats (TÜbify), helping place the Festival and Fringe artists firmly on Vancouver’s radio radar (Roundhouse Radio), and helping the Fringe community know exactly what’s happening (Thunderbolt Signs)!

To all our partners: Thanks! We simply couldn’t do it without you!

FRINGE 2016 PARTNERS

For Sponsorship Information and Opportunities, please contact: Cherine Amr Sponsorship and Development Manager cherine@vancouverfringe.com

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Photo Credits: My City Photos Rosemarie Gresham Dakota Shelby Sunny Kim Emilio Merritt

Mike Vlasman Bruce McPherson Isaac Hinksman Thompson Lau