2019 Information for Performers
WELCOME
Thanks for considering the 2019 Pittsburgh Fringe. We want to to help make your show successful. We will do all we can to make the Festival an overwhelming success, and we look to you, our participants, to help build buzz around the community and help drive ticket sales and donations to keep the Fringe Festival going for years to come. Because we don’t curate, we are not eligible for most of the grants in the Pittsburgh area, so we are an entirely volunteer run organization. Our volunteers believe in the work that we are doing, and in the work that you are doing, and want to help you succeed. We are proud to work with such talented artists, and we are thrilled to bring such innovation and creativity to Pittsburgh.
Big Changes for 2019
We are making some big changes for 2019.
NEW MODEL
We are moving to a new model closer to the Edinburgh Fringe model, and which is similar to Hollywood Fringe and Rochester Fringe models. What are these models, and how is it different from last year?
VENUES
The biggest change is how venues are run, and how you obtain your venue. We are recruiting independently run venues and venue managers. Instead of just being assigned a venue randomly in February, you will be able to see the venues within our online backend program and select exactly which venues you want to perform in. If you don't find one you like, you will be able to find your own venue (a bit like BYOV in the past). (If you select to find your own venue, read the section on becoming a venue.)
Once you select a venue, you will get a chance to negotiate with the venue on the exact deal the two of you will have (flat fee, %, combinations, etc.). We are encouraging them to be similar to past years in costs. We think this will give you more options of venues, better venue options, and you will be able to find out your venue information sooner.
Once you find a venue, you register with the fringe to be part of the overall festival. But the big change is that you will be required to find the venue, and negotiate with the venues yourself. But our backend system should make this super easy.
FESTIVAL FOOTPRINT
To keep the festival a walkable and festive environment, we are requiring all venues to stick to our Fringe Zone area. The second big change for 2019 is that we are moving the Fringe Zone to better accommodate our new venue structure.
The new zone is up or down Penn Ave about a mile in either direction from The Alloy Studios, 5530 Penn Ave, Pittsburgh, PA 15206, and off of that area of Penn Ave a few blocks in either direction. If you aren't sure if you are in the "Zone." Please contact us to see if your venue would be approved.
NEW MODEL
We are moving to a new model closer to the Edinburgh Fringe model, and which is similar to Hollywood Fringe and Rochester Fringe models. What are these models, and how is it different from last year?
VENUES
The biggest change is how venues are run, and how you obtain your venue. We are recruiting independently run venues and venue managers. Instead of just being assigned a venue randomly in February, you will be able to see the venues within our online backend program and select exactly which venues you want to perform in. If you don't find one you like, you will be able to find your own venue (a bit like BYOV in the past). (If you select to find your own venue, read the section on becoming a venue.)
Once you select a venue, you will get a chance to negotiate with the venue on the exact deal the two of you will have (flat fee, %, combinations, etc.). We are encouraging them to be similar to past years in costs. We think this will give you more options of venues, better venue options, and you will be able to find out your venue information sooner.
Once you find a venue, you register with the fringe to be part of the overall festival. But the big change is that you will be required to find the venue, and negotiate with the venues yourself. But our backend system should make this super easy.
FESTIVAL FOOTPRINT
To keep the festival a walkable and festive environment, we are requiring all venues to stick to our Fringe Zone area. The second big change for 2019 is that we are moving the Fringe Zone to better accommodate our new venue structure.
The new zone is up or down Penn Ave about a mile in either direction from The Alloy Studios, 5530 Penn Ave, Pittsburgh, PA 15206, and off of that area of Penn Ave a few blocks in either direction. If you aren't sure if you are in the "Zone." Please contact us to see if your venue would be approved.
2019 DATES FOR PERFORMERS TO REMEMBER:
NOW: VENUE REGISTRATION OPEN
All venues interesting in soliciting participants can register with the Fringe starting this day. The more the merrier, we’d like a nice selection for participants when booking begins in early 2019. Note that we highly encourage DIY venues – Fringe venue created from found spaces.
SOON: PROJECT APPLICATIONS OPENS
We feel we need to have a few key venues lined up and in place before we open registration. All shows interested in participating can start entering their project information, and looking for venues. If you have a venue idea already, you can register your venue whenever you have that idea.
DECEMBER 10: PASSES GO ON SALE
We have a limited number of day and weekend passes available for the festival. These passes will go on sale December 1 until they run out, or until the end of the festival (whichever is first).
DECEMBER 10: FRINGE REGISTRATION OPEN
Remember, mounting a show in the Pittsburgh Fringe is a three step process. Registration and paying your Fringe registration fee is your final step. Time between now and February 1 can be spent creating your online project and booking your venue. We strongly suggest booking your venue as early as possible. Many venues will start booking as soon as the projects start registration. On December 10, you will be able to finalize the process by registering with the Fringe (but you can wait too!).
JANUARY 10: EARLY REGISTRATION DEADLINE
If you want to keep your costs down, you can register with the Fringe early and receive a discount. This means that you need to have a venue booked and your registration paid.
JANUARY 10: EARLY DISCOUNTED GUIDE ADS DEADLINE
Guide Ads are an inexpensive way to promote your show to the captive Fringe audience. To receive a significant discount, we must have your ads reserved and paid for by January 10th. Ads will be on sale to participants starting on December 10. You can purchase online ads at any time. Final design due for early bird discount is by January 21st.
JANUARY 20: LAST DAY FOR REFUND
If you change your mind about anything, today is the last day to request a refund on Participant Registration fees. Please email us to request your refund. (FYI: Application Fees are always non-refundable.)
FEBRUARY 1: REGISTRATION DEADLINE
You can register with the Fringe anytime after February 1, but assuming you want to be included in the printed guide (hint: you do!), your registration needs to be complete by February 1. This means that you need to have a venue booked and your registration paid.
ROLLING BASIS: BROCHURE PROOF APPROVED
We will send you a proof of your brochure entry to approve approximately between January 15 and February 4 (we will work on these on a rolling basis as you register). You will have a few days to approve the proof.
FEBRUARY 7: GUIDE ADS DEADLINE
Guide Ads are an inexpensive way to promote your show to the captive Fringe audience. To send our guide to the printers in a timely manner, we must have your ads complete by February 7. Ads will be on sale to participants starting on December 10. You can purchase online ads at any time. Final design due by February 10th.
FEBRUARY 12: TICKETS ON SALE
Fringe tickets go on sale through www.pittsburghfringe.org.
APRIL 2-5: REHEARSALS
Depending on your agreement with your venue, you may be rehearsing prior to the start of the festival, or you may be rehearsing earlier in the day before your first performance. Please remember to make these arrangements with your venue in advance.
APRIL 3: ARTIST PRE-FESTIVAL EVENT
Join us as we usher in another year of Fringe with networking celebration!
APRIL 4-7: FRINGE FESTIVAL 2019
These are the big dates.
APRIL 7: AWARD CEREMONY
We present the sponsored and community awards for the Fringe.
2019 COSTS FOR PITTSBURGH FRINGE:
APPLICATION FEE:
There is a $35 non-refundable fee for each performance or exhibition to start the application process. (If you do a BYOV venue (Bring Your Own Venue), there is no cost to register a venue. You may also make that venue available to other performers, or just for your own show.)
EARLY FRINGE REGISTRATION FEE (January 10):
Save money by registering early.
FRINGE REGISTRATION FEE (February 1):
Can’t quite get it all sorted out early? That’s OK, you can still make the Fringe Program if you register by February 1. In fact, you can actually register after February 1, but you won’t be in the printed program (that will make it very hard for your show from a marketing perspective, so we don’t suggest it - but in theory you can). And while you still can register after February 1, you will not receive a discount despite not being in the printed program. However, you will be listed online, and all the other benefits of registration.
YOUR PRODUCTION COSTS:
Budgets for each production are different. Often to keep costs down, fringe shows tend to have minimal sets, costumes, props, and equipment. Fringe shows are often able to load-in or load-out in 5 or 10 minutes. The focus is often on the performers, artists, and the work. However, you are also welcome to do an elaborate set if you can work that out with your venue.
VENUE RENT:
Venue rents vary. Many venues charge no rent, but will keep a percentage of box office. Others may charge a small amount, but will allow participants to keep all or most of the box office. Some venues may be free, but ask you to encourage your audience to buy a drink at their establishment. Some fees may include technical, some may just be a bare room. Please make sure to be very clear with your venue about what is and is not included in your deal. We are hoping on average that for a 1 hour show with minimal load-in and load-out, and some very basic lighting and sound equipment that costs are around $20-$60 per performance for those venues that charge up front, or 10%-30% of box office for those venues that work off of the box office split.
PERCENTAGE TO THE FRINGE FESTIVAL:
The Fringe keeps 10% of ticket sales to help cover its costs (marketing, advertising, centralized box office, promotional events, publicity, etc.). This cost is automatically deducted.
MARKETING:
The Fringe will market as a whole, but you will want to market your show beyond the Official Fringe Guide. Reserve some money in your budget for marketing your show. Ideas include:
There are plenty of low cost marketing options. We also highly suggest figuring out which niche audiences might be attracted to your show, and then find facebook groups, or organizations, or publications that are part of that niche group and let them directly know about your show. We also know you are a highly creative group, so you will think of some amazing cool ideas for marketing.
INSURANCE:
Make sure you discuss this with your venue. You may be covered under your venue, but make sure this is part of your discussion. We also have a policy for the festival as a whole.
There is a $35 non-refundable fee for each performance or exhibition to start the application process. (If you do a BYOV venue (Bring Your Own Venue), there is no cost to register a venue. You may also make that venue available to other performers, or just for your own show.)
EARLY FRINGE REGISTRATION FEE (January 10):
Save money by registering early.
- One production with multiple, ticketed performances/exhibits: $80
- One production with free, non-ticketed performances/exhibits: $30
- One production with one ticketed performance/exhibit only: $50
- Educational events (workshops, etc.): $10
- You may register an educational event for $0 if you have already registered another show
- Teen and College Fringe productions are 50% discounted.
FRINGE REGISTRATION FEE (February 1):
Can’t quite get it all sorted out early? That’s OK, you can still make the Fringe Program if you register by February 1. In fact, you can actually register after February 1, but you won’t be in the printed program (that will make it very hard for your show from a marketing perspective, so we don’t suggest it - but in theory you can). And while you still can register after February 1, you will not receive a discount despite not being in the printed program. However, you will be listed online, and all the other benefits of registration.
- One production with multiple, ticketed performances/exhibits: $125
- One production with free, non-ticketed performances/exhibits: $55
- One production with one ticketed performance/exhibit only: $75
- Educational events (workshops, etc.): $15
- You may register an educational event for $0 if you have already registered another show
- Teen and College Fringe productions are 50% discounted.
YOUR PRODUCTION COSTS:
Budgets for each production are different. Often to keep costs down, fringe shows tend to have minimal sets, costumes, props, and equipment. Fringe shows are often able to load-in or load-out in 5 or 10 minutes. The focus is often on the performers, artists, and the work. However, you are also welcome to do an elaborate set if you can work that out with your venue.
VENUE RENT:
Venue rents vary. Many venues charge no rent, but will keep a percentage of box office. Others may charge a small amount, but will allow participants to keep all or most of the box office. Some venues may be free, but ask you to encourage your audience to buy a drink at their establishment. Some fees may include technical, some may just be a bare room. Please make sure to be very clear with your venue about what is and is not included in your deal. We are hoping on average that for a 1 hour show with minimal load-in and load-out, and some very basic lighting and sound equipment that costs are around $20-$60 per performance for those venues that charge up front, or 10%-30% of box office for those venues that work off of the box office split.
PERCENTAGE TO THE FRINGE FESTIVAL:
The Fringe keeps 10% of ticket sales to help cover its costs (marketing, advertising, centralized box office, promotional events, publicity, etc.). This cost is automatically deducted.
MARKETING:
The Fringe will market as a whole, but you will want to market your show beyond the Official Fringe Guide. Reserve some money in your budget for marketing your show. Ideas include:
- Placing an ad in the printed Fringe Guide
- Place an ad on the Fringe website
- Print flyers and posters to distribute yourself, or you can hire a distribution company
- Buy ads on social media
There are plenty of low cost marketing options. We also highly suggest figuring out which niche audiences might be attracted to your show, and then find facebook groups, or organizations, or publications that are part of that niche group and let them directly know about your show. We also know you are a highly creative group, so you will think of some amazing cool ideas for marketing.
INSURANCE:
Make sure you discuss this with your venue. You may be covered under your venue, but make sure this is part of your discussion. We also have a policy for the festival as a whole.
2019 How to Apply:
INDEPENDENT PRODUCERS
Fringe is open to anyone! To apply, you must be able to put together a fully fledged show. You’re not just writing a script or only coming up with a concept: you have to actually produce your show! As this is a fringe festival, the shows are NOT produced by the festival, and the venues themselves receive your “ready to go” shows that you’ve created. It offers you freedom and creative license to mold your own ideas into a fully realized performance as your own independent producer!
For those who are new to the process, or unsure how this new process is going to work, the Fringe is happy to meet with you, talk to you on the phone, or answer questions via email or social media. We also hope to do some information sessions or workshops between now and the early deadline. So keep an eye open for those, but regardless, we are always happy to help you through the process!
STEP ONE: CREATE YOUR PROJECT AND APPLY:
Applications will be open from now until the festival. However, you will have more venue options earlier in the process, and more time to talk with venues the sooner you apply. You will also save money if you make our early registration deadline on January 10, and you will want to be in the printed fringe guide the deadline which is February 1st. So as soon as you can figure out even the first draft of your show idea, get online and apply!
This is a public project - anything you post can be seen by the Fringe world. Hopefully, it will attract some attention from members of the community who might be able to help by lending resources and assistance.
STEP TWO: APPLY TO AND COMMUNICATE WITH YOUR PREFERRED VENUE(S):
Ready to take the next step? Get ready to hunt for a venue. We have made this process easier by securing a list of venues interested in hosting Fringe programming. When you apply, they will receive an email with a link to your project.
Already have leads on a venue in the Fringe Zone? You can register your own venue for free. Participants converting unlikely spaces into full-fledged Fringe venues is the lifeblood of the festival. You might also open your new venue to other fringe projects, offsetting your costs and expanding opportunities to other artists.
Remember, Fringe venues can be anywhere: theatres, clubs, bars, restaurants, found spaces, outdoor spaces… anything you have rights/permission to control for the duration of your event/performances/exhibitions. All we ask is that you keep it in the Fringe Zone, to make it easy for audiences to experience and walk to as many shows as possible. Fringe audiences like to pack in as many experiences as possible during the festival, and close venues help with this experience.
If you have trouble finding a suitable venue, or want to find a fun found space for your specific show, or have trouble booking a venue or communicating with your venue, contact us at support@pittsburghfringe.org.
ONE SHOW / ONE VENUE
We have a one show / one venue rule. Once you confirm your show with a venue, you cannot perform that same, exact show at any other venue. In the Fringe printed guide and website, your show will be listed as playing at one venue only. If you are an actor in a play or a musician in a band, you may perform at more than one venue IF you are also in a totally different play or band. (For example, John Doe can perform in Romeo & Juliet at one venue, and Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf at another venue, but the same exact production of Romeo & Juliet cannot be performed at more than one venue.) That said, any individual or group may submit multiple productions to the Fringe: simply create a different project.
STEP THREE: REGISTER WITH THE FRINGE
When you pay your registration you secure your spot as a festival participant. This avails you to all the benefits of participation (see below).
Important note: It is you responsibility to ensure you book a venue (this will most likely include additional fees). We will also refund your registration if the request is made on January 20 or earlier.
BENEFITS OF REGISTRATION
We have tried to keep our registration costs as low as possible so all can participate. Most of the money raised through registration will be spent on marketing the festival itself. Remember: We don’t guarantee you an audience, however we do everything we can to make sure people know about the Festival as a whole. Attracting festival-goers to see your show is a task you need to tackle yourself (we will help you along).
Once you have paid your registration fee, you are entitled to these benefits:
PROMOTION
Inclusion in the Fringe Guide, Fringe Website and all the festival-wide promotions.
TICKET SALES
Ticket Sales through Fringe box offices located on the web, and at fringe central. By registering your show with the fringe, you also agree to all the festival wide ticket and pass promotions including but not limited to Fringe Button Discount, Festival Passes, Volunteer Passes, VIP Passes, Industry Passes, Artist Passes, and Press and Media Passes. You also agree to selling your tickets through our box office system.
SUPPORT
Access to our participant support team to help you through your Fringe experience. Email support@pittsburghfringe.org or help.
WEB PRESENCE
A dedicated, customizable home on our Website and access to its promotional tools.
DISCOUNTED ADVERTISING
Discounted fees on website and Fringe Guide advertising. We also work with partners throughout the community to secure great benefits (and big discounts) for fringe participants.
FUN
Access to social events for fun and networking.
Fringe is open to anyone! To apply, you must be able to put together a fully fledged show. You’re not just writing a script or only coming up with a concept: you have to actually produce your show! As this is a fringe festival, the shows are NOT produced by the festival, and the venues themselves receive your “ready to go” shows that you’ve created. It offers you freedom and creative license to mold your own ideas into a fully realized performance as your own independent producer!
For those who are new to the process, or unsure how this new process is going to work, the Fringe is happy to meet with you, talk to you on the phone, or answer questions via email or social media. We also hope to do some information sessions or workshops between now and the early deadline. So keep an eye open for those, but regardless, we are always happy to help you through the process!
STEP ONE: CREATE YOUR PROJECT AND APPLY:
Applications will be open from now until the festival. However, you will have more venue options earlier in the process, and more time to talk with venues the sooner you apply. You will also save money if you make our early registration deadline on January 10, and you will want to be in the printed fringe guide the deadline which is February 1st. So as soon as you can figure out even the first draft of your show idea, get online and apply!
This is a public project - anything you post can be seen by the Fringe world. Hopefully, it will attract some attention from members of the community who might be able to help by lending resources and assistance.
STEP TWO: APPLY TO AND COMMUNICATE WITH YOUR PREFERRED VENUE(S):
Ready to take the next step? Get ready to hunt for a venue. We have made this process easier by securing a list of venues interested in hosting Fringe programming. When you apply, they will receive an email with a link to your project.
Already have leads on a venue in the Fringe Zone? You can register your own venue for free. Participants converting unlikely spaces into full-fledged Fringe venues is the lifeblood of the festival. You might also open your new venue to other fringe projects, offsetting your costs and expanding opportunities to other artists.
Remember, Fringe venues can be anywhere: theatres, clubs, bars, restaurants, found spaces, outdoor spaces… anything you have rights/permission to control for the duration of your event/performances/exhibitions. All we ask is that you keep it in the Fringe Zone, to make it easy for audiences to experience and walk to as many shows as possible. Fringe audiences like to pack in as many experiences as possible during the festival, and close venues help with this experience.
If you have trouble finding a suitable venue, or want to find a fun found space for your specific show, or have trouble booking a venue or communicating with your venue, contact us at support@pittsburghfringe.org.
ONE SHOW / ONE VENUE
We have a one show / one venue rule. Once you confirm your show with a venue, you cannot perform that same, exact show at any other venue. In the Fringe printed guide and website, your show will be listed as playing at one venue only. If you are an actor in a play or a musician in a band, you may perform at more than one venue IF you are also in a totally different play or band. (For example, John Doe can perform in Romeo & Juliet at one venue, and Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf at another venue, but the same exact production of Romeo & Juliet cannot be performed at more than one venue.) That said, any individual or group may submit multiple productions to the Fringe: simply create a different project.
STEP THREE: REGISTER WITH THE FRINGE
When you pay your registration you secure your spot as a festival participant. This avails you to all the benefits of participation (see below).
Important note: It is you responsibility to ensure you book a venue (this will most likely include additional fees). We will also refund your registration if the request is made on January 20 or earlier.
BENEFITS OF REGISTRATION
We have tried to keep our registration costs as low as possible so all can participate. Most of the money raised through registration will be spent on marketing the festival itself. Remember: We don’t guarantee you an audience, however we do everything we can to make sure people know about the Festival as a whole. Attracting festival-goers to see your show is a task you need to tackle yourself (we will help you along).
Once you have paid your registration fee, you are entitled to these benefits:
PROMOTION
Inclusion in the Fringe Guide, Fringe Website and all the festival-wide promotions.
TICKET SALES
Ticket Sales through Fringe box offices located on the web, and at fringe central. By registering your show with the fringe, you also agree to all the festival wide ticket and pass promotions including but not limited to Fringe Button Discount, Festival Passes, Volunteer Passes, VIP Passes, Industry Passes, Artist Passes, and Press and Media Passes. You also agree to selling your tickets through our box office system.
SUPPORT
Access to our participant support team to help you through your Fringe experience. Email support@pittsburghfringe.org or help.
WEB PRESENCE
A dedicated, customizable home on our Website and access to its promotional tools.
DISCOUNTED ADVERTISING
Discounted fees on website and Fringe Guide advertising. We also work with partners throughout the community to secure great benefits (and big discounts) for fringe participants.
FUN
Access to social events for fun and networking.
2019 Ticketing and Pricing:
TICKETING
This section will introduce you to the wonderful world of Fringe ticketing.
We will be using a ticketing system that is different from Ticketleap this year. We will be utilizing the same system used by the Hollywood Fringe. We have done everything possible to make our ticketing system fully featured for our participants. As always, if you have any questions on how to use the system or would like to request a particular feature, don’t hesitate to contact us at support@pittsburghfringe.org
PERCENTAGE TO THE FRINGE FESTIVAL:
The Fringe keeps 10% of ticket sales to help cover its costs (marketing, advertising, centralized box office, promotional events, publicity, etc.). This costs is automatically deducted. keep this in mind when deciding your ticket prices. A chart is at the bottom of this section discussing the ticket return for each ticket type.
TICKET PRICES
To stay consistent for audiences with past festivals we suggest artists select $8 or $15 tickets, or free if they show our festival button. While you may select any of these prices we have the following guidelines. If your show is under 50 minutes, we highly suggest you only charge $8. If you are a teen or college fringe production, regardless of length of show we suggest you charge $8 or make it free. Before deciding your prices, make sure you read about the festival discounts and promotions, and make sure to take those into consideration when selecting your ticket price.
TICKET DISCOUNTS
We plan to offer the following discounts. Keep this in mind when selecting your ticket pricing. Being part of the festival means you agree to the following
Fringe Buttons:
To help support the festival, we sell festival buttons each year. While these buttons are optional (unlike some festivals that require them in order to attend a performance), we use them to create community. We think that audiences can recognize other festival goers by noticing those wearing buttons (or festival pass lanyards), and will know who to strike a conversation up with about what shows they have seen. When buying tickets, patrons can use the buttons to receive a $3 discount on a ticket, or use it to attend any of our free shows and special events. (This would make your tickets either $12 for $15 tickets, or $5 for $8 tickets.)
Fringe Day and Weekend Passes:
To encourage audience members to be a true fringe audience, we have day and weekend passes. One price for as many shows as they can attend during the duration of the pass. To make this work, we have to do a few things. First we reserved 10% of ticket sales to be held so pass holders can get in at the door with their pass. (While they can order the passes in advance and online, they need to arrive at Fringe Central to pick up the appropriate lanyard prior to the show. They can then show up at least 10 minutes before the show, and hopefully get right in for the 10% of the seats we reserve for them. They cannot reserve pass seats with a lanyard, which is why we hold this small percentage so they can get in at the door. If passholders do not show up these tickets will be released for regular sale at the door 10 minutes prior to the show.) For shows that are charging $15, artists will receive $6 per passholder that chooses to attend their show. For shows charging $8, artists will receive $3 per passholder that chooses to attend their show. We do not take any commission from this ticket type. While the amount is lower than full price, it is what mathematically works for us to offer these passes at a reasonable price. We also found that it is much easier for artists to convert a passholder into an audience member than other people. Passholders have already paid, and you only have to convince them to attend your show over another show. It is a great way to get last minute audience members into your show, and increases your festival audience overall. (These are also some of the most dedicated audience members!)
Volunteer Passes:
Volunteers who work a certain number of hours are able to earn passes to shows. These passes are only allowed to be used for a show on a standby basis, thus protecting artists from losing money from paying patrons.
VIP Passes:
We identify VIPs as people who either help the festival in a significant way, or help artists in significant ways. This allows us to keep our participant fees lower, and to help out of town artists find housing.
Industry Passes:
While this is still a very small area at our festival, we try to attract organizations that are likely to be looking for shows to book in the future, booking agents, artists agencies, venue managers, those running other festivals, and other fringe directors. We hope by encouraging these folks to come to our festival, your show may get an amazing opportunity post fringe.
Press and Media Passes:
We really work hard on having as much press and media attending your shows as possible. We also have organizations that are reviewing your shows, and those that are independently evaluating shows for our award ceremony that may be attending your show with these passes.
Artist Passes:
We think that building an artist community is important for a successful festival. Artist passes allow you to see other shows in the festival on a stand-by basis. This is a great way for artists to work together, to spread the word, to fill a house, and to learn by seeing what else is happening at the festival. These passes are only allowed to be used for a show on a standby basis, thus protecting artists from losing money from paying patrons.
This section will introduce you to the wonderful world of Fringe ticketing.
We will be using a ticketing system that is different from Ticketleap this year. We will be utilizing the same system used by the Hollywood Fringe. We have done everything possible to make our ticketing system fully featured for our participants. As always, if you have any questions on how to use the system or would like to request a particular feature, don’t hesitate to contact us at support@pittsburghfringe.org
PERCENTAGE TO THE FRINGE FESTIVAL:
The Fringe keeps 10% of ticket sales to help cover its costs (marketing, advertising, centralized box office, promotional events, publicity, etc.). This costs is automatically deducted. keep this in mind when deciding your ticket prices. A chart is at the bottom of this section discussing the ticket return for each ticket type.
TICKET PRICES
To stay consistent for audiences with past festivals we suggest artists select $8 or $15 tickets, or free if they show our festival button. While you may select any of these prices we have the following guidelines. If your show is under 50 minutes, we highly suggest you only charge $8. If you are a teen or college fringe production, regardless of length of show we suggest you charge $8 or make it free. Before deciding your prices, make sure you read about the festival discounts and promotions, and make sure to take those into consideration when selecting your ticket price.
TICKET DISCOUNTS
We plan to offer the following discounts. Keep this in mind when selecting your ticket pricing. Being part of the festival means you agree to the following
Fringe Buttons:
To help support the festival, we sell festival buttons each year. While these buttons are optional (unlike some festivals that require them in order to attend a performance), we use them to create community. We think that audiences can recognize other festival goers by noticing those wearing buttons (or festival pass lanyards), and will know who to strike a conversation up with about what shows they have seen. When buying tickets, patrons can use the buttons to receive a $3 discount on a ticket, or use it to attend any of our free shows and special events. (This would make your tickets either $12 for $15 tickets, or $5 for $8 tickets.)
Fringe Day and Weekend Passes:
To encourage audience members to be a true fringe audience, we have day and weekend passes. One price for as many shows as they can attend during the duration of the pass. To make this work, we have to do a few things. First we reserved 10% of ticket sales to be held so pass holders can get in at the door with their pass. (While they can order the passes in advance and online, they need to arrive at Fringe Central to pick up the appropriate lanyard prior to the show. They can then show up at least 10 minutes before the show, and hopefully get right in for the 10% of the seats we reserve for them. They cannot reserve pass seats with a lanyard, which is why we hold this small percentage so they can get in at the door. If passholders do not show up these tickets will be released for regular sale at the door 10 minutes prior to the show.) For shows that are charging $15, artists will receive $6 per passholder that chooses to attend their show. For shows charging $8, artists will receive $3 per passholder that chooses to attend their show. We do not take any commission from this ticket type. While the amount is lower than full price, it is what mathematically works for us to offer these passes at a reasonable price. We also found that it is much easier for artists to convert a passholder into an audience member than other people. Passholders have already paid, and you only have to convince them to attend your show over another show. It is a great way to get last minute audience members into your show, and increases your festival audience overall. (These are also some of the most dedicated audience members!)
Volunteer Passes:
Volunteers who work a certain number of hours are able to earn passes to shows. These passes are only allowed to be used for a show on a standby basis, thus protecting artists from losing money from paying patrons.
VIP Passes:
We identify VIPs as people who either help the festival in a significant way, or help artists in significant ways. This allows us to keep our participant fees lower, and to help out of town artists find housing.
Industry Passes:
While this is still a very small area at our festival, we try to attract organizations that are likely to be looking for shows to book in the future, booking agents, artists agencies, venue managers, those running other festivals, and other fringe directors. We hope by encouraging these folks to come to our festival, your show may get an amazing opportunity post fringe.
Press and Media Passes:
We really work hard on having as much press and media attending your shows as possible. We also have organizations that are reviewing your shows, and those that are independently evaluating shows for our award ceremony that may be attending your show with these passes.
Artist Passes:
We think that building an artist community is important for a successful festival. Artist passes allow you to see other shows in the festival on a stand-by basis. This is a great way for artists to work together, to spread the word, to fill a house, and to learn by seeing what else is happening at the festival. These passes are only allowed to be used for a show on a standby basis, thus protecting artists from losing money from paying patrons.
2019 Ticket Reimbursement Amounts:
The two price bands are as follows:
Regular Price Band
If you've made a split arrangement with your venue, the above amounts may go to your venue first, and then be forwarded to you. Check with them about how exactly the ticket split will work. Is it Gross or Net? Are there any expenses they will take out first? Don't be shy to ask in advance, and be very clear about the math in a split deal.
Regular Price Band
- Ticket prices are $15. (90% = $13.50)
- Fringe Button discount minus $3 = $12 (90% = $10.80)
- Artists or Venues receive 90% of actual paid price (Ticket price minus any discounts), or flat fee as indicated below for paying pass entries. Talk with your venue before signing with them about how they intend to handle ticket money.
- Day and weekend passes = $6 per paid pass entry. (Flat $6 per pass entry, no 10% will come from the pass amount. But talk with your venue about how they intend to handle this.)
- This does not include performer rush passes, VIP passes, Press passes, Industry passes, Volunteer passes or other comp tickets.
- Ticket prices $8. (90% = $7.20)
- Fringe Button discount minus $3 = $5 (90% = $4.50)
- Artists or Venues receive 90% of actual paid price (Ticket price minus any discounts), or flat fee as indicated below for paying pass entries. Talk with your venue before signing with them about how they intend to handle ticket money.
- Day and weekend passses = $3 per paid pass entry. (Flat $3 per pass entry, no 10% will come from the pass amount. But talk with your venue about how they intend to handle this.)
- This does not include performer rush passes, VIP passes, Press passes, Industry passes, Volunteer passes or other comp tickets.
If you've made a split arrangement with your venue, the above amounts may go to your venue first, and then be forwarded to you. Check with them about how exactly the ticket split will work. Is it Gross or Net? Are there any expenses they will take out first? Don't be shy to ask in advance, and be very clear about the math in a split deal.
PROMOTION AND PROGRAM INFORMATION
We want to help you market your show. While the marketing of the show is ultimately your responsibility, we do a number things festival wide to help you market your show. But we need you to help us. We need information for the website, brochure, and press releases about your show. We have detailed the information that we need below. If you have any questions, or need help creating an image - please let us know.
Image Policy:
We will do general PR for the festival, including a press release to local press. Please go through our PR guy to make sure we are not bombarding the large papers. Because of this we have had great coverage in the past. He covers the large papers (Trib, Post-Gazette, and City Paper), and some radio. But there are plenty of smaller neighborhood papers and university papers that we welcome you to reach out to!
We need the following for our PR efforts:
Image Policy:
- Even though we will not censor Fringe content (within laws), all published materials must be PG rated.
- Unless your image is just your logo, please avoid putting text on your images. Some social media outlets reject images with text, as they prefer the text in the posts so robots can read the text to the blind. So it is best to avoid text on your images.
- 3x3 in. 72 DPI image
- Cast/crew list (you can update this later)
- 60 word description of your company (you can add this later if you want)
- 60-100 word description of your show (ideally use brochure show description here to be consistent, but you can add reviews or other helpful information to sell your show).
- 60 word description
- 3x3 in. 300 dpi image (this does not guarantee the final image will be this size)
- Age restrictions and other applicable information (if changed from your original application)
We will do general PR for the festival, including a press release to local press. Please go through our PR guy to make sure we are not bombarding the large papers. Because of this we have had great coverage in the past. He covers the large papers (Trib, Post-Gazette, and City Paper), and some radio. But there are plenty of smaller neighborhood papers and university papers that we welcome you to reach out to!
We need the following for our PR efforts:
- 60 word description (use brochure show description here to be consistent).
- Photo Requirements: .jpg format files that are approximately 10mb file size when open. That’s roughly 200 dpi+ at 9 inches x 12 inches for the image dimensions.
- URL and any social media tags or addresses
- NOTE: The media selects the images they want to use. If you give us amazing images, you are much more likely to see your image in a paper.
Program Advertisements:
These are not required. This is additional advertising you may choose to buy, but only if you want. To help our performers, we offer very large discounts, and additional discounts for reserving pages early. (We've kept prices the same low prices as last year!)
These are not required. This is additional advertising you may choose to buy, but only if you want. To help our performers, we offer very large discounts, and additional discounts for reserving pages early. (We've kept prices the same low prices as last year!)
- Early Bird Fringer Rate: Confirm and Pay by Jan. 10th, and design due by Jan. 21st
- Regular Fringer Rate: Confirm and Pay by Feb. 7th., and design due by Feb. 10th.
- Full page, 5x8 in. - $120 Early Bird Fringer Rate; $240 Fringer Rate (Orig. $480 - Represents a 60% discount on the ⅛ page size)
- ½ Page, 5x4 in. - $90 Early Bird Fringer Rate; $180 Fringer Rate (Orig. $360 - Represents a 40% discount on the ⅛ page size)
- ¼ Page, 2.5x4 in. -$60 Early Bird Fringer Rate; $120 Fringer Rate (Orig. $240 - Represents a 20% discount on the ⅛ page size)
- ¼ Page, 5x2 in. - $60 Early Bird Fringer Rate; $120 Fringer Rate (Orig. $240 - Represents a 20% discount on the ⅛ page size)
- ⅛ Page, 2.5x2 in. - $40 Early Bird Fringer Rate; $75 Fringer Rate (Orig. $150 - Represents a 0% discount on the ⅛ page size)
2019 Site Specific Shows
Since anyone can be a venue manager, you can also be the venue manager for just your own show. It is like BYOV at many other fringes. We are hoping to encourage you to interesting found space venues, as one of our best shows have used cool found venues. Or think of a portable venue, that you can drive or park in our footprint. We have places for something like this! Fringe’s are known for their weird quirky show locations, and we would love to have more of this. If you are thinking a cool location would really help your show, and can't find one. Ask us! some ideas from past years include:
1. a beautiful victorian bed and breakfast lobby area
2. a swimming pool
3. a smokey dingy basement room of a smoking bar (real cigarette smoke in the air)
4. a very small brewery pub (might be difficult to do ticketing here, unless we do it off hours)
5. An old stone basement of the bed and breakfast (was used for two shows in 2017)
6. possibly an apartment, but it might be difficult to get until the last minute when they are sure no one will rent it
7. A hospital is close by…. So maybe something interesting could happen there.
8. Bowling Alley - The Presbyterian Church has a little proper bowling alley with raked seating. That could be a cool show.
9. A Cemetary - This could be great!
FYI: these are not confirmed found spaces, as we can’t ask without a specific show in mind. But we can put you in touch with the venue to ask, if you think that would work for your show.
Other things...
Rehearsal Schedule
Work this out with your venue when you apply, or closer to the time. At least get a commitment about how long your rehearsal time will be. Most fringe venues can only give you 1.5 hours total for get in, get out, and rehearsal. Usually fringe shows just get used to the space, and do a cue to cue. If you need true rehearsal space, talk to us. We might have some ideas.
Tech Questions
Work out your tech questions with your venue before you accept. You may even want specifics in your venue deal. As you show may change closer to the festival, make sure to revisit this information with your venue also closer to the time.
Brochure Proof Link
Our new system will have a way for you to approve a proof of the brochure. We will freeze your printed program copy online on February 1st. So any changes after that need to be made through a form we will give you.
Logos for your publicity
Feel free to use our logo in your publicity. Keep the colors and dimensions as close as you can. Below are a few different types of files of the logo. If you need something else, or have a question, please email us.
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Social Media and other Publicity
While you are ultimately responsible for marketing your show, we do as much total festival publicity as we can. The better the material you give us, the more coverage you will get. Great pictures we can use on Instagram? We will be more likely to post. A great high resolution picture can also get you print and online media in major news channels. Don't scrimp on great photographs!
Make sure to tell us any weird or awesome things about your show. You can also give us links for us to put on our website, or anything else that could be useful for us to use for publicity. It may be an interesting tidbit that we can use for a tweet, or a link to a video marketing your show. Or you just made a new Instagram account, and you now want us to link to it. Feel free to give us as much information as possible so we can do our best to publicise the whole festival (and maybe with your show's image!).
Subgroups - Are there certain groups or organizations that are likely to enjoy your show? List your ideas here. We can work together to try to market to corresponding groups.
Idea: Is your show about surviving cancer? Then you might want to contact a cancer survivor network. There are a lot of different social groups organized locally for all sorts of different things. Show about knitting? Let's find knitting organizations to tell about your show. Look on Meetup.com or facebook for these corresponding groups. But let us know too, in case we know of something specific!
Make sure to tell us any weird or awesome things about your show. You can also give us links for us to put on our website, or anything else that could be useful for us to use for publicity. It may be an interesting tidbit that we can use for a tweet, or a link to a video marketing your show. Or you just made a new Instagram account, and you now want us to link to it. Feel free to give us as much information as possible so we can do our best to publicise the whole festival (and maybe with your show's image!).
Subgroups - Are there certain groups or organizations that are likely to enjoy your show? List your ideas here. We can work together to try to market to corresponding groups.
Idea: Is your show about surviving cancer? Then you might want to contact a cancer survivor network. There are a lot of different social groups organized locally for all sorts of different things. Show about knitting? Let's find knitting organizations to tell about your show. Look on Meetup.com or facebook for these corresponding groups. But let us know too, in case we know of something specific!
Start the Steps:
After you've read this whole page, you can go learn about the three steps in more depth on the following pages:
Contact US
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