Apply for 2012

Applications are now available for the 2012 Victoria Fringe (Aug-Sept) and Uno Fest (May-June), produced by Intrepid Theatre. The deadline to apply to Uno is November 4, 2011. The deadline to apply to the Fringe is January 10, 2012. Click here for more info about the Fringe.

©Fringe and Fringe Festival are registered trademarks of the Canadian Association of Fringe Festivals (CAFF)

What is the Fringe?

The Fringe is un-juried and uncensored international theatre festival. Participating companies/artists bring their fully-produced shows to the festival, and receive 100% of their box office revenue. Ticket prices are affordable so the festival is accessible to the widest possible audience.

Victoria hosts one of the oldest Fringes in Canada. We accept about 49 indoor shows in a 7 venue, 11 day event in downtown Victoria (located on the southernmost tip of Vancouver Island,  1.5 hours from Vancouver, or 2.5 hours from Seattle, by ferry.) The Victoria Fringe is now in it’s 26th year. It is a mid-sized un-juried theatrical performance festival accepting a total of 52 companies in 8 venues. This year’s fringe attracted 27,000 audience members.

If you are curious about what goes in to putting on a Fringe show, please visit last year’s  Fringe Artist Page & Forum. You’ll find information about deadlines, tutorials, events…many of the  bits and pieces that you need to think about when you are doing a show at the Fringe. We’ll start a new Artist page with information about 2011 after the lottery in January. You can also visit the website for our last event (2010) to get a feeling for the event itself – how we sell tickets, what the schedule looks like, special events etc.

WE PROVIDE

•    A friendly, well-attended festival event in beautiful downtown Victoria
•    6 scheduled performances
•    A fully outfitted venue (average 100 seats)
•    One professional technician and Front of House Management.
•    Box office volunteers, at-door and advance ticket service (we charge $2 extra for advance tickets, to cover the cost of selling them)
•    Up to 3 hours technical rehearsal
•    A 60 word listing/graphic in the Fringe Program Guide, website and iphone app (free distribution)
•    Blanket Festival Promotion
•    Local media contact list and online artist resources available to you all year
•    100% Box office receipts (top price $9.82 – there’s tax on that to make it $11)
•    Local billeting services for a nominal fee ($25 per person) for company members

YOU PROVIDE

•    A fully produced show, ready to be seen by an audience.
•    An email address and contact person  we can reach on a regular basis.
•    Tech and promotional material ON TIME when we request it.
•    A set ticket price of $9.82 You may have one discount price as well.
•    All your food, travel, work permit (if required), production, royalty, union fees, and artist fee expenses.
•    Your own show-specific promotional materials (posters, flyers) which YOU distribute.
•    Specialty technical equipment (ie. projectors, monitors, lapel mics, pianos, keyboards, fog machines…)

APPLICATION FEE

If you want to apply to the Fringe, the total application fee is $550, HST included. $25 of this fee (plus tax) is a non-refundable processing fee. If you are not drawn in the lottery and want to stay on the waiting list, we do not deposit your application fee until we can offer you a spot in the festival.

Overseas / International Applications

Non-residents of Canada are subject to a 15% Federal tax on earnings in Canada. You can obtain a waiver to exempt you from all or part of this tax. We’ll send you more information if you are accepted into the festival.

HOW TO APPLY

The Victoria Fringe accepts  52 applications within the following regional quotas: 50% Local (BC) Companies, 35% North American Companies (Canada/US), 15% Overseas (outside Canada and US). 10 “earlybird” spots are reserved for first-received, first accepted applications by Victoria-based companies only.  Our waiting lists reflect the quotas (ie. If an overseas company drops out, it will be replaced with another overseas company.) We also participate in the Canadian Association of Fringe Festivals Touring Lottery, which is drawn prior to our lottery. We accept a maximum of 10 applications through this process (5 Canadian, 5 International). These are deducted from our lottery quotas.

How to Apply to Perform in the 2012 Victoria Fringe

• 2012 APPLICATION DEADLINE: January 10, 2012
• 2012 FESTIVAL DATES: August 23-Sept 2, 2012

Fringe Applications are selected in three ways:

1. CAFF LOTTERY  – We accept up to 10 companies through the Canadian Association of Fringe Festivals Touring Lottery (for more information, click here).
2. EARLYBIRD LOCAL – 10 spots are reserved for Victoria-resident shows only, on an in-person, first-come, first-served basis, beginning 9 am, January 11 at the Intrepid Theatre Office (Fisgard & Blanshard). To apply, fill out the regular online application at the link below by the Jan 10 deadline, print a copy of the email confirmation you’ll receive, and bring it with you.
3. REGULAR LOTTERY – All remaining spots are drawn randomly and accepted into regional quotas: Local (BC) 50%, Other North America (35%), Overseas (15%). Four spots are available for Theatre-for-Young-Audiences companies, regardless of place origin.

In all cases, the fringe application fee is $550 ($25 non-refundable processing fee). Accepted companies get 6 scheduled performances in a fully-equipped, 100-150 seat venue, the services of a venue technician to run the show, all front-of-house and box office/ticket services, listing in the program guide (print, web, and mobile app), billeting services ($25 per company member), and 100% of their ticket price, with a ceiling of $11.

Companies who are accepted are responsible for bringing a fully-produced show to the festival, that is ready to be seen by an audience. You are responsible for all aspects of production – casting, rehearsals, design, direction, promotion, budgeting. We simply provide blanket promotion, space, tech, and support for you to share your work.

There are two steps to apply to the regular lottery, which is how most companies apply to the festival.

1. Fill out an online application form. CLICK HERE
2. Complete a Payment Information Form and email. CLICK HERE

You can apply any time between now and the closing deadline of Tuesday, January 10, 5 pm PST. We will notify you by email when we have received both parts of your application, to confirm that you will be entered in the lottery.

We will not be accepting applications for non-site-specific indoor Bring-Your-Own Venues in 2012. If you want to perform in the Victoria Fringe, you must apply to the lottery by the deadline for a regular spot in the festival.

FAQS

How many applications do you get? Last year we got 120 applications for 42 spots. In the end we were able to squeeze in 72 companies (we added venues for our 25th anniversary). In 2012, we’ll go back to the 50-60 show size.

What are my chances of getting in off the waiting list? It’s almost impossible to say, but in 2010 of 67 companies on the waiting list, 10 got in and 31 dropped off the list, so there was quite a bit of movement.  The longer you can hang in there, the more your chances improve.

Will you deposit my application fee if I’m not drawn in the lottery? No.  We don’t deposit your fee unless we can offer you a spot in the festival, though everyone who applies pays the $25 (+HST=$28) non-refundable processing fee. So if you are on the waiting list and decide to drop off the list, we do not send you a refund because we don’t deposit  your fee.

If I get a spot in the festival and decide to drop out, do I get my money back? If you notify us in writing by May 31, 2012, you get 100% of the application fee back (we keep the $25 processing fee.). After May 31, your entire application fee is non-refundable.

How much money will I make at the Victoria Fringe? As an independent producer in a competitive marketplace, you are responsible for producing and promoting your show to the best of your ability. If you have a great show and are great at promoting it, you’ll do well. There is no meaningful “average” box office revenue because it varies widely, but a recent range was $5,700/$470. Do the best show you can, tell people about it, and you can expect something between those two numbers!

QUESTIONS? Contact Janet Munsil, Producer 250-383-2663 / email