Q. What is Fringe?
A. Minnesota Fringe is a Minneapolis-based nonprofit organization whose mission is to connect adventurous artists with adventurous audiences. Fringe does not judge, jury or censor the work of any artist—our goal is provide a platform for performance, and we leave it up to the audience to evaluate the results. We throw the theater doors wide open for all comers, whether they’re on the stage or in the seats, and we provide all the tools necessary to support the artists and help the audiences find what they’re looking for.

The most visible result of our efforts is the Minnesota Fringe Festival, an annual eleven-day performing arts extravaganza. In 2009, we issued 46,217 tickets to 162 shows. Fringe shows are 60 minutes or less and there's a 30-minute break between each show.

Q. When is Fringe?
A. Thursday, August 5 through Sunday, August 15, 2010. Fringe is usually the first two weekends (and the sandwiched weekdays) of August each year. Next year Fringe will run August 4-14, 2011.

Q. Where is Fringe?
A. In 2010, there are 15 standard Fringe venues in Minneapolis and St. Paul. Many of our venues are in Minneapolis' Uptown, West Bank and Northeast neighborhoods. In addition, there are four venues participating in our BYOV—bring your own venue—program for site-specific works. All venues are within a four-mile radius of Fringe Central, to simplify getting around between shows.

Q. How long has Minnesota Fringe been around?
A. Since 1993. We're presenting our 17th festival in 2010.

Q. How do I volunteer to help with the Fringe?
A. Sign up online or read more about the different sorts of things you can do as a Fringe volunteer.

Q. How were previous years' festivals?
A. Awesome. Download our wrap-up press release for the 2009 festival or check out our tax documents and annual reports on our donation page to find out more.

Q. Are there other Fringes?
A. Yes! The Fringe movement originated in 1947 in Edinburgh Scotland and has since spread across the globe. Minnesota Fringe is a proud founding member of United Association of Fringe Festivals—check out fringefestivals.us for info on participating fringes across the country.

Q. How do I find out more about the Fringe?
A. If there’s something else you’re wondering about, please send us an email or give us a call at (612) 872-1212.

Q. How are Fringe shows selected?
A. Only by fate! Fringe is unique among performing arts festivals in that our lineup is unjuried: there is no selection panel that decides who deserves to perform. Applicants are selected by lottery. When companies are drawn in the lottery, they’re in the festival. Once the festival slots are full, we keep drawing to create a waiting list. If someone drops out of the festival, we offer the slot to the first applicant on the waiting list. It’s perfectly fair and democratic.

Q. Why a lottery?
A. Until 2003, Minnesota Fringe was first-come-first-served: whoever turned their application in first was given a spot in the festival. But on the first day we accepted applications in 2004, we received more applications than we had performance slots. Hence the lottery. In 2010, we received nearly 400 applications for the 169 available slots.

Q. How much does it cost artists to be in the Fringe?
A. There's a $25 nonrefundable application fee and, if an application is drawn to be in the festival, the base producing fee is $400. The application fee covers venue rent for five shows, tech and box office staff, promotion in our publicity, a dedicated page on our Web site and 65 percent of the box office receipts.

Q. How are venues assigned?
A. Each participant is asked about the sort of space they need (stage size, seating capacity, audio-visual capabilities, etc.), then we do our best to match them to the right venue. Our venues vary greatly in size, stage configuration (proscenium, black box, arena, etc.) and special features, so we’re usually able to accommodate requests. However, when a show comes in off the waiting list, it lands in the venue that’s got an opening, so sometimes mismatches result.

Q. How are shows scheduled?
A. Attendance data from previous years is calculated to determine which performance times are historically the most and least attended. The schedule is then divided into five strata from best to worst and each show is assigned one time slot in each strata. This ensures that everyone’s odds at ticket sales are even. And because staff neutrality is important, the festival is scheduled anonymously: staff uses each show’s unique numerical ID for scheduling.

Q. How much are tickets?
A. Tickets are $12 at the door and $14 in advance with discounts for seniors, students, Minnesota Public Radio members and kids. All attendees must purchase a $4 admission button, good for admission to the festival plus loads of discounts around town. Our single ticket prices hasn’t gone up since 2004—we believe in keeping Fringe as affordable as possible for our audiences, with the hope that they’ll see multiple shows.