Our 2024 Accessibility Town Hall was led by the festival’s Events Director, Wiley Jones.

 

At this event we go over the Hollywood Fringe’s Accessibility Checklist that every producer should complete as they prepare for their 2024 performances. 

 

1. Select the accessibility flags that apply to your production. (Many of these are simple practices that, with some planning, can be easily incorporated into the run of your show. Think about how you’ll implement those procedures prior to and on the day of your performance(s). Be honest about what you’re willing to commit to and what you’ll be able to provide.)

 

2. In addition to maintaining the accuracy of the accessibility flags on your project page, we encourage you to provide more detailed accessibility information on the project page. (This includes a content warning, how to find the box office, and who to contact on the day of the performance regarding personal accessibility requests.)

 

3. Confirm your venue’s accessibility flags are up to date and accurate for your performances.

 

4. Ensure that your actors, box office, and production crew know your show’s accessibility plans for audience members, as well as what they can expect.

 

Town Hall Conversation: Accessibility ‘Flags’ & Practices

In depth definitions were provided for all the accessibility flags utilized on the Hollywood Fringe website, as well as resources and suggestions for how to implement these practices into your production. There was a step by step demonstration of how to add flags for the accessibility features of your show to your project page and performances. (Remember to add the accessibility flags to every performance so they can be searched by patrons on the website.) 

 

Wiley emphasized the importance of creating a content warning that potential audience members can find on your project page prior to purchasing tickets, stating if the production will contain potentially triggering / harmful content. Content warnings play an important role in ensuring your audience feels safe/ prepared and has the choice to protect themselves from the discussion or portrayal of potentially harmful topics. (Content warning flag can be found under the ‘edit’ tab in ‘admin’ on your project page, whereas all the other accessibility flags are in the ‘edit’ page under ‘performances.’)

 

Examples of topics that require content warnings, accessibility consultants, and other resources/services can be found at https://www.hollywoodfringe.org/accessibility  

 

Communicating with your patrons

Through the website you’ll be able to directly communicate with everyone who has purchased tickets to your performance. It is your responsibility to keep them updated if changes happen that affect the accessibility of that performance. We walk through the process of message one or all of the patrons on a given performance’s will call list. 

 

24 hours before the performance we suggest you send an email to your audience members reminding them of your show’s accessibility information. (Include how to find the box office and who to contact on the day of the performance regarding personal accessibility requests.)

 

Suggested Box Office Practices

- Provide clear directions & signage

- Consider your audience’s experience

- Be hyper aware of not tokenizing audience members with accessibility requests, while also working your hardest to ensure their access need is met

- Remember that it is better to be clear about what you CAN and CANNOT offer audience members, then to promise something to a ticket buyer you cannot come through on

Audience safety guideline (Not following these guidelines will result in you being prohibited from presenting as a part of the festival.)

 

- Only non-firing guns (replicas) are permitted for use in Hollywood Fringe Festival shows, and they should NEVER be pointed in the direction of audience members.

- Any physical interaction must be consented to, both in rehearsals & performances. Audience members should have the ability to engage or opt out of any interaction.

 

Reflection: Questions to ask as you consider your production’s accessibility plan

 

- What do you think is important for audience members to know before they buy tickets to or attend a performance?

- What do you do throughout the process to learn about and support the access needs of your team?

- Why should producers provide a content warning on their project page and what does that entail?

 

Final Thoughts 

We recognize that fringe shows happen on a tight schedule with limited budgets, so search for creative solutions unique to your show and the space you’re in. When you’re faced with very real limitations, be honest with your audience members so they have clear expectations as they go into your performance. By making the performances accessible to the community you have the potential to increase the reach of your work and the audience at your show. Thank you for doing your part to make the performances at the Hollywood Fringe as accessible as possible! 

 

As always if you have any questions along the way you can contact [email protected] 

We are thrilled to announce 24 total recipients of the 2024 Hollywood Fringe Artist Fund! 

Back in November, we embarked on an ambitious and exciting fundraiser with the goal of funding 24 low-income Angeleno artists at this year’s festival. With the generous support from members of our Commissioners Club, we reached our goal! The following productions were selected by random lottery, and will receive a one-time stipend toward registration, venue, and/or production costs at the 2024 Hollywood Fringe Festival:

177 Lovers and Counting: My Life as a Sex Researcher

Amen

BABY

BULGER BOYS

Emma Estrada Seeks Estardum

Final Girl: A Horror Musical Comedy

Girls Can Dismantle Fascist Dictatorships, Too

Give Me The MacArthur Genius Grant

Hurricane Party

I Love Sorority Rush!

Ingénue

Irony of War

King Nigel’s Nervous Breakdown

Latitude

Low on Milk

Marilyn & Elvis, a Magical Dramedy (almost a musical) – Marilyn & Elvis en Una Noche Buena

Pieces of Mirror

Queen Bee

Queen Out (verb)

Quicksand

SAM

The Anti “Yogi”

The Complaints Dept.

The Transpiring

 

Congratulations to all! 

Arts funding in Los Angeles is abysmal, and our work does not stop here. Join the Commissioners Club today to help us make this happen again in 2025!

“In prioritizing my values, I’m helping to create a world where each of us has our needs met in the first place. That means refusing to uphold a system that devalues anyone who exists outside of a white European heteropatriarchal false ideal. It started with saying ‘black lives matter’ and continues with the deep understanding that my freedom is bound up with those lives. It took me awhile to begin to understand that, but it is now my responsibility and it is also one of the greatest joys of my life.”

- J Stephen Brantley

 

This workshop explore ways in which white artists can actively contribute to dismantling systemic racism and promoting inclusivity in their creative practices. (Note there will be an affinity space for BIPOC, facilitated by the Access Advisory Board, during the Festival in June at Fringe Central.) Our panelists for this event included Emma Irene, Lex Ryan, and J Stephen Brantley. The conversation was moderated by Ellen Den Herder. You can watch the recording of the full workshop here.

 

In this conversation the panelists unpacked the following:

- Why are we centering white folks in this conversation about antiracism?

- What is white supremacy?

- What is antiracism?

- What is my personal stake in ending white supremacy?

- What does this have to do with theatre?

 

Attendees were given these prompts to examine their own personal stake in anti-racism work:

 

- How do you hold your personal stake, together with what’s at stake for others? 

- What are some ways that you and other white people are impacted as part of the system of white supremacy?

- Does the framework we just discussed change how you see your place within the white supremacy system?

 

 

Four practices & tools covered in this workshop:

 

1. Understanding one’s own nervous system response to discomfort and making mistakes in the context of antiracism work. The panel provides guidance on how to become aware of and identifying personal responses, such as defensiveness or guilt, to better navigate situations and take accountability for actions. They also emphasize the difference between taking accountability to repair harm versus doing so to avoid conflict. 

 

2. Tools like circle practice help build community, prevent harm, and address issues in creative spaces through restorative justice. Circle practice involves sitting in community to share feelings and views. It can be used during check-ins at the start of a meeting or rehearsal, while addressing harm, and to build community by using art-inspired prompts related to the work being produced. The panel emphasizes the importance of this work, despite the common pushback of not having enough time, and shares how it can lead to better work, stronger community, and more effective conflict resolution. 

 

3. Authenticity in storytelling and casting. Using anti-racist frameworks and standards in casting practices to ensure a diverse set of artists in the room. The panel emphasizes the need to consider cultural implications of the work being produced and the benefits of creating inclusive environments. 

 

4. Approach conversations about racism from a place of curiosity rather than challenge. The panelists emphasize the importance of understanding other people’s perspectives and having organizational systems for conflict resolution. Especially acknowledge the importance of this discussion on antiracism in the arts community for white artists. 

 

Community resources to continue this work:

 

LA Theatre Standards 

A list of standards you can enact to uphold anti-racism in your production created by and for Angeleno theatre makers

 

Characteristics of White Supremacy 

A great starting point to read into white supremacy, and develop your own personal stake in ending white supremacy culture in and out of the rehearsal room

 

 

 

Hi! I’m Rody, I’m the Hollywood Fringe Festival Artist Services Coordinator, and thrilled to be helping you out by answering questions and working to make your Fringe Festival experience a great one.

Before I was a part of the Fringe Staff, I was a participant! So I know how fun it is and how crazy it can feel, and what’s Fringe without a little craziness? Truly, I’m so thrilled to be a resource and someone who you can reach out to for questions you may have in your Fringe journey. Just know you’re not doing this alone, you and hundreds or other dedicated artists are all achieving something wonderful, and doing so together. 

So a little about me! I love reading plays, big theatre nerd, guilty as charged. I love playing card games (I always try and keep a deck of cards on my person). I am a stress baker… so I have burned the occasional banana bread— but if you have recipes please share them. (I promise not to burn it). In addition to Fringe, I’m a carpenter & Scenic Designer and currently teaching Scenic Design at a local high school.

As we all get more into the swing of things at Fringe, please feel free to say hi, strike up a conversation, or just tell me how your day’s going. Fringe is an incredible ecosystem of artists and excited theatre audiences wanting to see/test the limits of what theatre can be, and the best thing: everyone is cheering everyone on— I certainly am.

We are so excited to announce a total of 10 recipients of the 2024 Hollywood Fringe Scholarship!

Baby Rock
Blacks in Space: The Fantastic Voyage
Habla y te Salvas: Stories of a No Sabo Kid & His Guayaco Dad
Mercy
Mictlán
Resting Slut Face
Silhouettes Of Scarlet (S.O.S)
Supernova: Spiritual Death of a Hot Mess
Handala
Woody Fu is Keanu Reeves in: One-Man John Wick

Applications were reviewed and recipients were selected by an objective committee of former scholarship winners and artists & artistic company reps whose missions align with the program’s goal of expanding and diversifying the body of work being presented at Fringe.

There were so many outstanding applications, and the committee would like to acknowledge the following honorable mentions:

Black Bastard
Futakuchi Onna
Hold Me Down
Platinum Pussy
Yo Mama Dresses You Funny

 

This year we have one shows performing from our 2020 Scholarship Winners. Our 2020 Winners were not able to perform due to the onset of the Covid-19 Pandemic. The Hollywood Fringe offers every 2020 winner the opportunity to perform in perpetuity until all winners have performed. This year we have performances from:

 

Mermaid

 

At Hollywood Fringe, we seek to make the performing arts more accessible, both to the artists who produce work and for those who otherwise cannot afford to see theatre. Scholarship recipients will receive free registration, a stipend toward venue/production costs for three performances, an experienced Fringe mentor, and marketing/networking opportunities with the community.

Congratulations to all!