Hollywood Fringe Communications Director Carly Barnhill recently sat down with Fringe Veterans Kevin Neighbors, Ruby Marez, and Jared Pixler to discuss Marketing & Ticketing at Fringe! Catch the video of the workshop here.

Key Takeaways, Tips and Tricks in case you missed it:

Listing your tickets:

-When selling tickets, at least 50% of your tickets must be sold through the Hollywood Fringe website. You are welcome to sell all of your tickets on the Hollywood Fringe website — it’s entirely up to you. The only rule is that it must be at least 50% of your house size listed on the HFF website. 

**Note—100% of your ticket sales on the Hollywood Fringe site will go back to you as an artist. Some third-party ticketing platforms may take a cut of your tickets, so be aware of that as you explore options.

Ticketing and Expectations:

-Don’t undersell your work! Panelists recommended setting ticket prices around $15. You can always discount down, give out comps, use dynamic pricing, etc. — just be sure that you do not undersell OR oversell your work. Think about different ticket pricing strategies — “I can pay more” tickets, “pay what you can” tickets, a discounted show, etc. are great options for pricing dynamically.

-Have comp tickets available for special guests — press, industry, and folks that you may want to squeeze in last minute.

-You can create as many discount/comp codes as you’d like! 

-Take advantage of comp swaps! Swap a comp with another Fringer — get them into your show, and you get to see a show in return. 

Printed Guide:

-The printed guide is 100 pages of HOW TO FRINGE for audiences– every show that registers by April 15th WILL have a text listing in the printed guide which is included with your registration, and we distribute the guide all around Hollywood coffee shops, bars, restaurants, etc. This is guaranteed exposure for your show! We will send information on proofing your guide listing to all participants ahead of the date.

-You can also purchase ads in the printed guide with your show imagery, business information, etc. Buying an ad is the only way you will have visual imagery in the guide, and is a good way to show off your branding. 

-Guide ads start at $125 for registered participants. We don’t make any money off of this – we do this solely to help promote your shows!

-Printed guide ads MUST be purchased and uploaded by April 20th in order to be included. You can purchase digital ads at any time leading up to the festival. Go to hollywoodfringe.org/ads to see Canva templates and more information!

-Want to have the coveted back cover, inside cover, or centerfold of the guide as your ad space? We will run a premium auction only for those who have already purchased a guide ad starting April 23 and ending April 27. If you have purchased an ad you will automatically get an email on how to enter. 

Two events that will be VERY helpful when it comes to ticketing, as well as the printed guide:

-Town Hall #3: Printed Guide, Ticketing & Press: Sunday, April 14 from 7-9 pm | The Broadwater + Livestream

-Web Session #2: Ticketing, Ads & Guide Proofs: Monday, April 15 from 7-8 pm | Zoom + Livestream

Marketing your show:

-Marketing budget: 60% is not a bad idea for a Fringe marketing budget if you really want people to come to your show, but there is also a way to operate on a minimalist budget for Fringe. Use social media for marketing! It’s free, and you don’t have to use paid social media ads to reach folks via social.

-Giveaways: In addition to having a small postcard (4″×6″ recommended), what is something that someone can take home to remember your show? Something small, something that will remind people of meeting you, something that people can fit in their pocket or bag. Make sure it’s related to your show!

-Office Hours is KEY! Use Wednesday night Office Hours events to mix and mingle with the community and begin to market yourself and your show! Bring a friend with you, and/or invite your teams. You can pass out giveaways at Office Hours, or even consider coming in a costume or something related to your show to stay top of mind!

-Elevator Pitch: Know your show so that you can market your show! Get your elevator pitch down. Come up with ONE very catchy sentence that people will remember your show by when you meet them at Office Hours. Make it catchy, make it fun, and make it stand out from all of the other elevator pitches people will hear. Examples: "<insert movie title> MEETS <insert character> is a great way to use characters or stories that people are familiar with to get them excited about your work.

-The WHO: Think of communities that relate to your show outside of the Fringe community and your family/friends. What is your show about, and who would enjoy that out of the theatre community? Think of groups that you can bring in that might not necessarily go to the theatre otherwise, but would be interested in the topic of your show.

-Reviews: Reviews are your best friend! Folks who see your show will write reviews, and reviews are very important at Fringe! Write a review for every show you see, and always remind your audiences to write a review for you.

Reminder, you can watch the video of the entire panel here with all sorts of fun tips and tricks from panelists.

Okay for this bit to work you gottta imagine we’re in a black-and-white infomercial…

Are you working on making your Fringe poster, postcards, or just trying to make an infographic to post to social media? Are you looking for tools to better help accomplish your vision and aesthetic for what you want to send out into the world? Well, then let me tell you about Canva!

Thank you, thank you, you can hold your applause.

But yes! I want to talk to you all about Canva; what it is and how best to use it. Canva is a free-to-use online template editor app for creating social media graphics and more. There are premium paid upgrades that you could use, but I would love to let you know about what Canva’s initial free-to-use service. It’s a great tool I’ve used for years now and it really helps deliver some great Instagram posts and more. Here are some Canva tutorials published by the company I found super helpful for various reasons…

How to use Canva: A Beginner’s Guide

 Great move to start here, it’s a great introduction article to what Canva is all about and how to best utilize the program.

A step-by-step guide to designing from scratch

It took me a hot minute to figure out aesthetics and how pleasing design can be accomplished (arguably, still figuring it out). But! This tutorial really helps give you an idea and provides the tools to designing a graphic 

Getting started with Canva

Wanna do a real deep dive? Canva created video tutorials no more than two minutes a piece that tackle individual questions— love that!

Reminder!

Make sure you have the Hollywood Fringe Logo on your promotional materials like your postcards and show poster. The link to access the branding material is right here.

And that’s it for now, explore and create till your hearts content— Let your creativity run wild! Happy Fringing!

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

Legacy 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