We are using tags to help audiences search for stories from their own communities! Artists have self-selected into the following tags (and they can be updated at any time, so check them throughout the festival!)

• QUEER
• AAPI
• ARAB
• BLACK
• LATINE
• DISABILITY
• DEAF

Try seeing something new, and from a culture you have never heard personal experience stories from. Storytelling is truly an important part of the change-making progress, when you buy tickets to these shows 100% of ticket sales go to the teams producing them.

FOR ARTISTS: HOW TO UPDATE YOUR TAGS

Step 1: Go to your project page + select “Add tags to describe your project…” underneath your main image.

Step 2: Reference www.hollywoodfringe.org/shows to see what tags are currently displayed, or make a tag “trend” by adding popular tags to your page! You can add as many tags as you would like, but note that the most helpful will be the ones listed at www.hollywoodfringe.org/shows

Dear Fringers,

With just under a week before the end of the festival, we all might feel that we have this whole Fringing thing down, but we want to take a minute to remind you to keep safety in mind.

• Safety is not something to be mindful of only at night. Ask someone to walk you to your car from your friend group at the festival at all times. Walking alone is never any fun!
  
  
  
  • This is especially important if you are in charge of your show’s cash box!
  • PS: Don’t just carry your box- put it in a non-descript bag. Or, go cashless & use venmo or paypal at the door.
• We don’t want to scare you.. But want to remind you that we live in a city. No matter how comfortable you are at Fringe there is a whole world around you that doesn’t live by the same code of conduct. It’s worth noting that not everyone you see in a bar, or on the streets near a venue are necessarily with Fringe. By handing people your postcard you are telling them where to find you- this is marketing yes, but use your gut instinct when interacting and don’t risk your person just to get another ticket sale!
• Take care of each other. This is your community, we are all responsible for making our community and festival what it is. Let’s make it great! 

If you feel unsafe at any moment, find your nearest venue manager or Fringe staff member and just chat with us about the situation. We’ll help point you in the right direction if anything needs to be escalated beyond an understanding conversation. If nobody is around, email [email protected] and we will get back to you within 24 hours (usually within a few hours during the festival). 

Remember, Hollywood Fringe has a strict code of conduct you and your cast/crew must follow. Please provide a copy to all members of your team before June 1st.

Thank you all for keeping our community safe – we’re stronger together!

Ellen + Lois
Co-Executive Directors of Hollywood Fringe

Make sure you have everything in place for a smooth in-person box office experience. 

Some venues will run your box office, and for some shows, you will be responsible for running your own.

Make sure you have a plan, and leave room for things not to go as planned.  Who is running your box office? How are you taking payments for tickets at the door? Do you have a plan for a waitlist if your show sells out? 

WEBSITE BOX OFFICE TOOLS/FUNCTIONS

Check for any Accessibility Requests.

-Admin tab 

-Performances tab 

-“Accessibility Requests” button available for each individual performance

Download “Will Call Report” for each performance: 

-Admin tab 

-Performances tab 

-“Will Call” button (on each individual performance) 

Check your sales + fix your sales shutoff time (must repeat for each performance): 

-Admin tab

-Performances tab 

-“Edit” button 

-“Online Shutoff” box (you will want 0 min if you plan to use a QR code to the website at the door)

-Scroll to the bottom and click “Update Performance.” 

Message Patrons: 

Communicate with your patrons. If parking is tricky, send a pre-show email reminding people to come early (you can find details about parking near your venue here and public transit options here). If there is no late seating, please ensure they are aware.

Messaging Patrons (By Performance):

-Admin Tab 

-Performances 

-“View” button

-“Message Patrons” button 

ARE YOU RESPONSIBLE FOR YOUR BOX OFFICE? PLAN IT OUT NOW. HOW ARE YOU SELLING TICKETS AT THE DOOR? 

- Bring change ($1s, $5s, $10s, $20s) if you’re accepting cash!

- Print out QR codes with any method of accepting digital payments (Apple Pay, PayPal, Venmo, Fringe site) If you are using the Fringe site link, make sure your cut-off time is set for 0 minutes 

- If someone shows you their Fringe Button, please honor their $1 off discount! 

- If you have any discount codes, try to make sure your box office staff knows which you’ll be accepting at the door (and all that you have promoted to your audience)

- If any audience member asks you a question you don’t have the answer to, send them to [email protected]. We’ve got you!

REFUNDS + EXCHANGES (Through the website) 

Refunds & exchanges for tickets sold through the website are handled by the Fringe team, not the venue staff or the individual show.

The primary ticket buyer emails us at [email protected] to request any refunds or exchanges. 

What is the festival exchange policy?

- Refund requests received 24 hours prior to the show’s start time (unless canceled by the organizer) will be honored, and the audience ticket price will be refunded the ticket price (minus the service fee) within 3-5 business days. 

- Service fees will only be refunded if the organizer cancels the performance. 

- If notified 24 hours in advance, the Fringe Team will also swap performance times upon request, assuming no price difference exists and there are seats available for an upcoming performance. 

- Hollywood Fringe’s fees are on all tickets over $0. The service fee is $3 per ticket for any ticket under $25. Over $25, a $0.10 fee per dollar is added. 

- If a request for a refund comes in less than 24 hours before a performance begins that is related to an extreme circumstance, we will request the permission of the primary producer prior to granting it- you do not have to allow it. 

- If the primary producer requests a refund on behalf of a ticket buyer after the 24-hour window, we will also honor it. 

Each year at Hollywood Fringe, we celebrate the end of the festival with our Awards Ceremony and Closing Night Party (this year, it’s the evening of June 29th at Los Angeles LGBT Center!) Two types of awards are given out: Community Awards (“The Freaks”) & Discover Fringe Awards (formerly Sponsored Awards). Keep reading to learn everything you need to know about each type of award!

COMMUNITY AWARDS: 

The Community Awards are determined by the Fringe community via a voting process. Fringe community members receive ballots in the last days of the festival via email. The productions with the most votes in a given category are announced as nominees hours prior to the ceremony via an email newsletter and website post, and the ultimate winners are revealed at the awards ceremony.

Who gets to vote on Community Awards? You will receive a ballot via email at the end of the festival to vote on Community Awards if you (1) are an HFF26 participant or venue manager added to a specific HFF26 project OR (2) reserve tickets for 3 or more shows on the Hollywood Fringe website OR (3) write 3 or more reviews for HFF26 shows.

Categories for HFF26 Community Awards:

Top of the Fringe Award 2026 

Fringe International Award 2026 

Fringe First for World Premiere 2026 

Fringe Award for Cabaret & Burlesque 2026 

Fringe Award for Clown & Alternative Comedy 2026 

Fringe Award for Comedic Theatre 2026 

Fringe Award for Comedy & Variety Acts 2026

Fringe Award for Dance & Physical Theatre 2026

Fringe Award for Dramatic Theatre 2026 

Fringe Award for Immersive & Games 2026

Fringe Award for Musicals & Operas 2026 

Fringe Award for Solo Theatre 2026

DISCOVER FRINGE AWARDS:

Discover Fringe Awards are presented by outside organizations to commend excellence in a number of categories. These awards tend to be more specific than the community awards and may include monetary gifts or an extension to a show’s run. Hollywood Fringe participants must submit themselves for consideration, and winners are announced at the awards ceremony along with the community awards.

How to apply for Discover Fringe Awards: Each Discover Fringe Award presenter will have different qualifications and requirements to be considered for their awards (which can be found on their individual award pages, located HERE). Some awards will have a form to fill out, and others will require that you contact them directly through the Hollywood Fringe website to submit yourself for consideration. Some will also have a deadline to apply. Be thoughtful when you submit your show to be considered for an award, and remember not to overwhelm award presenters with messages or emails – they will do their very best to see as many shows as possible. 

Sample message:

“Hi <NAME>, my name is <NAME> and I’d love to be considered for <NAME OF AWARD> for my show <NAME OF SHOW>. <add information about why your show is qualified and should be considered for the award>. Thank you for your consideration! <NAME>”

*Make sure to include the award name in the subject line of the message so that they know what you are messaging about!

You are welcome (but not required) to comp tickets for award presenters/judges. They will request comp tickets through the Hollywood Fringe website, and their title (award presenter, judge, etc.) will be specified with the comp request. 

2026 Discover Fringe Awards: (view them all and apply here)

Ella Turenne Award, presented by Hollywood Fringe Access Advisory Committee (learn more)

Fierce Artist Award, presented by Playhouse Arts “Zero to Fierce Festival” (learn more)

International Fringe Encore Series: Hollywood Prize, presented by SoHo Playhouse (learn more)

Loud Karma Emerging Women and Gender Diverse Playwright’s Award, presented by Loud Karma Productions, LLC (learn more)

M&M Arts Cross-Cultural Voices Award, presented by M&M Arts and Productions INC. (learn more)

New York City Pivot Award, presented by LA Hidden Gems (learn more)

Sacred Fools’ Award for Unique Theatricality, presented by Sacred Fools (learn more)

Take the Stage Award, presented by Theatre 68 Arts Festival / Theatre 68 Arts Complex (learn more)

The Hitmaker Comedy Award, presented by The H.I.T. Comedy Theater (learn more)

The Planners’ Pick, presented by Theatre Planners (learn more)

The Screamiest, presented by Midsummer Scream (learn more)

The Splash Award, presented by Namba Performing Arts Space, Inc (learn more)

The StageCrafts Freeway Circuit, presented by The StageCrafts (learn more)

The StageCrafts Mini Festival Award, presented by The StageCrafts (learn more)

Zephyr’s Zest Award, presented by Theatre Planners Venues / Zephyr Theatre (learn more)

This year, we are thrilled to help share art across the globe and create opportunities for artists to expand their reach. Through exciting collaborations with partnering Fringe Festivals, we are providing opportunity for their artists and ours. Each of these awards will include a performance opportunity in person at the following partner festivals:

Adelaide Fringe Festival Exchange Award, presented by Adelaide Fringe Festival in Adelaide, Australia (learn more)

Denver Fringe Festival Exchange Award, presented by Denver Fringe Festival in Denver, CO (learn more)

Fringe Italia Off Exchange Award, presented by Fringe Italia Off in Italy (learn more)

Sydney Fringe Festival Exchange Award, presented by Sydney Fringe Festival in Sydney, Australia (learn more)

VIEW ALL DISCOVER FRINGE AWARDS AND APPLY HERE!

25% of all Hollywood Fringe individual fundraising goes into the “Artist Fund” pool to fund individual productions from low-income Angelenos at the festival. 

The following productions were selected by random lottery, and will receive a one-time stipend toward registration, venue, and/or production costs at the 2026 Hollywood Fringe Festival.

Alps, Adieu!

Cell: A Duologue

Dean Evans: My Finest Work

Failure to Thrive

Ghost Train

S-27

I. We. Us.

Maybe It’s You

Moyamoya Baby: A Trilogy of Strokes, Blood Flow, and F*ckboys

Reservoir Dolls: The Whole Bloody Affair

Sack of Nerves

Strange Beings

The Trick and “The Pearl”

To make your Existence Easier

Thanks to the generous contributions by the Commissioners Club members, we were able to distribute $3,000 more than ever before!

Want to help us make more indie artists’ dreams come true in 2027? Contribute to the Artist Fund today via a Commissioners Club membership to help us get a head start on next year’s goal!