Baby Fringe Alert! Las Vegas Fringe

Look what popped out when no one was looking. I'll look into it and keep you posted as to whether it's a true fringe or just posing as one. It's running right now (June 4 - June 13, 2010).

 

Question of the Week: Using the Fringe Media List

Dear Mr. Fringey,

The Capital Fringe sent out a list of media contacts: 176 of them. Many have organizations associated (NPR, Washington Post, DCist, Washington City Paper) but many don't (maybe they're bloggers)? I could do a shotgun approach and send press releases to EVERYONE on the list... that doesn't seem so strategic. I know it's key to hit Washington City Paper, but any advice on narrowing down the media list?

I've got a unique show (http://www.timereneta.com/1349.html ) as it combines traditional storytelling (folk and fairy tales) with a modern frame (I make topical jokes on politics in between... well, 14th century politics... and endowing the audience as fellow 14th century bards and poets).

I appreciate your advice and look forward to meeting you at the fringe.

Best,

Tim Ereneta 

A: First read my article on 5 Things to Know About Fringe Media Courtship.
 Although a lot of it won't apply since we're so close to Fringe launch (we're less than 30 days to countdown) it's still worth a glance.

You're right about the nature of the list. There are a lot of blogs on the list, magazines, newspapers, Latino media contacts, radio stations, and TV stations. Most Magazines, only consider press releases about 3 months out, many of your Press Releases will go to spam, a lot of the contacts have already planned their fringe articles (many did that planning about 5 months ago - I did an interview for one Washington paper about 2 months ago) and most on the list have been hit hard by everyone and their brother pitching their show. I had about an eighth of the contacts bounce back this year which is down from 1/2 two years ago.

Everything I advocate is about personal connection and personal relationships. You can chance a blanket press release - there's a 1 in 176 chance that it'll get read by someone who is interested in 14th century politics. Probably not though.

At this point, I would send a short e-mail (no longer than 5 or 6 sentences pitching your show to the contacts and extending the invitation with a free ticket and a link to your website) 98% of these invitees won't take you up on your offer, so don't worry about selling the shirt off your back. But each of those contacts will appreciate the gesture and when they go out for their night on the fringe, they'll remember that gesture.

At this point you're looking for someone to review your show. Most reviews are actually assigned in the office by the straw system, metaphorically speaking. The writers pick straws and are assigned shows. 

Your best bet would to send a few of these strategic short e-mails during the first week of the fringe, once things have started to run their course. I've done it in the past and it's worked wonders. Oftentimes you'll get an e-mail back that says, "Joey Rockstone is assigned to review your show on Thursday. Thanks for checking in."

Happy Fringing,
Mr. Fringey

Question of the Day: Fringe Post Cards

 

Q: Dear Mr. Fringey,

Read your reviews of Cap Fringe. Wondering how many postcards I need. As an out of towner, I won't be able to pre-distribute cards many places and my trip to DC is actually a family vacation. So I can hand out cards... but not a full court press. The Fringe recommends printing 3000. That amount seems excessive to me (?). Wanted to get your advice.
Thanks....

A:3,000 cards is excessive! I don't know where they got that whack number from, especially since the Cap fringe isn't really a postcard fringe.

You hardly see any performers handing out postcards in DC. You’ll see me and if you join me, then you can feel like a freak like me. At other fringes, everybody is fighting to get a good spot to hand out their cards. In DC it’s like a ghost town.

I run 1,000 per fringe and my other fringe pals who sell out their fringe shows run the same amount. To really get the most bang for your buck I would only devote 20% to stacks around town and at Fringe central. So don’t sweat the stacks!

That means 800 should be put in the hands of ticket buyers directly.

Once you're there, you'll get an idea of which fringe shows are sell-outs. When you find out, you'll want to get outside the door when that show ends and put a card in everyone that leaves the show.

That’s it. Good luck!

Mr. Fringey

PS. The second most effective way to market your show at the Cap fringe besides the Postcard is the Shout Out!

What is this? Well, since I already know your show is going to be good, at the end of my show I’m going to shout out, “Hey everyone, if you’re looking for another great show to see, make sure you check out “so and so’s show.” I may give out up to 4 shout outs at the end of my show. This is totally cool to do at the Fringe.

Often, at the end of my show I’ll say, “Are there any other fringe performers in the audience who have a show?” Then, I’ll ask them to stand up and announce their show.

Houston Fringe Festival Smackdown

If the Long Island Fringe VS the New York Fringe wasn't creating enough bad fringe blood, we now how a face-off in Texas.

From: Houston Press Blogs

By Olivia Flores Alvarez

Two of Houston's alternative performing arts companies are in a bit of struggle - a very quiet struggle, because neither wants to attract attention to a situation they hope can still be handled by lawyers, but a struggle nonetheless. The companies involved are Boo Town and FrenetiCore. At stake? The name Houston Fringe Festival, which both groups claim as the title to their summer multi-media arts extravaganza. 

Executive Director and Co-Artistic Director of FrenetiCore Rebecca French declined to comment on the record, citing the fact that the group is still in the midst of legal proceedings "We don't want to publicize the dispute until it's settled through the courts because that's not really the publicity we want. We want to be known for the quality of our festival. This dispute is kinda a footnote." She did, however confirm some dates and relevant facts. 

Between background from French and comments from BooTown Artistic Director Emily Hynds, Hair Balls has come up with a basic time line.

• 1997 to 2001: TheatreLab produces the Houston Fringe Theatre Festival.
• February, 2008: FrenetiCore receives a $10,000 grant for the Houston Fringe Festival.
• May 2008: Boo Town produces a show called BooTown presents the Houston Fringe Festival.
• August 2008: FrenetiCore, working with TheatreLab, presents the FrenetiCore Fringe Festival. (Hynds says it was the Houston Fringe Festival, but confirms that over the years, they have called it by a variety of names including the Annual, the Houston, and the FrenetiCore Fringe Festival. Newspaper reports and FrenetiCore's own list of past events on its web site list the 2008 event as FrenetiCore Fringe Festival).
• Following the festivals, the two companies discuss merging their efforts, decide against it after which FrenetiCore asks Boo Town not to use the name Houston Fringe Festival and Boo Town declines.
• May 2009: Boo Town presents the Houston Fringe Festival.
• June, 2009: FrenetiCore takes a screen shot of their web site to use in an effort to register the trademark Houston Fringe Festival.
• August 2009: FrenetiCore presents the Houston Fringe Festival.
• At some point in 2009, FrenetiCore applies to trademark the name Houston Fringe Festival. French says they received the trademark. Hynds believes FrenetiCore was denied the trademark and was instead placed on a supplementary listing. Boo Town lawyers are now petitioning to have FrenetiCore removed from the supplementary listings, saying the group provided false information in its application.
• In late 2009: FrenetiCore registers the domain name www.houstonfringefestival.com. Boo Town already has the name www.houstonfringefestival.org.
• In 2010, both Boo Town and FrenetiCore are planning to present their own versions of the Houston Fringe Festival this summer.

Make the jump for more information about the future of the Houston Fringe Festival (s)

So what's the big deal about the name Houston Fringe Festival? Why doesn't each group just name their event after itself? The Boo Town Fringe Festival and The FrenetiCore Fringe Festival are perfectly good names. French confirmed that was the initial compromise they offered to Boo Town following the first festival, which was declined. Since then the group has changed its mind and says that as FrenetiCore is the larger of the two festivals (11 nights versus five nights of performances), draws bigger crowds, has established its organization through hard work and is a better representative of the city, it now deserves the name Houston Fringe Festival. 

Boo Town, unsurprisingly, disagrees. First, Hynds insists her group never called their event anything other than the Houston Fringe Festival, with Boo Town presents the Houston Fringe Festival as its full title. "I think that Houston Fringe Festival, in the Fringe community, is a better representation for the type of festival we produce," says Hynds. "It's typical for the festival in a city to be named after the city, you have Philadelphia Fringe Festival or the Cincinnati Fringe Festival. 

So what's next? Lawyers. Then a few more lawyers, and finally a judge. And somewhere in between court dates and appeal rulings, a couple of monster theater/dance/art/music festivals that have the same name.