It was yet another record-breaking year for the Edmonton International Fringe Theatre Festival.
The 11-day festival in Old Strathcona saw a record 850,000 visits, and festival-goers bought a whopping 122,000 tickets.
“That’s unreal,” artistic director Murray Utas said. “The hunger for theatre in this event of ours, which is a theatre festival at its heart, is amazing.
“Seeing all the people having a good time, seeing people get into shows, hearing people talking about shows, it’s really, really cool.”
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Ticket sales from this year’s festival amounted to more than $1.3 million, all of which goes directly to the artists.
“Every year it’s so exhilarating to see the theatre community converge in Old Strathcona,” Utas said. “For over three decades, Edmonton Fringe has led the pack when it comes to creating a space for artists to get their work to the masses, and we are so pleased to wrap up another year of excellence as we look forward to 2017.”
This year’s festival saw more than 1,600 live theatre performances in over 40 venues. If you missed out on the fringe, not to worry, four of the festival’s top shows have been held over from Aug. 24 to 27. The holdover series includes “Falling Awake,” “Nashville Hurricane,” “Little Orange Man” and “Gordon’s Big Bald Head.”
Watch below: Todd James reviews “Nashville Hurricane” from the 35th annual Edmonton International Fringe Festival
Watch below: Todd James reviews “Little Orange Man” from the 35th annual Edmonton International Fringe Festival
In 2015, 121,000 tickets were sold over the 11 days of the Fringe, with more than $1 million going back to the artists.
For more information on this year’s holdovers, visit the Edmonton International Fringe Theatre Festival’s website.