FRINGE SOCIETY>>

The Fringe Society is an organisation that exists to support companies who perform at the Fringe each year. They are solely a coordinating body – they do not produce any shows or have any artistic control over the Fringe – they are there to offer support to performers and to run a central infrastructure.

They supply six main services for performers:

• Support in the form of a directory of performance spaces at the Fringe, handbooks on staging shows, and specific advice when required.

• A central programme which lists all the shows being staged at the Fringe – known simply as the ‘Fringe Programme’. Although published in May, an online version of this programme is updated to include last minute additions, and a daily listings guide is published throughout August.

• A central box office which sells tickets for all shows at the Fringe. The box office sells tickets online, over the phone and from various locations around Edinburgh.

• A central press office which promotes the Fringe to media around the world, and processes press tickets from shows at many of the venues during August.

• A series of 'open stage' events providing open air stage space for performers to promote their shows to the public – principally Fringe Sunday and the stages on the Royal Mile.

• A series of workshops on all aspects of performance which run throughout August.

Performers need to register with the Fringe Society to take advantage of these services. While it is in theory possible to perform at the Fringe without being a member of the Society, it is wise to register just for the listing in the Fringe Programme.

You can register to receive the Fringe Society’s regular mailings – including their venue guide – for just £10 (£20 if you want print copies of the mailings). You can do this at any time online at www.edfringe.com (click on 'perform at the fringe'). However if you choose to actually take a show to the Festival you need to pay full registration fees – which is in the region of £350 for every show you produce (2007 prices are tbc as I write this - the £350 includes VAT, and there is a healthy discount in the region of £100 if you book by the 'early bird' date).

Once you are on the Fringe Society's mailing list you will automatically be sent your 'Fringe Forms', which you use to apply for full registration and to include shows in the Fringe programme and box office. These are sent out in early March.

For more information about the Fringe Society check www.edfringe.com or call 0131 226 0026.