An arial view of the second Town Hall

Thanks to everyone who attended the second Fringe Town Hall last night! We had a full house at Elephant’s Lillian Theater, a jewel of the 99 seat landscape.

The focus of the workshop was marketing your show. Much of the information can be found in the participant packet so do take some time to study that.

For those of you who missed it, we recorded the proceedings.

Enjoy!

Still have questions? Email us at [email protected] or join us for the next workshop on Saturday, April 13th from 2 to 4 PM PST where we’ll focus primarily on what to expect during the festival (and how to best prepare!).

Who are you, how’d you get into the Fringe, and why should we care?

I’m Dave McKeever, Producing Director of the Fringe. I founded the Fringe with my friends. As an artist hellbent on community organizing, stepping back and creating the conditions for others to more easily stage their own works was a logical progression in my own journey.

You should care, because the arts are a foundational element of what it is to be human. No matter who you are, your experience of the arts has deeply shaped you as a person, primarily for the positive. The Fringe is a catalyst for audience and artist alike to deepen their connection to themselves and the society around them.

What exactly do you do as the Producing Director?

I oversee the booking, staffing, and execution of all Fringe-Run spaces at the annual festival. I also finalize all design elements for the Fringe, including the annual Guide.

Basically, I just want to throw a really great party. Nothing is more thrilling than watching the degree to which the festival engenders joy in the city I have chosen as my home. On the Fringe website, your profile description is always editable; mine has always said, “I am your friend and co-worker on all things Fringe.”

What’s the craziest tech experience you’ve had during fringe?

I think the craziest tech experience at the Fringe was last year when I was running a show at Open Fist and Matt Richter casually told me the Lounge was on fire. The whole thing was resolved without my assistance, but it still instilled the proper sense of panic.

Another highlight are the lights going out during the 2011 awards ceremony in the tent; thankfully a quick fix.

Can you tell us some interesting facts about yourself?

What is your favorite color: Puce.
What are your least favorite words: Moist, Nougat and Cake.
What is your phobia: Ripping cotton balls in half.

picture courtesy of Star Foreman

Thanks to everyone who joined us for the March Twitter Chat. This month the chat will be held on Monday, April 29th from 8-9 PM PST. We’ll be focusing marketing & festival expectations. All you have to do to join the discussion is use the hashtag #HFF13. The chat will be moderated by the @HollywoodFringe account.

For the last couple of years, we’ve opted to buy two-page spreads in LA Weekly and then sell blocks of our space to participating shows at a discounted rate. We feel this group ad buy helps to generate excitement by highlighting the diversity of the festival. For $175, you can now purchase a 2” (width) x 3” (height) full-color ad to be included in the spread (on pages 4 & 5 on June 6th or pages 2 & 3 on June 13th). You can purchase one of these ads by going to www.hollywoodfringe.org/ads and clicking “Print Ads”. There are a limited amount of spaces available— so make sure to reserve your ad as soon as possible.

You can also purchase ads in the Fringe Guide (print) and on the Hollywood Fringe site with special participant rates by visiting the link above. All guide ads must be reserved by April 15th, but there are no deadlines for online ads.

Fringe Workshop Panelists (L-R) Monica Miklas, Chad Kukahiko, Rachel Stoll Armstrong, Aaron Kozak and Gowrie Hayden.

Thanks to everyone who attended the first Fringe Workshop over the weekend! We were happy to have a packed house consisting of many new faces eager to learn and prepare for June’s big event. The panelists deserve endless gratitude for sharing their time, experience and knowledge. And also a big thanks to Elephant Stages for hosting the event.

During the Workshop, we discussed a wide range of topics surrounding money and marketing.

For those of you who missed it, we recorded the proceedings.

Enjoy!

Still have questions? Email us at [email protected] or join us for the next workshop on Saturday, April 13th from 2 to 4 PM PST where we’ll focus primarily on what to expect during the festival (and how to best prepare!).