Two days left! Just a brief update tonight as the olde bones are a wee bit tired and all of Fringe Central seems dead set against letting me write this thing. I am normally an 8 hour sleep sorta guy, clearly this conservative schedule is on hold during Fringe time. I am sure we are all in the same boat in this respect – there will surely be time to sleep on Monday.

So here’s some updates on the news to know…

THE AWARD BALLOTS
Ok, folks…no more changes in how we are jurying this thing. Those of you who have received ballots now have them in your inbox. There are directions there on what you need to do and when you need to do it. We need your ballots locked down by Sunday at noon. You can start now, and update later…so don’t feel you need to make final decisions until Sunday. Also note that you don’t need to vote in every category so feel free leave some of them blank.

Think you didn’t receive a ballot and deserve one? Send an email to support and we will help clear it up.

THE CLOSING NIGHT PARTY
The closing night party will be happening at 9pm at Fringe Central. There aren’t going to be people hanging from the ceiling or taking their clothes off to seductive music (well, at least not on stage) this time – rather it’s going to be a gathering of new friends for one final goodbye before we meet again next year. As this is the last time many of us will see our out-of-town visitors before this is all over, I hope all of you can make it. There will be no cover charge, and the bar will continue to serve it’s ruinously cheap alcohol. We plan to go very late in the night to make the final moments count, so jot it down on your calendar now.

Ok, not so much poetry in this one…some days, you need to write in prose. Especially when you have stand up comedians behind you repeating everything you write in a funny voice.

And so we begin the final push into the closing weekend of the Fringe. Three more days of discovery, wonder, and possibility. There are simply so many amazing shows to see, it’s near impossible to decide what to see next. We have people seing 7+ shows a day, wandering from venue to venue.

People are learning how to Fringe. Many of you have joyfully commented to me today that you are seeing audience just strolling in the door – and responding very positively and enthusiastically to the work presented on the Fringe stages. Bravo – it’s your commitment and dedication to this festival that makes it a success, much more than any administrative framework we on the Fringe team may have erected. We just built the asylum (to use a slightly odd analogy), you filled it with the madness.

The Fringe ends in a few days, but the art world in LA will never be the same. Every day, Fringe will stalk the streets of LA and every year in June we shall raise our glasses to celebrate it. In a year of sadness and decline in our arts community, this is a rousing birth.

Clearly, I am feeling somewhat poetical this evening….now on to the news.

Today we bid goodbye to our art director Gavin Worth as he travels back North. I will be posting a picture shortly of the amazing awards statuettes he has created for the fortunate few (“The Freaks”). His art work is still available for view and sale at Fringe Central – so stop on by and consider a sound investment. You can learn more about Gavin and his work by visiting www.GavinWorth.com.

Also…and I know this is rapidly becoming a tiring subject…there has been an amplification on the awards process. If you have been paying close attention, we have reworked the awards methodology into a balloting system submitted by the participants. One of the criticisms of this plan is the relative lack of coverage due to the fact that most participants haven’t seen a high number of shows – what with their production responsibilities. Thus, we announce today we are expanding the balloting process into a larger Fringe network. In addition to the participant producers, each venue manager and panelist (reviewer) who has made a legitimate effort to cover shows will also be provided a ballot.

I have been writing the software code to support the balloting process in all my spare time. I hope to release a relatively bug free version of our first balloting system by this time tomorrow. Eligible voters will receive an email from us with a link to your individual ballots. I expect a few blips with the system as the code is very fresh – so please bare with us as we iron out the kinks in preparation for the big awards ceremony on Sunday at 6:30pm hosted by Mr. Jim Smallman of the British Invasion.

And speaking of the British … many of you know we hosted a US vs UK improv match this late evening at Fringe Central. Fortunate for all of you who missed it, the whole thing was captured on video (as has most of the antics during the Fringe jams). Once this is all over, expect a retrospective of the madness of our first festival along with a host of photos. I won’t tell you who “won” as we are all winners – I can tell you that this was the most epic Fringe Jam to-date and actually did end with blood gushing from someone’s head (fear not, Bryan is just fine).

I’d like to thank all our hard working panelists yet again for providing (to-date) 243 reviews of Fringe shows. This is a serious body of work as the lion’s share is substantial and thoughtful. You guys are amazing and thanks so much for your efforts.

As I have been writing this, Fringe Art Director Gavin Worth just brought me up a special award he made for me – “the golden freak”. I was so touched, I needed to add just one more mention of www.GavinWorth.com.

One more idea for those of you seeking new ways to promote your show. At Fringe Central, we are learning the subtle art of converting a packed audience into the next one … into the next one …. into the next one. Yes, some of this balancing act can be the duty of the venue manager. But as participants, you have major opportunities for creativity in this arena. Following a big act? Think of an interesting way to push that hefty audience back into the performing space to enjoy your show. Yes, simple flyering does work….I would suggest thinking more creatively. Turn that crowd around and your small house can become packed. Leverage the fact that most venues have booked slots right up against each other, keep the momentum moving. You will find that people will respond. And, of course, don’t be rude and check with your venue that your creative tactics are ok with the management.

Well done, everyone…we made it another day. The three days ahead are a golden opportunity to end the Fringe with a big bang. Let’s make it happen!

Ben

Hope everyone is having fun!

I managed to leave Fringe Central rather early tonight – we had a couple packed houses at Fringe Central and everyone seemed to be having a great time at the Fringe Central bar. Minus the gritty charm of our normal British Invasion hosts, the talented Mr. Abie Philbin Bowman stepped up to the microphone to MC the jam (this is the first one I have missed personally). At the suggestion of the Fringe staff, I opted to go home a get some rest rather early this evening. Of course, here I am at 2:30am still working, so there you have it.

Enough about me…let’s talk about Fringe.

A very important article was published today in LA Weekly: A full throated endorsement of the Fringe from LA Weekly theatre critic Steven Leigh Morris. This much welcomed validation of all the work we have all invested into this event is very welcome. Reading through his diary of a day in Fringe is a primer for those of us who have realized how to do it. You don’t just see one show – you bounce from show to show enjoying the adventure of hidden treasures around city corners.

One line in this wonderful article especially struck me: “The shows I saw started within two minutes of their announced curtain time, which, on Saturday alone, allowed me to see eight performances in 14 hours. Staff was courteous and efficient — for lack of a better word, professional.”

I believe he is not solely referring to the Fringe staffers here (though we certainly appreciate the compliment), he is referring to the professionalism of the Fringe community at large. Too often, Fringe acts are synonymous with amateurism – in our case, I think due party to the nature of our model and partly to your dedication and focus, we have achieved a level of professionalism that will one day be the envy of arts communities everywhere. The concept of anything starting on time in LA is mind blowing. Well done, everyone…each of you makes us all look good.

Read the full article here

We have several days left and one very important closing weekend. I am sure all of your are equal parts tired and exhilarated – this is not the time to go soft. Remember: Flyering is Fringing. Keep the houses full by hitting the streets and spreading the word. See each others shows and network, network, network. Many participants are finding success in flyering patrons as they come out of shows. Important word of warning: Ask permission from the venues before doing this, each has different policies. NEVER flyer patrons inside the house of a fellow participating show, this is obviously rude.

Several of you have grabbed me today to discuss awards. This is what I will say: Moving forward, there is a 95% chance the Fringe will never directly sponsor another award. It is our goal for next year to produce the awards event, provide the statuettes, and set the names/natures of the awards – but to allow other organizations to jury them. This may include the use of the electronic balloting system we are developing now which should be ready by week’s end. Take these awards with a grain of salt – it will be a good time, some deserving projects will walk away with statuettes, we are all winners. Give us a break this year and we will endeavor to improve the entire process in years to come.

Keep track of the adventures of Stacy and James in their daily correspondence interviews It’s good stuff and an interesting onramp into the world of Fringe.

Many of you have been asking how to add a review to your project. Minus new features in the website which we may not have time to implement properly, we suggest simply editing your project’s description to include relevant quotes from your reviews. It’s quick and easy and marginally less effective that a formal web framework (which will undoubtedly be present next year).

Speaking of next year, let me just tell you now: There will be a Hollywood Fringe 2011 (and 2012, 2013, 2014). Truth is, there was always a Fringe, it just so happens 2010 is our first festival.

I am sure there is more to discuss, but this post is already getting rather long. Get some rest and return to the Fringe tomorrow savoring every remaining moment.

Ben

I sit here amidst the random remains of flyers littered across the halls of Fringe Central as I write this. The jam has just ended with the sad but inevitable farewell performance of Mr James Sherwood on the piano who leaves us tomorrow. A fitting end to his tenure on piano, (and continuing the Queen through line), we sang Bohemian Rhapsody slightly off key….ok, very off key. Also big thanks to magician Jon Armstrong of “I Do Card Tricks And I’m Funny” for wowing the Jam crowd.

If my spies are at all accurate (for those of you who see me, you know my first questions: “How was your house today?”), houses are seeing an uptick in size. Well done, folks. Yes, promotion works…as more and more of us build a critical mass of guerrilla marketing, the sheer magnetic force of the festival overcomes the will of the unwilling.

Not too much to reports this evening as the festival starts to guide its own path, just a few tips and reminders to keep us on track….

Ben

VIZ STAGE TOMORROW: The LA Times should be there!
The LA Times (largest circulation in Los Angeles) walked into Fringe Central this morning asking for a time to take pictures of the goings on in the Festival. Here’s what we need: Everyone who can, please join us at the Egyptian Theater directly West of Las Palmas on Hollywood Blvd tomorrow at 2pm. An LA Time Staff reporter will be there between 2pm at 3:30 PM, and we need people/projects to provide pretty pictures (alliteration in the extreme, eh?). In all seriousness, a picture of your project in the LA Times is excellent marketing for now and for future projects, so please make it if you can. Preferably, come in costume or with any eye catching show paraphernalia that might help market your event.

AWARDS
As mentioned yesterday, we are making a mid-course correction on how Fringe awards are granted. As one of your put it so eloquently, these are shark infested waters. Rather than going into the details in this posting, allow me to redirect you to this fun little article on the current thinking: http://www.hollywoodfringe.org/learn/article/345

ps….the June 21 correspondence videos is slightly delayed due to technical problems entirely due to me, the sketchy upload process of YouTube, and the sometimes irregular upload speeds of Fringe Central wireless access. I think we can all agree that the crack team of Stacy/James are doing an amazing job turning these things around. :)

I mentioned in my last update that we are executing a mid-course correction in how we handle awards. If you are a participant and have stopped by the ye olde Fringe Central, I am sure you have heard me talk your ear off about this. Thanks to Mr. Gedaly Guberek for helping me do the original brainstorm on how to make these more fair and balanced.

Here’s how we used to do it…

We were using the reviews system to determine awards in all categories – so panelists interested in reviewing shows for the Fringe would rate a show over 4 dimensions: overall, quality, effectiveness, and relevance. I still think this system is good for community reviews and we are keeping it pretty much untouched. Of course you will have the occasional company member, mother, slighted ex-boyfriend, and props master skewing the reviews to further some agenda that doesn’t serve the primary function of community reviews: Serving the patrons and helping them make informed choices.

I’d just like to say to all of you who are doing this deliberately: I am very cross with you. Let’s not make the Fringe site YouTube (those of you who read YouTube comments know that of which I speak).

Here’s the problem…

While acceptable in the context of online star ratings (there isn’t a perfect way to build a cheat-proof system), it is unacceptable in the context of awards. Even the act of rating and jurying the panelists requires the Fringe organizers to make subjective decisions on who does and does not deserve to become a panelist. Subjective decisions are something I would like the Fringe team to avoid. A single theatre company can simply tell all its social circle to vote 5 stars across the board for their production, rendering the awards ceremony, for lack of a better term, a joke.

Our idea, our mistake, here’s a new plan that’s evolving…

The simplest way to handle the awards is to leverage a controlled environment with a panel that is fixed and does not require any subjective judgements from the Fringe team. As it so happens, we already have one: Our 180+ participant productions. Each production receives a single ballot (you won’t be able to vote for yourself). Add to that a fixed ballot with each including the opportunity to select your favorite show from each category. The total points will inform the recipients of the awards in each category and include an overall winner, a favorite in international shows, and a favorite in world premieres. It also allows the possibility for “nominees” – which can also be taken away from the Fringe as a win for future marketing.

The award ceremony is to be held in Fringe Central on June 27 at 6:30pm and is to be hosted by Mr. Jim Smallman.

Indulge me for a moment to thank our panelists thus far who have done an amazing job at providing coverage of the festival from a community level – assisting patrons in making tough decisions on how to schedule their days. Just because the panelist plan doesn’t inform the awards, it in NO WAY diminishes their importance in making this Fringe a success. Indeed, their input has served volumes in doing so…and I would like to take this opportunity to thank them for taking their continuing role so seriously. Read panelist reviews here

As this is the first year, there will be further revolutions/evolutions in the progress of awards (and just about everything else) as the theoretical meets the real…which is just one of the things that makes all this so very exciting.

Thanks for reading and please stop by Fringe Central (because our support inbox is already full enough) to discuss your thoughts on this matter. As always, we are always open to your observations.

Ben