ROCHESTER FRINGE 411
A refresh on media passes, ticket comps, assets, and more
Rochester, NY (August 23, 2022) – The 11th annual Rochester Fringe Festival runs 12 days again this year, officially opening on Tuesday, September 13 and closing on Saturday, September 24. One of the most-attended U.S. fringe festivals and the largest multidisciplinary arts festival in New York State, the 2022 Fringe will offer more 500+ performances and events again this year – over 150 of which are free of charge – in 30+ venues around downtown Rochester.
Media should be receiving media passes in their Fringe Survival Kits (#IYKYK) right after Labor Day. If you have not been accredited previously and would like to apply, please contact Leah Stacy. However, please note that Fringe media passes simply allow access to venues, and therefore are most relevant for photographers and videographers.
Accredited, working journalists who require a seat (for story/reviewing purposes ONLY, please) need to request one complimentary press ticket per show as soon as possible at rochesterfringe.com/press-tix, as a few shows have already sold out, and venue capacity is set. (Please allow 48 hours for confirmation/tickets.)
Why is this ticketing process so different from other local festivals? The vast majority of our shows are co-produced by the artists and venues themselves, which is exactly what makes a fringe a fringe. Artists and venues split those proceeds, meaning that Fringe cannot issue comp tickets (which would cut into their profits) to those shows without their permission.
The 2022 Media Guidelines – which contain guidelines for photography and videography among other info – are attached as well as available at rochesterfringe.com/press-tix. We ask that you please read them and/or pass them along to applicable photojournalists. Also at this link: images for all shows, some videos, press releases, and archived assets from former years.
All venues allow both still and video photography. These general rules apply to all venues. Photogs who ignore these policies will be asked to leave the venue and their press passes will be revoked:
• No lights, please.
• Silence shutters as much as possible. If your shutter makes noise, PLEASE do not shoot during quiet performance moments – wait until your shutter noise is covered by performance sounds.
• Please stay put and as far back as possible. Out of respect for both performers and audience members, please limit your movements and disruptions. If you have any questions on site, please ask for the Venue or House Manager.
• Please arrive a few minutes before curtain if possible and leave unobtrusively after shooting during the first 15 minutes only. If not possible, please use extra discretion. • Please observe the rules of each venue as to where you can be located, etc.
The printed, 112-page Fringe Guides have now been distributed to these locations, as well as to some media outlets. Our website, rochesterfringe.com, is even more searchable (filter by dates, genres, venues, ages, free shows, and ASL-interpreted shows), and we encourage you to engage with our very active social media platforms: IG + Twitter: @RochesterFringe; facebook.com/RochesterFringeFestival, and #rocfringe22.
Fringe will be alerting media with special coverage opportunities as they approach, but some major ones already in place are:
• Sunday through Tuesday, Sept. 4 - 6: Spiegeltent build at One Fringe Place
• Tuesday, Sept. 13 at 5 PM: Fringe officially opens, One Fringe Place
• Tuesday, Sept. 13 at 7:30 PM: Cirque du Fringe: Afterglow opens in the Spiegeltent
• Friday, Sept. 16, 7:30 + 9 PM: The Flying Españas at Parcel 5
• Saturday, Sept. 17, 7:30 + 9 PM: The Flying Españas at Parcel 5
• Sunday, Sept. 18 at 2 PM: Gospel Sunday at the Spiegelgarden
• Friday, Sept. 23 at 7:30 + 9:30 PM: BANDALOOP at Dr. MLK Jr. Park
• Saturday, Sept. 24 at 7:30 + 9:30 PM: BANDALOOP at Dr. MLK Jr. Park
• Saturday, Sept. 24, 12 PM: Juggling Lesson Guiness World Record Attempt at The Strong; 5 pM: Fringe Street Beat at Dr. MLK Jr. Park
One last request: please use our official name – Rochester Fringe Festival – in the first instance, and thereafter call us “the Fringe” or simply “Fringe.” “Fringe Fest” is a fun alliteration, but it’s not how the more than 200 fringes around the world refer to themselves or each other.
All tickets are currently on sale at rochesterfringe.com; by phone: (585) 957-9837 (additional fees apply); and in person at the door of the venue or (beginning September 13) at the One Fringe Place Box Office, corner of Main & Gibbs. Some prices will increase after 9/1.
More about Rochester Fringe Festival: From its five-day debut in 2012, the 12-day Rochester Fringe Festival has become the largest multidisciplinary performing arts festival in NYS and one of the top three attended Fringe Festivals in the U.S. More than 500,000 people have attended nearly 4,000 performances and events at the Rochester Fringe Festival since its inception. It is one of about 250 Fringe festivals in the world, with Edinburgh being the original Fringe. Rochester Fringe Festival’s mission is to offer a platform for artists to share their creativity and develop their skills while also providing unparalleled public access to the arts. The Fringe strives to be diverse and inclusive, and to stimulate downtown Rochester both culturally and economically. It features international, national, and local artists. From comedy to theatre, from music to dance, from visual art and film to spoken word, and from children’s entertainment to multi-disciplinary collaborations, the festival’s diversity also extends to venues that span the gamut from parked cars to grand theatres. The 2019 Fringe featured more than 650 performances and events – over 200 of them free – in 25+ downtown venues and broke all previous attendance records with more than 100,000 visitors.
2022 sponsors include: New York State Council on the Arts; City of Rochester; University of Rochester; Monroe County; Ames Amzalak Memorial Trust; Daisy Marquis Jones Foundation; Rochester Area Community Foundation; Nocon & Associates; Rochester Institute of Technology; Waldron Rise; Elaine P. & Richard U. Wilson Foundation; Louis S. & Molly B. Wolk Foundation; Konar Enterprises; Mary Mulligan Trust; J.M. McDonald Foundation; Max and Marian Farash Charitable Foundation; VisitRochester; Nazareth College; St. John Fisher University; Monroe Community College; The Pike Company; 13WHAM TV; CITY Newspaper; D&C Digital; WXXI; Fred & Floy Willmott Foundation; Wegmans; Hyatt Regency Rochester; ESL Foundation; Canandaigua National Bank; Genesee Beer; The Rubens Family Foundation; City Blue; Aspire Transformation Services; Benderson Development; Hamilton A/V; Wilkins RV; McCarthy Tents & Events; Broccolo Tree & Lawn Care; The Harley School; Boylan Code; Bond Schoeneck & King; Yelp; and the House of Guitars.
The presentation of C’est Pas Là, C’est Par Là (It’s Not Here, It’s Over Here) by Compagnie Galmae – Juhyung Lee, is made possible by the support of FACE Contemporary Theater (a program of Villa Albertine and FACE Foundation), in partnership with the French Embassy in the United States; with additional support from The Ford Foundation, Institut français, the French Ministry of Culture, and private donors.
COVID-19 update: The Rochester Fringe Festival and each venue in the Festival independently establishes its own masking and vaccine guidelines. For the Spiegeltent and outdoor venues, the Fringe does not currently require vaccination checks or masking at this time. To confirm the rules in place at the time of a Festival performance, please visit rochesterfringe.com/covid-protocols; these rules will be continually updated so you should check them at the time of a performance you plan to attend. The Rochester Fringe Festival encourages mask wearing regardless of the rules set forth by each venue.
Media please note: Media passes will be distributed after Labor Day. If you or your outlet has not been included in the past, please contact Fringe publicist Leah Stacy. Fringe press assets can be found at rochesterfringe.com/press.
