The Dublin Fringe Festival is an annual curated arts festival in
Dublin
Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 c ...
,
Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
focusing mainly on theatre. The festival allows artists to submit their work via an application which is subsequently reviewed by the programme manager. The festival is open to both Irish and international participants.
The festival started in 1980 as a small independent festival over a weekend and expanded into a sixteen-day festival, annually held in September and focuses on new and emerging artists. The Dublin Fringe has live entertainment as well as performances in dance, theatre, live art, visual art, and music.
History
The Dublin fringe festival was initially founded in 1980 during a recession and held at various times througout the 1980s without significant media attention or funding.
In 1995, Bedrock Productions, with some support from the established
Dublin Theatre Festival
The Dublin Theatre Festival is Europe's oldest specialised theatre festival. It was founded by theatre impresario Brendan Smith in 1957 and has, with the exception of two years, produced a season of international and Irish theatre each autumn. ...
and Arts office of Dublin City Council, created a revived Dublin Fringe Festival, to "promote and showcase the work of small and vibrant theatre companies and theatre makers". In the first year,
Conor McPherson
Conor McPherson (born 6 August 1971) is an Irish playwright, screenwriter and director of stage and film. In recognition of his contribution to world theatre, McPherson was awarded a doctorate of Literature, Honoris Causa, in June 2013 by the Un ...
's ''This Lime Tree Bower'' premiered, and in 1996
Enda Walsh
Enda Walsh (born 1967) is an Irish playwright.
Biography
Enda Walsh was born in Kilbarrack, North Dublin on February 7, 1967. His father ran a furniture shop and his mother had been an actress. He is the second youngest of six children. Wal ...
's ''Disco Pigs'' took off from The International Bar.
Directors who have presented works at the festival have included Jimmy Fay (1995–1996), Ali Curran (1997–2000), Vallejo Gantner (2001 -2005), Wolfgang Hoffmann (2006–2007), Roise Goan (2008–2013),
and Kris Nelson (since 2014).
Successful works from past Fringe Festivals have included early plays by Conor McPherson, Enda Walsh, Owen McCafferty, Corn Exchange, Loose Canon, Pan Pan Theatre Company, Semper Fi,
Anu Productions
ANU Productions is a theatre company based in Dublin, Ireland.
The company
ANU was founded in 2009 by 5 artists from various disciplines Owen Boss (visual artist), Louise Lowe (director), Hannah Mullan (producer) Sophie Motley (director), an ...
,,
Danielle Galligan
Danielle Galligan (born 1 December 1992) is an Irish actress, theatre maker, and poet. On television, she is known for her role in the Netflix series ''Shadow and Bone'' (2021–). She was nominated for an IFTA for her performance in the film '' ...
, and
Eva O'Connor
Eva O'Connor is an Irish stage actress and playwright.
Career
O'Connor's play ''My Name Is Saoirse''—a one-woman show in which she starred—was performed at the 2014 Edinburgh Fringe and 2014 Dublin Fringe Festival. The show won the First ...
.
Venues
Each performance takes place in a venue which is deemed most suitable to the show. This can range from a number of cafes and theatres, as well as less traditional venues such as the Liffey Boardwalk or on a Dublin bus.
For a number of years until 2009, The Spiegeltent was a major part of the festival. This tent was erected in several sites including at
Georges Dock
George's Dock was a dock, on the River Mersey, England, within the Port of Liverpool. It was
connected to Canning Dock to the south and George's Basin to the north.
History
Construction of the dock began in 1762, and was known as North Dock ...
. The Dublin Fringe Festival and Spiegeltent have attracted numerous shows, including the cabaret/variety show
La Clique
''La Clique'' is a cabaret/variety show with Australian roots first conceived for the 2004 season of The Edinburgh Festival Fringe. It was originally performed in The Famous Spiegeltent with a small circular stage at fringe festivals, but since ...
.
Sponsors
Past sponsors include
Absolut vodka
Absolut Vodka is a brand of vodka, produced near Åhus, in southern Sweden. Absolut is a part of the French group Pernod Ricard. Pernod Ricard bought Absolut for €5.63 billion in 2008 from the Swedish state. Absolut is one of the largest brands ...
who sponsored the events between 2009 and 2012,
as part of a four-year deal.
References
External links
*
{{Fringe festivals in Europe
Arts festivals in Ireland
Arts in Dublin (city)
Fringe festivals