The Fringe Button: WTF?
You’ve heard about The Button, right? The Button is new this year. Fear the Button.
The Button, in economic terms, is a transfer of wealth. Specifically, from you to a Fringe performer. The Button costs five bucks, or roughly 5/7ths of the cost of a warm domestic beer at Nationals Park. The money gets divvied up among all Fringe artists.
And The Button Is Required.
For Everyone.
At All Times.
Or Julianne Will Send Your Ass Home.
The basics: You must buy The Button. Even if you’ve bought tickets. Even if you’ve bought a pass. (Though one Button comes for free with some passes. You may still need another Button if you’re using a pack, though.)
Your ticket, it is no good without The Button.
More in the video.
Trouble viewing? Try the YouTube version.
Tags: Fringe Facts, Fringe WTF?
July 10th, 2008 at 2:51 pm
I’m an early button casualty. No time to go home and retrieve the thing before I roll outta the office for Fringe GRAND OPENING….
Maybe if I show Julianne some F&P video outtakes she’ll let me off the hook this time. There’s some pretty incendiary stuff in there…hope it doesn’t find its way onto the web!
July 10th, 2008 at 2:56 pm
I totally jinxed myself. After we taped that, I went home, took that shirt off, and sent it to the laundry — with the button still on it.
Had to go back. Dang button.
July 10th, 2008 at 3:03 pm
Okay - wow, I was tired when we did this. The discounts change each month - join our list serve to get the button announcements. Wear the button - be the button..don’t judge me to much from the video…Enjoy the festival.
July 10th, 2008 at 3:06 pm
I hate to say this, but I think the button is a really inconvenient problem for non-theater people. For those of us who are involved, who see a lot of shows, it’s no big deal. But making your parent or non-theater friend buy a $5 button for one show, when they’re already buying a $15 ticket? It just seems a little unreasonable. Will they really be turned away by the venue managers if it’s two minutes before the show and they don’t have cash on them to shell out for another one? I think the policy will cause more problems than it solves.
July 10th, 2008 at 3:44 pm
I completely agree with gg. This button is a big monster in the wings! Asking someone who comes to town for a single show to buy a button on top of the $15 ticket price for a 1 hour show seems unreasonable. I think it’s even worse that we who are artists in the shows get a $5 off pass, but the paying public pays full price. I knew that we were in a nepatistic business, but I didn’t realize it was parasytic, too. Who are we doing this stuff for? Ourselves, I guess. No wonder we don’t get a wider audience and better turnout for all these shows. I say, ban the button!
July 10th, 2008 at 3:56 pm
I don’t think Julianne should be apologizing for her performance in this vid. She looks lovely and speaks with élan!
July 10th, 2008 at 6:56 pm
P.S. “…what appears to be a dime bag of Fringe buttons.”
Trey, I don’t know how big a dime bag was in your day…but that looks like a pretty generous one to me!
July 10th, 2008 at 9:29 pm
So, as a blogger do I need a button, and do I have to buy it? At my show tonight I was handed a ticket, and they tried to sell me a button as a charitable act, but I was not barred from entering.
July 11th, 2008 at 11:31 am
The Buttons — I do not understand these. As a performer I feel (as a result of numerous conversations with potential audience members) that these are more a hassle and a turn off than a generator of audience, money and overall happiness. I appreciate the sentiment of raising more moeny for the artists but I would rather make it EASY for my audience rather than frustrating and confusing…like when they leave the button on another shirt and are forced to buy another one…or when they decide NOT to see the first show (that might lead to more) because it’s just a little more than they want to spend. I personally would rather fill a house rather than earn extra money from buttons. I also was under the impression that fringes weren’t developed for the ultimate reason of bringing in money but bringing PEOPLE into see new works at less expensive venues. I think this is a good question for artist. So - ARTISTS — what are you more interested in money or people? I know both would be great but if you had to choose….
Bottom line…the Fringe leaders are doing great work but the buttons need to go OR maybe they can become artist buttons which gets artists $5 off tickets?
July 11th, 2008 at 2:39 pm
“I also was under the impression that fringes weren’t developed for the ultimate reason of bringing in money but bringing PEOPLE into see new works at less expensive venues.”
Bravo, BP. Sadly, that’s probably the only bravo you’ll be getting from me, as the button has turned me, an avid Fringe-goer the past two years, into a no-show this time.
“Wearing the button shows your support of the artists!” Um, doesn’t GOING to the shows do that? I’d understand if the button was an extra option: “give us another $5 to help the artists and you get discounts around town!” Hell, I’d probably even buy it. But this seems contrary to the spirit of Fringe.
$15 for a ticket is already high enough for shows that are a gmable. Well, they’re probably less of a gamble if you use Trey’s nifty Theory of Fringing.
July 11th, 2008 at 3:56 pm
I can’t get my head around the button policy. The Fringe guide I downloaded at capfringe.org says: “A Fringe button is required to enter ANY Fringe show at ANY venue. …Fringe buttons cannot be purchased online, ONLY in person at the Fringe Box Office or at a Fringe run venue during the operating hours of the festival.” The online ticket info at theatermania.com also notes that “Proceeds from the sale of the [buttons] will be shared equally [with] all Fringe run venue participants.” So–it seems that you can in fact buy buttons online, as I did earlier today when purchasing tickets. (Odd; why the conflicting info?) And–what’s the deal if you’re going to one of the Find Your Own Venue events, such as something at, say, 1409 Playbill Cafe? (I produced a Fringe event there last year, incidentally, hence part of my interest in the issue.) You have to have a button to get into such an event, but you can’t buy a button there because it’s not a Fringe-run venue, and the button proceeds won’t even be shared with Find Your Own Venue artists anyway? Huh?
July 11th, 2008 at 5:02 pm
This button idea is terrible. It feels money grubbing and contrary to the whole idea of Fringe. Leaves me with a bad taste - I’m not going to Fringe this year.
July 11th, 2008 at 5:06 pm
One other thing. Who says Fringe goers have wealth to transfer? Wouldn’t that be more like Arena Stage goers? I can’t afford jacked up ball park drinks and I don’t think a 33% increase in ticket price is something to pass off as insignificant.
July 11th, 2008 at 7:26 pm
I am sorry that all of you are so upset about the Fringe Button. The Button is a common practice in Fringe’s across North America. All the fringe festivals in Canada use them as well as Minnesota, Orlando and San Francisco…and other US Fringe’s. It is very Fringe concept - we did not create.
We currently give 70% of our ticket revenue back to the artists that participate in our Festival. The Button is our tool to increase the percentage the artist gets each year – our goal is by 2010 is that artists in our Fringe will receive 100% of their ticket revenue.
Sure we are feeling some bumps in the road with introducing the button - but overall people are getting into the button.
If the button is turning you away from Fringe I am sorry. You are missing some awesome, awesome shows and some great discounts at some local shops.
I hope you can enjoy the festival this year. We have some fantastic new and returning acts!
July 11th, 2008 at 9:59 pm
For the record, I’m not upset about the button; I’ve just found some of the information about button procedures to be confusing…
July 12th, 2008 at 5:29 pm
I also want to note my irritation with the button. I don’t want to wear it, I don’t want to have to remember it when I’m getting ready for work (I can’t be the only person who goes to the shows straight from the office, or is Fringe not for those of us with corporate jobs?), I don’t want another piece of trash to throw away. And the nonsense about discounts at various businesses with the button - whatever happened to just showing a ticket stub? If you want to include a few dollars in the ticket price that you redistribute to all artists, that’s fine. Give them whatever it costs to design, manufacture, and distribute the buttons too - I’d rather support the work and not this forced marketing gimmick.
July 13th, 2008 at 2:19 am
Yes, the Fringe Button is a common practice at other Fringes across N. America; however, it is not common to make the artists BUY a button. We’re already shelling out over $400 for a spot plus the hidden cost of insurance, not to mention all the money we spend on publicity, etc… If the button money is going back to the artists, then why do the artists have to pay for one? Haven’t we given enough already??? While your at it, why not throw in a rush pass for artists to fill all the empty seats in the houses? ($5 off a $15 ticket does NOT encourage me to see other shows or support other artists.)
The Minnesota Fringe has been doing this for 15 years and really has their act together - they support their artists, provide great spaces, encourage cross-promotion among shows, and help to fill houses, all with $12 tickets and a fringe button. Please take a page from their book - or better yet, take all the pages and read them carefully…
July 13th, 2008 at 2:12 pm
But most of the Festival’s mentioned charge a lot less per ticket - even WITH the button, many are under $15. (Minnesota: $3 button/$12 ticket; Orlando: $6 button/tickets set by artist at $5-$10).
As for the Canadians, most seem to be members of the Canadian Association of Fringe Festivals. Their principles include “audiences must have the option to pay a ticket price, 100% of which goes directly to the artists.” In other words, the button goes to pay for admin costs, which is all well and good. This also includes US Fringe festivals under the North American Fringe Circuit umbrella (San Fran, Orlando, Boulder), which follow that rule.
It seems the frustration stems not from the button itself, but from the way it was presented. Maybe in the future you could follow the lead of the other festivals: tickets go to the artists, while buttons cover admin costs. I’d think most people would find that pretty reasonable and understandable. Right now it reads as “way to get more money,” and not “way to raise much needed funds to keep this exceptional and worthwhile event solvent.”
July 25th, 2008 at 3:44 pm
In response to Julianne’s :”Sure we are feeling some bumps in the road with introducing the button - but overall people are getting into the button. ”
I am not quite sure who you are referring to exactly that is getting into the button. I have not met one perfomer or audience member (or non audience member who was turned off by the button) who has anything good to say about it. Basically it causes confusion and frustration. Maybe if this button is supposed to aid the artists, maybe it should be asked of the ARTISTS what they think of the button and how THEY want it to support them. Or if they even want it at all.
And the arguement that this is how it’s done at Fringes everywhere I think is misleading - let’s check the facts on this. Besides just because it’s done elsewhere doesn’t mean that we need to follow suit…we can be different.
Thanks for your work — I do ask you to ask the artists though before next year.
August 11th, 2008 at 12:47 pm
[...] think there’s a pretty clear message there indicating just how people felt about the button. When Fringe director Julianne Brienza spoke to City Paper’s Trey Graham about the button, he gave her a pretty strong reaction to the fact that - on top of your $15 ticket - you’d [...]