Fringe Festival sells fewer tickets to more people

Posted at 5:14 PM on August 6, 2012 by Marianne Combs
Filed under: Events, Theater

It's a conundrum, I know, but let's break it down:

In the first four days of the Minnesota Fringe Festival 16,904 tickets were distributed to an estimated 6,974 individuals to 326 performances.

Compare this to 2011 numbers, in which 17,735 tickets were sold to an estimated 6,663 individuals to 339 performances.

So attendance is down from last year by 831 tickets, but you have to factor in the fact that this year's opening weekend had 13 fewer shows to see.

Meanwhile, each person who buys a ticket to a Fringe show needs to have a Fringe Festival button. Last year, at this point in the festival, 6,663 buttons had been sold. This year, 6,974 buttons have been issued.

So while the Fringe Festival has issued 831 fewer tickets, they did so to 311 more people.

For Fringe Executive Director Robin Gillette, that's a good sign:

We're especially excited about the increase in individuals on opening weekend - we're hoping that we've gotten them hooked while there's still plenty of Fringe left for them to enjoy.

Confirmed revenue figures are not yet available. The Minnesota Fringe Festival runs through August 12.