Free Edinburgh Fringe Festival

The Free Edinburgh Fringe Festival is a programme of free entry events that takes place at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, the world's largest arts festival, each August. It is organised by the comedy promoter Laughing Horse, although it includes shows of different genres, and is one of several "free" festivals taking place in the city at that time, most of which incorporate the words free, fringe and/or festival in their title, often leading to confusion.

Free Edinburgh Fringe Festival venues are commonly independently run bars and nightclubs which create performance spaces in their premises for the duration of the Fringe Festival. Performers are allocated timeslots for free on the condition that they do not charge audiences an entry fee to watch the show. Although audience members are asked to make voluntary contributions at the end of the shows to help pay the performers expenses.

Generally, Edinburgh Fringe shows are self-financing and the average run at the fringe can cost a performer £5000 in venue hire fees, publicity and accommodation. The aim of The Free Festival is to provide performers and festival goers with a cheaper alternative.

Predominantly the shows are stand up comedy and sketch comedy but in recent years there has been an increase in theatre, cabaret, music, storytelling and children’s shows.

The Free Festival promotes comedy, theatre, music, cabaret, opera, musicals, film, children’s shows, events and art displays – programmed by experienced producers in each area. Award winning performers and full runs of shows from the likes of Pappy’s Fun Club, John Gordillo, Lewis Schaffer, Nick Wilty, Sol Bernstein, Steve Day, Bob Slayer, Nik Coppin and Ivor Dembina have appeared in previous years, plus guest appearances in compilation shows from well known performers such as Alan Carr, Scott Capurro, Richard Herring, Brendon Burns, , Reg D. Hunter, Dan Antopolski and Paul Foot.

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Wikipedia