Stay Curious. Stay Connected.
MailNewsletters♡Donate Now
Sign up
*Password must be at least 8 characters and contain one uppercase letter, one lowercase letter, one number and one symbol.
Already have an account?
By submitting, you consent that you are at least 18 years of age and to receive information about MPR's or APMG entities' programs and offerings. The personally identifying information you provide will not be sold, shared, or used for purposes other than to communicate with you about MPR, APMG entities, and its sponsors. You may opt-out at any time clicking the unsubscribe link at the bottom of any email communication. View our Privacy Policy.
Sign in to your profile
Forgot Password?
New to MPR News?
Welcome back
to news
for you
Reset Password

Enter the username on file and we'll send you a code to reset your password.

Still require assistance or not sure what your User Name is?
Welcome back
to news
for you
Email Verification

A verification code has been emailed to

Still awaiting the code?
State of the Arts Blog
Marianne Combs

Minnesota Fringe sets opening weekend record

Go Deeper.

Create an account or log in to save stories.

Log inCreate a free Account

Like this?

Thanks for liking this story! We have added it to a list of your favorite stories.

Show me!

The Minnesota Fringe Festival is far from over, but it's already breaking records.

For the first four days of the festival - Thursday through Sunday - shows issued a record-setting total of 18,895 tickets. That's a 9.9% increase over last year's festival.

Additionally, traffic to the festival's website, fringefestival.org, was up 23 percent over last year. As of 2 p.m. on Monday, over 1,650 audience reviews had been submitted to the site (Note: These numbers have not yet been audited and may be subject to change).

Executive director Robin Gillette says she's delighted with the increases. She says it indicates a solid, and by no means modest, year-by-year build in audiences.

The 2009 festival's opening weekend was a 19 percent jump over 2008.

13 different shows gave sold-out performances on opening weekend, including some shows by first-time Fringe producers who got slots late in the game, said Gillette.

This really shows this year's crop of producers brought their A-game, no question. Fringe tries to offer both the structure and the education for first-time producers to succeed, and we're hoping this weekend's numbers point to those efforts' success.

Note: These numbers have not yet been audited and may be subject to change.

Minnesota Fringe continues to Sun., Aug. 15 at 19 venues in Minneapolis and St. Paul.