The Minnesota Fringe Festival has grown from featuring 52 shows in 1994 to showcasing nearly 600 performances of over 110 shows in 2022. Amidst many changes over the past quarter century, Minnesota Fringe remains steadfastly committed to it’s core principles: producing opportunities for artists of a wide variety of backgrounds, abilities and experience levels; creating novel ways of engaging with the performing arts; and a continuing commitment to accessibility for artists and audiences.
To celebrate three decades of adventurous achievements, Minnesota Fringe is planning a few special events over the next year to highlight the variety of talent that has graced our stages!
Ways to Support Minnesota Fringe in our 30th Year!
Volunteer
Volunteers make the fest go ’round—plus, you can earn perks like free show admission, an exclusive button, a sick t-shirt, and more!
Join Fringe with Benefits
Our members help support the Fringe year-round, and have access to exclusive perks like a members-only Facebook group, show passes, and more!
Subscribe to the Fringe File
Our newsletter contains Festival updates, as well as artist resources, show postings, and more!
Donate
Minnesota Fringe is a 501(c)3 nonprofit, and your donations support our mission of supporting adventurous art.
From our humble beginnings, Fringe has steadfastly remained committed to its core principles:
producing and performances opportunities for artists of a wide variety of backgrounds, abilities, and experience levels;
providing novel ways of engaging with the performing arts; and
committing to financial accessibility for both artists and audiences through low-cost tickets and lean producing models.
Fringe has paid local, national, and international artists more than $2.5 Million from ticket revenues over the past decade, has a $1.2 Million annual economic impact on our community, and continues to experiment with year-round programming that champions adventurous artists to adventurous audiences.
Nearly 50,000 seats filled annually, over 1,000 artists, dozens of works, hundreds of performances at over a dozen venues and spanning almost 20 genres. With those numbers, it seems pretty obvious that Minnesota’s annual Fringe Festival is the largest performing arts festival in the Midwest.
Find modern twists on classic tales, politically driven story lines, crying-tears-of-laughter comedic productions, and surprisingly relatable narratives. With performances for all ages, the Minnesota Fringe Festival is a unique and spirited celebration of diversity, artistic expression and voice that connects adventurous artists with adventurous audiences on both a local and national level.
The Fringe Festival is produced byMinnesota Fringe, a publicly supported nonprofit that supports and connects communities through bold risks and new ideas.
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L’Heure de Minuit (2015), Photo by Jeff D. Larson
The Avengers (2015), Photo by Jeff D. Larson
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How It Works
Fringe Festival performances will take place at different theaters within two different geographical hubs, Uptown and Cedar-Riverside.
A Fringe button is your entry to the Minnesota Fringe Festival (and more*). Your one-time $5 button purchase is your Festival entry fee – wear your button proudly everywhere you go to make seeing shows easier. Fringe buttons can be purchased in person at Preview Shows on July 18, 25, and August 3. Buttons are also available at all Box Offices during
the Festival. Learn more about purchasing a buttons and tickets.
You’ll need your button and a ticket – and your vaxx card! – to see a show.
2022 Shows
Descriptions of the different shows can be found here.
Visit the schedule page for shows by date and time.
Fringe Central
The official post-show hangout destination throughout the festival, hosted by The Red Sea restaurant. Each night will feature an array of talent through cabaret, comedy, and contests. All events are free admission and open to the public. You can see the full schedule of events and details here. Line-up will include:
DJ Solo: The Red Sea’s favorite Ethiopian DJ will provide house music and lead a dance party for attendees the first Saturday of the month.
Blackout Improv: The all-Black improv troupe based in Minneapolis are former Fringe Festival favorites guaranteed to provide a mix of comedy, touching on social justice and arts access.
Ali Sultan Presents: Nationally recognized Yemini stand-up comedian, writer, and podcast host of “Stories with My Muslim Mom.”
Touring Artist Cabaret Showcase
Fringe Trivia and Games Night
Local Artist Cabaret Showcases
Volunteer Appreciation / Karaoke Night
Closing Night Party / Minnesota Fringe Festival Golden Lanyard Awards
