EXPERIENCE SOMETHING NEW
ADELAIDE FRINGE
FEBRUARY 13 - MARCH 15
By Peter Wilkins
 |
Adelaide Fringe Parade. Photo by Tony Virgo
|
Outgoing Adelaide Fringe
director, Greg Clarke, has every reason to be proud of his achievements. During
the five years of his stewardship, the Adelaide Fringe has doubled its events
to over 1000, increased its attendances two-fold and doubled its income. No
mean feat for the largest Fringe festival of the Southern Hemisphere and second
only in size to the Edinburgh Fringe. Financially, the Fringe is in great shape
and Clarke leaves with enormous pride in his achievements.
This year, Clarke has given the
Fringe its own tag line: Experience something new. This is nothing new in
itself. Each year, he has invited visitors to the Fringe to enjoy their
favourites, but search out something that they have never tried before. This
year, however, Clarke has made his invitation the Fringe’s mantra. “I’ve really
tried to position it as a leading festival in the world. That’s been my
strategy behind everything. We’re just as good as any other festival. We
haven’t gone down the line that we’re poor cousins. The Fringe has become
mainstream.”
 |
Hot Brown Honey
|
Clarke realizes that an open
access festival offers an open invitation to all artists to register for the
Fringe. A lot of the big name artists, such as the comedians, are doing well.
“The big promoters wouldn’t come to Adelaide if they weren’t going to make
money.” Clarke says. “However, our responsibility is, wherever we can, to
support the smaller guys. We need to ensure more audiences for the unknown artists
who are creating work for the first time.” It’s a tall order with so many
artists choosing to bring their work to the Adelaide Fringe. Some may come in
search of money. Some travel to Adelaide to mix with other artists from
Australia and overseas and see their work. Some simply come because they revel
in the buzz of the four week Fringe, and want to be part of this exciting
annual event.
Clarke is relatively pleased with
the increase in acts and audiences over the past five years. Edinburgh has 3000
acts with an average audience attendance of only 12%. Clarke estimates
Adelaide’s audience attendance at the Fringe at closer to 38 %. Not a bad
average for a festival of this size I suggest. “True, but there are a lot of
artists spending their own money and doing it tough, and finding it difficult
to get an audience. We need to ensure more audiences for the unknown artists
who are creating their work for the first time.”
 |
Tessa Waters in WOMANz
|
Clarke has worked hard to help
the lesser known groups. In 2010, the prime venue was the Garden of Unearthly
Delights, situated in the parklands at the east end of the city. Last year,
Clarke introduced two other major venues: the Royal Croquet Club in Victoria
Square in the heart of the CBD and Gluttony, across the road from the Garden of
Unearthly Delights in Rymill Park. Formerly there were hundreds of artists in
little venues all over town and there was no competition for a well-promoted
venue such as the Garden. Now there are three major venues with very strong
programmes and they are all in competition. “That I think is a very real
achievement.” Says Clarke proudly. Add to these some of the regular venues,
such as La Boehme cabaret club, the Tuxedo Cat and the Holden Street Theatres,
all offering very different programmes, and the Fringe now has an identity and
focus that helps artists to find venues, and audiences to make clear choices
about the shows and events that they choose to see.
 |
A Siren at the Adelaide Fringe
|
Free events lure audiences to the
Fringe. Clarke assures me that this year’s parade will be bigger and better
than before. Following on from the success of Giant Cuttlefish that Clarke
designed for the 2014 Fringe, he has this year designed seven giant Sirens that
each represent a different art form. Each one stands four and a half metres
tall and have a different colour. Each is made up of thousands of lights and
two people are underneath, pushing it along.
They are being choreographed into a big outdoor Street Theatre
performance over the Adelaide Cup Long Weekend. Last year festival –goers
kicked up their heels to the Cuttlefish Line Dance. This year they will be able
to dance along to the Sirens’ contemporary Baroque composition.
In Rundle Mall, the Fringe
Caravan will also become the stage for performances by Fringe artists to entice
audiences with a taste of their offerings.
The Fringe Street Theatre Festival will again entertain Adelaide audiences with busking, acrobatics
and performances of all types. Fringe on Tour will reach out into the regions
including Port Augusta, Leigh Creek and with events on Family Day in inner
suburban Norwood and in hospitals throughout the city. “I came into the job
wanting to create free outdoor events.” Clarke says. He leaves the job, having
garnished the city with the flavour of Fringe.
 |
HIM presented by The Misery Children
|
With so many acts and so many categories
from theatre to circus to visual arts to literature to comedy and much more I
ask Clarke to suggest highlights with a particular focus on theatre. My time is
limited and I seek some guidance.
“The Fringe is an open access
festival and Clarke is rightly wary of making any recommendations. I prefer to
suggest works that I am excited about coming to Fringe.” he tells me. With
that, he lists a number of shows that could be regarded as worthy of a visit by
theatre lovers.
WOMANz is billed as feisty physical comedy from award winning
Melbourne Fringe artist, Tessa Waters. “Come party with Womanz as she dances
through her world of wobbly, femmy, sexy, lovey, arty, grindy good bits”.
 |
KRAKEN by Trgyve Wackenshaw
|
Trgyve Wackenshaw is a
Gaulier-trained clown. His latest show,
Kraken, sold out at the Edinburgh Festival and is billed as a stormy,
arthouse opera, “oozing with whimsy and dripping with charm”. Audiences are
advised to bring an umbrella.
Briefs – The Second Coming. Described as Brisbane’s own boys’
burlesque cabaret and Aussie Circus’s own Cirque de Soleil. This show is sure
to raise the eyebrows and thrill the audience.
Hot Brown Honey. From Brisbane, the Black Honey Company and Briefs
Factory are presenting some hip hop politics. Smashing stereotypes in a
cascading performance of poetry, dance, circus and striptease. The show is
billed for adults only. Audiences are invited to see these black and mixed
beauties in “an explosion of colour, culture and controversy.”
Mush and Me. Holden Street Theatre can always be relied on to present
theatre that is thought-provoking, intelligent and powerful. Mush and Me is no
exception. Karla Crome’s winner of the Holden Street Award tells the story of a
101 year old Jewish woman, who, when she was in her twenties feel in love with
a non-Jewish man over a plate of hummus. Culture pressures and contemporary
life collide in this stirring new play.
Duncan Graham’s play Cut premiered at Belvoir Downstairs. Acclaimed actor, Hannah Norris
plays an airhostess, hunted by a man with eyes of ash in this taut
psychological thriller.
 |
| CUT by Duncan Graham |
At The Royal Croquet Club The
Misery Children present Him. Watch a
Man put his clothes on and on and on and on and on and off and then put them
back on again. The play explores the agony of a young man coming to terms with his
life and the audience takes an interactive role in helping him in his search.
 |
Briony Kimmings and Tim Grayburn in FAKE IT 'TIL YOU MAKE IT
Photo by Richard Davenport
|
Briony Kimmings and Tim Grayburn give
audiences home-made music, stupid dancing, onstage argument, tears and truth in
Fake it ‘til you Make It, about
clinical depression and Men.
And that is just the very tip of
the Fringe iceberg. For a more complete look at the thousand or more acts,
check out the Fringe guide online at Fringetix
at http://www.adelaidefringe.com.au/fringetix/search
With so much on offer, and the
Adelaide Fringe spreading its tentacles across the city, I wonder how the
Adelaide Bank Festival of Arts sits with its particular programme. “ It is hard
for the festival,” Clarke says, “because the Fringe is so big. It’s a small
city. The Fringe does dominate. It’s very popular. The challenge for the
Festival is now always going to be “Where do we sit alongside such a mammoth
event. They’re doing fine as far as I know. They have their audiences as well.”
As for Clarke, he is ready to
embark upon the next chapter of his career. “I always like a new adventure and
a new challenge.” he tells me. “I’ve had a great time and I’ve achieved a lot
and I’m proud of what I’ve achieved. I’m going to miss a lot of people but I’m
really excited about the next thing.”
Clarke has already given a lot of
thought to the next thing. He leaves the Fringe in the hands of new director,
Heather Croall, born in England and raised in the South Australian shipbuilding
town of Whyalla. She comes to the job after having spent some years as director
and CEO of Sheffield International Documentary Film Festival. As for Clarke, he
plans to set up his own company Art Engineers, creating and positioning work
for festivals. He has no intention of creating a production company such as
Arts Projects Australia which takes the risk on bringing international shows to
Australia and touring them to major venues. “I like creating things. I call
myself an engineer of the arts. That’s what I want to do.”
Originally from Adelaide, Clarke
plans to return to Sydney after five years at the helm of the Adelaide Fringe.
He leaves behind the most successful Fringe in the country and a major event on
the world festival calendar. For four weeks from February 13th to
the 15th. March, Adelaide will explode with artists and events from
around the world, bringing the city to life with every art form imaginable
during the Adelaide Fringe, the Adelaide Bank Festival of Arts and the world
music festival WOMAD. Who would want to be anywhere else.?
Adelaide Fringe
February 13 – March 15 2015
For further information go to :
www.adelaidefringe.com.au
