faqs for PERFORMERS

Welcome to Prague Fringe 2013. We hope this information will help you understand a little more about how the fringe operates

Who are we?

Why is there no poster up at my venue yet?  

Some venues are too busy with their season shows to have enough space to put up Fringe materials until the beginning of the festival. This is unfortunate but to be expected with these intimate Fringe-style theatres which have limited display space. Don't be concerned if you don't see your poster when you arrive at your venue for rehearsals, as soon as the festival begins and the dedicated team of Festival Assistants begin their hard work then your posters will appear across the Fringe 'zone'. The main Fringe flyers and posters will of course have been at all the theatres for a few weeks. 

How is the festival promoted through the city and beyond?

Fringe is not omni-present in the city for a number of reasons - we are relatively young, and as is the case for the dozens of other non-commercial festivals, there is no mass presence across the city, instead the festivals rely on cooperations with others to cross market and it's very successful.

Here's an insight into the hidden marketing gems we use that you may not be aware of:

Partnerships with local tour guides - distributing flyers and info to raise awareness among visitors.

Promotion to tourists via our accommodation partner Fusion Hotel, a new 200-room hotel in the city centre, flyers and video advers in public areas, special promotional code on website

Holding slide before all screenings at Kino Svetozor, a large alternative cinema, expected reach of 10,000 views

Huge electronic billboard advert on the main highway through the city (2 of them regularly repeated 24 hours per day)

Collaboration with Street For Art Festival - large advert in their 4,000 programmes

Airport transfer drivers distributing flyers and info about the event to arriving tourists

6,000 leaflets in non city-central locations (major universities and arts institutions, student dorms,  popular bars and cafes for expats and theatre-goers, international schools, other theatres etc) 

1500 brochures to key target partners, cafes, venues etc. 

1,500 further brochures at venues during Fringe

Emails to hundreds of English teachers targeting 10s of 1,000s of Czech school kids

Fringe partner jet2, a full page article in the inflight magazine and a mention in their 250,000 subscriber mail out article on their news page (other articles in inflight magazines include brussels air, wizz air)

Fringe partner Tesco My Narodni - facebook competition for free tickets and window display in large, high-profile spot in city centre, 10,000 Fringe leaflets distributed throughout the store, 10s of Fringe posters in store and at entrances

Facebook 'partners' - As well as the obvious partners - Theatres, media partners  etc, most non commercial Festivals cross promote in Prague - mainly on facebook and by mailing lists... Fringe friend's facebook pages have fans totalling in excess of 15,000 on partner facebook pages

As with every Fringe self promotion is a major part of making your show a success - please refer back to the bums on seats doc for full details.

Is photography allowed during our show?

One of the largest sources of annoyance to our audiences is photography as it distracts them from your performances.  This year we are really trying to minimise this and will be making pre-show announcements to this effect.  If you are planning to have a photographer take pictures of your show please ensure that this happens during your final rehearsal not at the expense of your audiences – loud clicking and flash photography is detrimental to your show and audience enjoyment.

There may be an official Fringe photographer taking pictures in the first 10 minutes of productions to accompany reviews of the show.  They will be taken at a discreet distance.

Can we have complimentary tickets for friends/company members? 

There is a policy on complimentary ticket requests for company use or performer comps which is - there aren't any!  This is a trial and error decision, which in the end is fair to all.  We know how much it costs all companies to stage their works at the festival, (many travel from across the world) and thus how important tickets sales and revenue are.  Some companies are large, some are small, and the same with venue size so there could be no fair way of doing it.  Also the cost of individual tickets is so low that this is the fairest, simplest and most democratic way to do things.  If you have individual show sponsors or guests coming to your show the best thing to do is buy their tickets or have them buy their tickets from Ticketstream, as they can provide receipts which we can’t on the door so they/you may be able to use them to claim back expenses.

Does the Prague Fringe give out any complimentary tickets? 

Any complimentary tickets which the Festival gives out, are to accredited press, sponsors and Fringe staff through the festival office, and subject to availability after sales so there is no detriment to your ticket income.  There are also promoters from across the World Fringe Alliance attending the festival who will also have access to shows.  All will be recorded. 

Who are the Festival Assistants? 

All of Front of House and Street Team staff are non-paid volunteers, many of them have flown themselves to Prague to assist us on the festival because they are interested in theatre, they get free entry to all shows, but it will never be to the detriment of your ticket sales.  Also of course they are just the people to spread news of your show across the city!!  Please treat these volunteers with respect and remember they are responsible for adhering to Fringe regulations to help the whole event run smoothly.  

Can we sell programmes for our show? 

If you wish to bring your own hand-printed complimentary programmes, please give them to the Festival Assistants before your first show and they will happily give these out to your audiences, but we don’t sell programmes.

Can we sell merchandise for our show? 

We do not sell merchandise, you are welcome to sell your owns CDs etc after your show but please do it outside the performance space so that you are not cutting in to the get-out/get-in times of your show and the next.

How can we promote other shows?

It is quite common for groups to give a brief curtain speech thanking the audience, asking them to tell their friends if they have liked the show and recommend other shows they have seen and liked – we do ask that you do not criticize other shows though! 

Where is the Fringe Club/Night gathering place? 

In Malostranská Beseda after shows finish in the main space and bar.

How are my pre-sales going? 

Pre sales are a tiny part of the overall sales for the Fringe here in Prague. The vast majority of sales are walk-ups. The allocation (usually 20) on ticketstream is a small percentage of the total door sale and is being monitored - extra tickets are added as and when is necessary. 

What's the deal with busking? 

Busking is now LEGAL in Prague and you do not need a license. The rules around it are still a little fuzzy. Generally use your common sense do not busk in 'sacred' spaces - ie on the Charles Bridge or under the Astrological Clock etc. Alwasy take ID with you (it's the law) and show it if asked by the police.  Be extremely polite if questoned by the police and move on. The international word 'PARDON' should be used at this point. - frequently and smile a lot. Do not actively give out flyers but it might be OK to have them around you for people to pick up and you should not have a hat out for cash. Tourists make up a huge part of our audience and tourists that you meet will likely be in town over the weekend. A lovely square not far from the centre is called NÁMĚSTÍ MÍRU (one stop after MUZEUM on the metro) there are only locals here and this may gather a different crowd and it's always busy there. Print this and take it with you just incase the police look confused (there's an English version there too) http://www.mistnikultura.cz/busking-ozivuje-mesto 

How can I get online during my visit?

WiFIiis available in every second cafe in Prague and some of the Fringe venues also have access.

If you would prefer to have more permanent WiFi, all providers here will sell you a sim card with no contract and have various wifi packages - look out for the o2, Vodafone and T-Mobile stores on every corner. Some staff in each branch will speak English.

Can I park somewhere in the Fringe zone?

Central fringe parking is available in a secure car park at Divadlo Kampa. The owners will charge XXX per day - payment can be arranged through the Fringe. Please contact giles(at)fringe.cz about this and he will arrange it through our Production Assistant Madla Zelenkova.

IMPORTANT: Divadlo Na Prádle Rules and Regulations

For all companies performing at Divadlo Na Prádle and Na Prádle Kavárna, please read the rules and regulations document (download here, pdf) which contains important information about the use of the space during the festival.