As the Adelaide Fringe comes to an end with the announcement of the Fringe Awards, the Festival has outdone itself again with record ticket sales for 2017 showing that the love affair between artists, audiences and the festival is still going strong after more than 50 years.
Just like the majestic unicorn depicted on this year’s poster, the Fringe has soared to even greater heights with 655,541 tickets sold worth a total of $16.2 million. This is enough tickets to fill every seat in Adelaide Oval 13 times, and is a 9 per cent increase on last year’s record sales.
Adelaide Fringe Director and CEO Heather Croall, who oversaw her second Fringe this year, said the key ingredients for the festival’s success included audiences being keen to take risks and venues willing to provide a platform for emerging artists to get their start in the industry.
Ms Croall said this year’s amazing program of more than 1100 events was also the result of hard-working artists and an equally dedicated team Fringe staff members supported by 300 volunteers, along with countless others employed by hubs and venues for the Adelaide Fringe.
“We’ve been really pleased to see that locals and visitors to Adelaide alike have immersed themselves in the festival wonderland that the Fringe has to offer,” said Ms Croall. “The energy here in the city – plus at an increasing number of suburban and regional venues – has been absolutely electric. It’s been astounding to see such a huge turnout of Fringe-goers across the 31 days of the festival.
Winners of the 2017 Adelaide Fringe Awards:
For more information, visit: www.adelaidefringe.com.au for details.
Image: Sirqus Alfon (supplied)