Creating High and Low Art: Experimentation and Commercialization at Fringe Festivals

Fringe festivals make an important contribution to the creative industries by providing artistic output and experiences. Fringe festivals are open access noncurated multi-art festivals where artist choose to present their work. The article considers the phenomenon of fringe festivals in the context of creative industries and, in particular discusses the issue of commercialization at two such festivals, namely the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and the Adelaide Fringe Festival. Both fringe festival organizations have been criticized as staging festivals that have become overly commercial and less experimental. The study found that this criticism has occurred because venues and promoters, particularly in relation to comedy shows, aggressively market the artists they support. However, both fringe festivals have maintained their original philosophy of open access to allow all artists and a range of art forms to be staged. A new definition of a fringe festival is provided, and future areas of research are identified.