Toronto Fringe Scores Over $500,000 in Ticket Sales
The 35th annual Toronto Fringe Festival has come to a close!
As disappointing as that might be for the thousands of Fringers across the GTA and beyond, the 2023 festival was an immense success, seeing more than 100 shows play in 16 venues over 12 days. Audiences swarmed into the city, snapping up more than 46,850 tickets in total and contributing over $40,000 in donations to Toronto Fringe’s donation campaign. In total, their current fundraising efforts have raised more than $118,000.
Over $500,000 will be returned to the artists thanks to this year’s ticket sales.
“The 2023 Toronto Fringe Festival was exceptional. What a privilege it was to witness the thought-provoking artistry and unbridled creativity that took to the stage,” said Jason Murray, chair of Toronto Fringe’s board of directors, in a press release. “Special thanks to everyone involved, including our sponsors, donors, audiences, artists, volunteers, Board, and staff. Collectively, our imaginations are reignited following this year’s fest and we’re reminded of the many reasons why this festival is so special.”
Not only did the festival feature a massive range of productions — dozens of which had sold-out shows, if not complete runs — but the 2023 festival offered a variety of free programming opportunities at their POSTSCRIPT Patio throughout the entire Fringe. From an Indie Fringe Mixer to the Stand-Up Comedy Night to a Canadian Citizenship Ceremony to the ever-popular Silent Disco, the Fringe’s auxiliary events at Tranzac Club were a hit.
This year, Fringe introduced two new initiatives, starting with its first ever launch party on July 4, which was hosted by Toronto’s own Pearle Harbour and headlined by Graham Scott Fleming. The 2023 Fringe Festival also introduced its brand new KidsFest Day Camp, supported by longtime Fringe donor Neville Austin, which provided children ages 4–11 with the opportunity to immerse themselves in the world of theatre with creative-based fun.
The new kids’ programming complemented Toronto Fringe’s regular youth offerings: Teen Fringe (in partnership with Edge of the Sky and supported by Neville Austin), TENT (sponsored by the RBC Emerging Artists Project), and the New Young Reviewers Program (supported by the Jon Kaplan Legacy Fund and published by Intermission Magazine).
Find the complete list of Toronto Fringe Festival’s 2023 award winners and patrons picks below. To read the New Young Reviewers’ published reviews, click here for round one, and here for round two.
2023 Toronto Fringe Festival Award Winners
North(519) Best of Fringe Festival, Presented by Theatre Orangeville
Fertility Slippers (Textures Theatre) and Our Little Secret: the 23&Me Musical (It’s Been Introduced)
Greenest in Fringe, Presented by Canadian Green Alliance
Frankenstein(esque) (Silent Protagonist Theatre)
The Second City Best Comedy Award
Ms. Titaverse (Tita Collective)
Spirit of the Fringe Award
Insert Clown Here (Parlous Theatre) and Featherhead (Birdbrain Theatre Collective)
Volunteers’ Choice Award
The Man with the Golden Heart (Chaos & Light)
2023 Patrons’ Picks
KidsFest — The Camp Campy Campfire Show (Stories by Dan)
Teen Fringe — Curious K Explores the Paleozoic (Kenton & Lise Productions)
Tarragon Theatre Mainspace — Blake & Clay’s Gay Agenda (Gay for Pay Productions)
Tarragon Theatre Extraspace — Frankenstein(esque) (Silent Protagonist Theatre)
Tarragon Theatre Solo Room — Emo Majok: African Aussie (Emo-tainment)
Al Green Theatre — CHOIR (Edge of the Sky)
Theatre Passe Muraille Mainspace — Ms. Titaverse (Tita Collective)
Theatre Passe Muraille Backspace — ONE NIGHT ONLY (duhdumduhdum productions)
Factory Theatre Mainspace — Killing Time: A Game Show Musical (Mixtape Projects)
Factory Theatre Studio — The Bad Mitzvah (Salt Theatre)
Alumnae Theatre — Our Little Secret: The 23&Me Musical (It’s Been Introduced)
Tank House Theatre, Young Centre for the Performing Arts — Aliya Kanani: Where You From, From? (Aliya Kanani)
Aki Studio, Native Earth Performing Arts — Mail Ordered (Shanice Stanislaus)
Jessica Watson
Jessica is a former associate editor at Intermission, as well as a writer, classically-trained actor, and plant enthusiast. Since graduating from LAMDA in the UK with her MA in acting, you can often find her writing screenplays and short plays in the park, writing extensive lists of plant care tips, or working on stage and screen (though she uses a stage name). Jessica freelances with various companies across Canada, but her passion lies in working with theatre artists and enthusiasts.
LEARN MORE
iPhoto caption: A stock image of Lighthouse Festival Theatre in Port Dover.
Lighthouse Festival unveils casting for 2025 summer season
The Lighthouse Festival has announced casting details for its 2025 summer season. A mix of returning favourites and new faces will appear in five productions across its two venues in Port Dover and Port Colborne.
iPhoto caption: The 'Octet' company. Photos by Dahlia Katz.
Crow’s Theatre announces packed 2025-26 season, including major partnership with Soulpepper
Next season, Crow’s Theatre will stage work by Michael Healey, Dave Malloy, Eboni Booth, Erin Shields, and Tennessee Williams, among others. The company is also launching a three-year partnership with Soulpepper Theatre, which will involve four large-scale 2025-26 co-productions.
iPhoto caption: Photo courtesy of Canadian Stage.
Canadian Stage reveals 2025-26 programming
World premieres from local playwrights Erin Shields and Kanika Ambrose feature in Canadian Stage’s 2025-26 season, announced this morning. The lineup also includes a Robert Lepage remount and a pair of Tony Award-nominated dramas.
iPhoto caption: Production image of The Livrarian. Photo by Anita Murphy.
Inaugural Bealtaine Theatre Festival brings contemporary Irish theatre to Toronto
Toronto audiences will experience a diverse selection of Irish theatre, music, and storytelling as the Bealtaine Theatre Festival debuts from April 25 to May 25.
iPhoto caption: Farren Timoteo in Made in Italy. Photo by Trudie Lee.
Theatre Calgary announces 2025–26 season
The 2025-26 season at Theatre Calgary features six productions, including a world premiere musical, a contemporary Canadian classic, and the return of a sold-out comedy.
iPhoto caption: Photo by Andree Lanthier.
GCTC to close out season with Rachel Mutombo’s Vierge
Co-produced by Montreal’s Black Theatre Workshop and directed by Dian Marie Bridge, Vierge will run from March 18 to 30 at the Irving Greenberg Theatre Centre in Ottawa.
Pakistani-Canadian actor Ahad Raza Mir ‘goes back to basics’ with Brampton production of Hamlet
“The South Asian community in Calgary, and even Toronto, is a whole different story than Brampton in terms of size,” says Mir. “I'm excited to have this show come to a larger group of South Asians: most importantly, young people who maybe want to go into the arts who want to be actors."
iPhoto caption: From top left, clockwise: Nikki Shaffeeullah, Adele Noronha, Michelle Mohammed, Jay Northcott, Anand Rajaram, and Virgilia Griffith.
Tarragon Theatre Announces A Poem for Rabia Cast
Award-winning theatre and film artist Nikki Shaffeeullah’s play A Poem for Rabia will make its debut in a Tarragon Theatre production in association with Nightwood Theatre and Undercurrent Creations.
iPhoto caption: Jeremy Smith and Tom Lillington in Driftwood Theatre's Living With Shakespeare. Original image by Dahlia Katz.
REVIEW: Living With Shakespeare at Driftwood Theatre
Living With Shakespeare is a deeply intimate exploration of Smith’s life and work, using Shakespeare’s words to bring to life some of his most personal, exciting, and challenging experiences.
REVIEW: Shakespeare By Any Other Name at Dauntless City Theatre
Part history lesson, part joyful romp through Shakespeare’s works, the sixty-minute play in the heart of St. James’ Park attempts to return the playwright to the people.
Guild Festival Theatre’s The Drowning Girls Opens in Scarborough
GFT’s final production is the multi-award-winning play The Drowning Girls, a true crime tale about three women married to and murdered by the same man.
Buddies in Bad Times Theatre Reveals Their 45th Anniversary Season
Buddies in Bad Times Theatre is celebrating with a season that showcases both epic queer stories from history and innovative new works from a diverse roster of artists.
Comments