THE FABRIC OF FRINGE
Since the mid-eighties, Darwin Fringe Festival, in one form or another, has given independent artists the chance to perform to the masses across a wide range of art forms. This month, the beloved Fringe celebrates its 10th edition in its current format, with 10 weird and wacky days of art coming our way.
WORDS TIERNEY WHITE
DARWIN FRINGE STARTED out as club space within the Bougainvillea Festival, these days the Darwin Festival. It’s seen a lot of versions over the years, but it was 2015 when a bunch of enthusiastic arts lovers reignited the Darwin Fringe Festival – once even known as the Fridge Festival – sparking the light for the beautiful beast it’s become today.
This need and desire to give audiences access to independent art, as well as artists and arts workers exposure and employment opportunities, is the driving force behind why the Fringe exists.
Fringe Director Hannah Illingworth joined the ranks in 2016 and says art is crucial to the human experience.
“I believe in Fringe because I know how important art is for us as humans, from the music you listen to on the way to work to the clothes you wear daily. The arts are woven into the very fabric of society and everything that we do,” she says.
“Art is important because exploring and understanding life is vital to the experience of being human. Art is the conduit that allows us to do all of this. Innovation is integral to the human condition, and it is why our society is where it is today.”
The 2025 Fringe roars with pride across 10 art-filled days, and there’s no shortage of local talent on display. With 70 percent of the program local, Illingworth reckons we’re punching above our weight when it comes to home-grown talent.
“The local creative community is so – and I know we use this word a lot – vibrant! There’s so much going on, not only the art forms, but the things people are exploring, because the arts really are about storytelling. It’s about transforming your ideas or your understandings – sometimes cementing those ideas or understandings – and there’s a lot of this going on in Darwin,” she says.
“It’s really cool to hear people say ‘oh, I didn’t realise that happens here’, and engaging locals with other locals that are doing some really cool stuff. The locals are going so hard, considering there’s very limited training opportunities up here, people are really creating some great material. Their rigor and their approach to their work is really strong. I’m so in love with the scene here.”
Since Fringe took on its current form a decade ago, it’s presented 93 days of programming, with almost 3,000 creative engagements, about 35,000 ticket sales, and over half a million buckeroos paid to independent artists and arts workers. Fringe benefits the community in big ways.
“I like the word scaffolding for [the Fringe] … Fringe provides not only an entry point for the industry and people sharing their talents and their skills and their stories, but it’s also an opportunity to take that next step as well,” Illingworth says.
“I think scaffolding is a good phrase, because Fringe is a platform that, if people have an idea they want to take to the next level or at a point in their career when they want to lash out and try something new, they can … we work in and around all of those stages of development.”
Darwin Fringe Festival Chair Zoe Scrogings says it’s the people power that makes Fringe so special.
“I want to acknowledge the incredible team that makes Darwin Fringe possible … [Hannah’s] small but mighty team, our volunteers, and this amazing community. To the artists, thank you for dreaming loudly. And to the audiences, thank you for showing up, again and again.”
In recent years, Darwin Fringe has expanded beyond the hub at Brown’s Mart, with satellite venues popping up across town. This year, 24 venues are in the mix, including the Town Hall Ruins, Bustard Town, Flora’s temper, Cox Country Club, and George Brown Darwin Botanic Gardens, where exciting performance Gene Tree – a collab between St Martins Youth Arts Centre from Naarm/Melbourne, Corrugated Iron Youth Arts, Darwin Symphony Orchestra, and Darwin Fringe – takes place.
To mark the 10th iteration, plans are in the works for a new book on the Fringe’s history later in the year, and the crew have put the call out for your Fringe tales. Throughout the Festival, punters are invited to don their green and pink get-ups, so raid your wardrobe or hit the op shops, and be part of the fabric of our incredible creative scene.
If you’re keen to make the most of your Fringe experience, sign up to Fringe Mob for just 30 clams, earning you discounted tickets and 20 percent off merch, amongst other things – plus, backing the Fringe. You legend. With so much music, comedy, visual art, theatre, networking opportunities, workshops, and more, the 2025 Fringe is lookin’ fierce.
Let’s get weird. It’s party time.
Darwin Fringe Festival
WHEN FRI 11 – SUN 20 JUL
INFO darwinfringe.org.au
Festival Highlights
Opening Night Party
Birthday party time! Dress up in green – or anything that makes you feel fabulous – and enjoy a juicy line-up with Clown Security, Temperamental, No Strings Attached, Tutup Mulut, Wet Funk, Kuya James, and more. It’s also World Fringe Day, making it a great chance to celebrate the incredible work done by Fringes around the globe!
WHEN FRI 11 JUL | 6PM-MIDNIGHT
AT BROWN’S MART COURTYARD
COST $15-$20
Honky Tonk Disco
This straight-shooting country band from Mparntwe/Alice Springs plays the kind of music that makes you wanna move! With a sound ranging from Spaghetti Western to Honky Tonk rock bangers, they bring tight harmonies, and the kind of energy that keeps a crowd dancing.
WHEN SUN 13 JUL | 2-5PM
AT COX COUNTRY CLUB
WHEN FRI 18 JUL | 7-10PM
AT DINAH BEACH CRUISING YACHT ASSOCIATION
COST FREE
Incubator: Zine and Digital Art Fair
Fringe’s annual Zine and Digital Art Fair returns, where you can get your mitts on a range of handmade and limited-edition goodies, featuring reads from local creatives and beyond, such as collections from Small Zine Volcano in Melbourne/Naarm.
WHEN SAT 19 JUL | 2-6PM
AT BROWN’S MART COURTYARD
COST FREE
Closing Night Party
What a hoot that was. It’s nothing but good times for the official closing soirée of Fringe with a brand new collaborative performance, some queer cheerleading, and lots of friendly faces.
WHEN SAT 19 JUL | 10PM-1AM
AT BROWN’S MART STUDIO
COST $10-$15
