Living in central Brighton has many benefits and one standout is the annual Brighton Fringe Festival. It is the largest annual arts festival in England and one of the largest fringe festivals in the world. I’ts an open-access festival which means that anyone can register, find a venue, and put on a show or event! And that makes for an incredibly eclectic few weeks.
During May and part of June, Brighton Fringe welcomes local, national and international performers and audiences as it showcases creativity in Brighton, Hove, and beyond.
This vast celebration of the weird, wild and wonderful has grown out of and is inspired by, home-grown talent. More than 30% of events are put on by artistic companies based in Brighton & Hove.
The incredible thing about the fringe is the sheer amount of creativity and variety on offer. Over 850 shows in a mix of venues from pubs, theatres, clubs, even people’s homes, and some amazing pop up event areas housing the likes of the fabulous Brighton Spiegal Tent, and new for 2023 the Caravanserai originally established at Camp Bestival in 2013. Devised by artist Pete Bateman, Caravanserai is built out of repurposed caravans with vintage fairground waltzers, where hoopla stalls and shoot-out galleries become bars. I popped along on the opening night and the atmosphere was incredible with DJs playing and roving performers interacting with the busy crowd as the sun set and the quirky lighting installations created a wonderful magical environment. This was followed by a fantastic cabaret show featuring a burlesque stripper performing Bernie Clifton style on a pink flamingo! (only at the Fringe!)
The festival runs until the 4th of June and proves we still have a real appetite for arts and entertainment in all forms, from drag shows, comedy, exhibitions, variety, waking tours, immersive installations, poetry and spoken word, music, club nights and cabaret!
You can find out more at https://www.brightonfringe.org/
I’m just off to book ‘Disney in Drag’ and ‘Back Passages of Brighton!’ (yes, it’s an actual thing!) all in the name of culture of course!
