Applications open: Wednesday, 29th January 2025 @ 9am

To apply: please complete the questions on the Google Form by visiting: https://forms.gle/vJL4HEG9Sm8EuBZeA

Closing date: Friday, 28th February 2025 @ 5.00pm

 

Performance dates: 22nd July – 2nd August (excluding Sundays and Mondays)

160 performances, across 8 venues, over 10 days.

 

WHAT ARTISTS GET

• A box office split of 70/30 in your favour (with no hidden costs)

• Marketing & PR support as part of the overall festival promotional campaign – this year, our entire festival marketing campaign aims to engage with over 25,000 people.

• Introduction and opportunity to have your work reviewed – this year, thanks to new partnerships set out by NFF, we aim to have 60% of the performances at thefestival reviewed.

• Being part of one of Newcastle's biggest arts festivals and its community.

• Introduction to top-quality artist-focussed venues.

• Full Box Office & FOH services.

• Event management and festival insurance.

• Opportunities for your work to win awards, some of which have cash prizes and further career development opportunities.

• Get-in time and tech time in the space – tech times vary per space.

• A technician to support your production. Due to break times, some of these may be skilled volunteers, so we suggest that if your production is tech-heavy, you bring your own operator.

• Support from the Newcastle Fringe Festival team – workshops with our festival hub on marketing, community engagement, tech, and PR.

• Introduction to new artists – broadening your creative sphere and networks

• Bar and food provisions for audiences.

 

WHAT WE NEED FROM YOU (if programmed):

• The show – ready to perform – including all necessary rights (including a PPL PRS declaration).

• Tech spec – including minimum get-in and get-out time.

• Public Liability Insurance for the performance, including your get-in and get-out, to a minimum of £2 million.

• A risk assessment (NFF can support with this).

• Promotional images, copy, credits and previous reviews for promotional purposes.

• A marketing & PR campaign for your show.

  

WHAT WE ARE LOOKING FOR

• We’re open to most things – this is a space to experiment, evolve, and achieve excellence.

• We are interested in work from across the entire spectrum of the performing arts industry, provided it will work in our venues, turn-around times, and is no longer than 60 minutes. This could include, but is not exclusive to:

  • Theatre

  • Comedy

  • Dance

  • Circus

  • Music*

  • Cabaret

  • Magic

  • Drag

  • Family

  • LGBTQ+

  • The list goes on…

• The festival takes place in the first two weeks of the summer school holidays (22nd July – 2nd August), so there are many slots available for family work.

• We’re also particularly interested in artists who want to make work for adults with babies. By this, we don’t mean entertainment for the babies (although we may be interested in that too), but for the adult at a baby-friendly time and in a baby-friendly atmosphere.

• We’re also interested in work from artists who identify as being from under-represented backgrounds in the performing arts ecology. By this, we mean, but not exclusively, those who identify from one or more of the following:

  • Global Majority

  • Disabled

  • Female

  • Trans or non-binary

  • LGBTQ+

  • Grew up in a lower socio-economic background

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WHAT WE AREN’T LOOKING FOR   

• Work that is offensive, derogatory, or punches down.

• *Bands/musicians looking to put on a “classic/normal” gig. We’re interested in music, but we want it to be something a bit different (perhaps a collaboration with a different art form) and, most importantly, fits into the festival format.