Putting on a show

Types of ticketing

Ticketed shows

Performances where a standard or concessionary ticket price is purchased before the performance - either in advance or on the door.

Free Shows

Shows that can be ticketed or non-ticketed but do not charge in advance. The Fringe Box Office can issue tickets for free ticketed shows. Many free shows give the audience the option to contribute money to a bucket at the end of the performance.

Pay What You Want shows

The PWYW model gives the audience the option to ‘Buy a ticket in advance to guarantee entry, or Pay What You Want at the venue’ when the show ends. Ticket holders for the show are allowed in first, followed by those who have opted not to buy a ticket in advance. Many PWYW shows give the audience the option to contribute money to a bucket at the end of the performance.

The Fringe Box Office

The Fringe Box Office sells tickets for all shows registered with the Society. Tickets are sold over the counter, by phone and on edfringe.com.

You are required to make at least the equivalent of 25% of your tickets per performance available to sell at the Fringe Box Office. This percentage can be increased when you fill in your Show Registration Form, or at any point during your run.

The Fringe Box Office opens earlier than many venue box offices, and because of this many companies allocate half or more of their tickets to our Box Office. An administrative commission of 4% plus VAT is applied on the face value of all tickets sold.

The Box Office Supervisors are also there to help if you need to make changes or cancellations to your performances, or have any questions about ticket sales reports.

 

Ticket offers

The Fringe offers various discount ticket options to audiences that your show can opt to participate in, including 2for1 offers and Fringe Friend discounts.

Taking part in these offers can help your show build audiences and take maximum advantage of the festival calendar.

More information on these offers is available in Edfringeware when you decide whether or not to opt in, and on the Edfringeware help site.

• Visit Edfringeware help site

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The Half Price Hut

The Half Price Hut (HPH) is a great promotional opportunity for shows and an efficient way for shows and venues to generate last-minute ticket sales for any performances that need an extra boost. It opens from the Wednesday following the 2for1 days on the first Monday and Tuesday of the Fringe.

The HPH only sells tickets for performances taking place on the day of purchase, or the following day if the show takes place before 14:00 (more info on this below).

Here’s how it works:

• Choose which performance(s) of your show you would like to make available in the Half Price Hut. 
• Choose how many tickets per performance you would like to allocate to the HPH. These tickets will be available to audience members at half the price of a standard ticket. 
• This allocation of tickets will be exclusively available via counter sales at the Fringe Box Office at 180 High Street (there will not be a physical hut at the Mound this year as in previous years). 
• Half Price Hut shows will be listed on a dedicated edfringe.com page, with signage around the Box Office directing audience members to that information and further details of how to take advantage of the ticket offer.
• Please note: the Half Price Hut will sell from 14:00 for performances before 14:00 the following day. Performances after 14:00 will be sold from 10:00 on the same day. Requests for inclusion in the Half Price Hut need to be made 48 hours in advance of a performance.
• Once tickets have been allocated to the Half Price Hut they cannot be returned to general sale. 

Who can allocate tickets to the Half Price Hut?

If your company is performing at any of the following venues you will have to contact them directly to be included in Half Price Hut offers:

• Assembly
• C venues
• Gilded Balloon
• Greenside
• Just the Tonic
• Paradise Green
• Pleasance
• Scottish Storytelling Centre
• theSpaceUK
• Summerhall
• Underbelly
• Zoo

If you are not at one of those venues, the Half Price Hut form should be completed by the Primary Contact for your show (aka the person listed as a Primary Contact in your show registration) or someone at your venue. If you are unsure who the Primary Contact is, contact [email protected] and our team will be able to let you know.

If you are not the appropriate contact for your show, this may delay or prevent the Half Price Hut ticket offer being applied.

If you have any questions about any of the above or the Half Price Hut ticketing service more generally please email [email protected].

Venue box office

Many venues operate an on-site box office as well. You may choose to sell some tickets through the Fringe box office and the remainder through the venue - discuss how to allocate your tickets with your venue manager. Check for hidden costs such as supply of ticket stock or additional fees or commissions.

Some venues have box offices that are linked to the Fringe system. In these cases, the venue staff will be your main point of contact for all box office, ticketing and sales reports enquiries.

Otherwise, please contact the Fringe Society using [email protected] for:

• Box office issues
• Questions about changes to performances
• Information about online ticket reports

Fringe Box Office settlements

Fringe Box Office booking fee rebate

Since 2022, the Fringe Society has operated a rebate process after payout, redistributing part of the revenue from our Box Office booking fees and retaining only what we need to provide our services. This is to recognise the large market-share of ticket sales that the Fringe Box Office has across the festival, and the value of supporting venues to offer box office services when these cannot be covered by their own booking fee revenue.

The rebate is offered on the volume of tickets we sell over 40% of the total sales for a show. For example, if a show’s venue box office sells 25% of tickets for a show’s run, and the Fringe Society sells the other 75%, we will retain the booking fees for 40% and offer a rebate on the remaining 35% (see infographic, right).

The Fringe Society contacts eligible recipients with a rebate claim form; there is no rebate for shows where the Fringe Box Office sells less than 40% of the tickets across the run. 

The rebate is issued in October, to ensure it doesn’t slow down the payout process, and is offered to the organisation that is registered to receive the show’s payout. For some shows, the artist or company receives payout and rebate directly; in other cases, these are issued to the venue, which in turn manages the individual settlement with the show as per their agreed contract. Free Ticketed shows also receive a rebate of associated booking fees.

It is up to the organisation that receives the payment to decide what to do with those funds. Some venues use the money to offset their box office overheads or other operating costs, supporting a broader network of box office services across the Fringe; some pass a portion (or the entirety) to the artists. We encourage artists and venues to discuss rebate when contracting.

This process has been agreed for three years (2022–2024) by the Fringe Society Board. The Board is elected by members of the Fringe Society – find out more about becoming a Fringe Society member.
 

Do-it-yourself box office

If your venue does not run a ticketing facility, you are welcome to allocate all of your tickets for sale through the Fringe Box Office. Alternatively, you can sell advance tickets and offer door sales yourself.

DIY box office tips

• Print simple, numbered tickets in advance. If possible, sell space on your ticket to advertisers to help cover print costs.
• Ticket design should be simple and include:
  • show title
  • company name
  • venue and space
  • date and time of performance
  • ticket price.
• Equally, for a very simple, functional ticket you could buy a book of cloakroom/raffle tickets to sell on the door.
• Assign only one or two people from your company to run the box office.
• Maintain a spreadsheet of sales. Balance box office costs and income daily and deposit takings in a bank account set up for that purpose.
• Post conditions of sale clearly at your box office, including your policy on refunds and exchanges. If giving a refund, take the ticket back from the customer.
• Set a process for verifying and documenting concession statuses and sales (eg. over 60s, students, unemployed).
• Keep a record of any seats given away as complimentary tickets - including press tickets, if applicable.
• Have your front of house staff retain tickets. Take a head count before the performance for fire and safety purposes.
• Track your customer base by asking your audience for contact details. Get permission before adding anyone to a mailing list.

Contact the Fringe Society at [email protected] for more advice on setting up and running your own box office.