Hollywood Fringe Festival 2013 Kicks Off Today

The fourth annual Hollywood Fringe Festival opens today after a week of previews that topped previous ticketing records for the festival. The festival sold over 50% more tickets during the six-day period than ever before and festival organizers expect to break more records as the festival progresses.

"We're really excited to see such tell-tale growth," said Festival Director Ben Hill. "We predict that the increased ticket sales we've seen during previews will continue throughout the festival, thanks in part to our new apps for iPhone and Android. We also expect to see at least one million hits on hollywoodfringe.orgduring the month of June."

The Festival officially kicked off last night when nearly seven hundred people gathered at the Opening Night Party, which also marked the first night of activity forFringe Central Station, the festival's notorious social venue, which hosts nightly free programming and libations at Bryan's Bar. Many of the festival's programs begin this weekend, including Fringe Family, Fringe Cabaret, Fringe Zero Waste Days and the Fringe Hotspot program, while others have already begun. Check out the first two episodes of FringeTV on the Fringe's YouTube channel (www.youtube.com/user/HollywoodFringe). Episode Three (coming out this Friday) will also show highlights from Student Fringe, a Hollywood Fringe education outreach program that took place last week at Bancroft Middle School.

The 2013 Festival is a week longer than previous Fringes, running through Sunday, June 30th. The festival will conclude with an Award Ceremony and Closing Night Party at Fringe Central Station. The awards are community-voted by "Fringers" who purchase tickets or write reviews on the Fringe's website. Past award winners have been granted extended national runs, publication and other successes as a result of their Fringe accomplishments.

The Hollywood Fringe Festival is an annual, open-access, community-derived event celebrating freedom of expression and collaboration in the performing arts community. Each June during the Hollywood Fringe, the arts infiltrates the Hollywood neighborhood: Fully equipped theaters, parks, clubs, churches, restaurants and other unexpected places host hundreds of productions by local, national, and international arts companies and independent performers.

Participation in the Hollywood Fringe is completely open and uncensored. This free-for-all approach underlines the festival's mission to be a platform for artists without the barrier of a curative body. By opening the gates to anyone with a vision, the festival is able to exhibit the most diverse and cutting-edge points-of-view the world has to offer. Additionally, by creating an environment where artists must self-produce their work, the Fringe motivates its participants to cultivate a spirit of entrepreneurialism in the arts.

Key Festival Dates
June 6th-11th- Fringe Previews
June 12th- Fringe Opening Night Gala
June 13th-30th- 4th Annual Hollywood Fringe Festival
June 19th- Fringe Prom
June 26th- Rock of Stages
June 29th- End of the World Party
June 30th- Fringe Award Ceremony & Closing Night Party

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