To celebrate the Buxton Fringe’s 40th anniversary, we’re having a Bonanza Ticket Sale this weekend!

From 6pm on Friday 28 June until midnight on Sunday 30 June* all tickets booked through underthefringe.com will be 10% off. There’s 70 great shows at Underground this year to choose from and, as an added incentive, buy for two or more different shows at the same time and get 20% off the final total.

This deal applies even if you’re buying concessionary tickets for over-65s/students/Fringe Friends etc. And you can book for as many shows as you like, as many times as you like during the weekend.

All you need is the discount code “BONANZA”. Just enter this during the booking process, when asked for a discount code.

There’s never been a better reason to book your tickets for the Buxton Fringe! We’ve an incredible selection of top-quality comedy, theatre, music and kids shows from all across the UK, running at our two spaces, 3-24 July. And now you can see all the shows you want without breaking the bank.

So have a browse and get booking now (or from 6pm Friday!) at underthefringe.com

And we look forward to seeing you at the Fringe!

---

*Update: if you’re on our mailing list you have a later expiry date, as specified in the email you’re about to receive.

---

Tickets are now on sale for all 70 productions and 200+ performances at Underground this July.

Just head to underthefringe.com/book to get started. And remember – no booking fees, transaction fees or card fees on any sales. And no need to sign up / make an account etc. – it’s super quick.

And – new for 2019 – we have a Previews season. For the first three days, until Friday evening, all shows at our two venues are only £5 for everyone. These are expected to sell well, so grab your tickets now!

Fringe venue group Underground have announced their line-up for the 2019 Buxton Fringe – the UK’s third largest Fringe Festival, which celebrates its 40^th anniversary this July.

The largest venue on the Buxton Fringe, Underground’s 14th programme is their longest ever, running 2 – 24 July, and aims to bring as many new people into the arts as possible. Additional dates extend into the school holidays, to allow for an increased offering of Children’s and Family shows, and a new Previews season at the start of the Fringe sees £5 tickets available for all shows in the first three days.

With 70 productions and 206 performances across two spaces, it’s the most concentrated collection of professional theatre, comedy and music currently in the North West.

Highlights of Underground’s 2019 programme include:

• Brand-new work from acclaimed comedy stars:
     – Alfie Moore – fresh from the 4th series of his Radio 4 show Alfie Moore It’s A Fair Cop.
     – Tom Parry – star of Pappy’s (BBC 3, Radio 4) and three-times-nominated for the Edinburgh Comedy Award.
  – Maisie Adam – winner of Amused Moose National New Comic, 2018
  – Alastair Beckett-King – winner of Leicester Mercury Comedian Of The Year, 2017.
• White Light White Peak (Springing & Falling): a poetic and visual journey through the stunning Peak District landscape by Simon Corble – writer of the West End smash-hit The 39 Steps.
• Funny In Real Life: a new comic play from real-life husband and wife team – Rob Rouse (Upstart Crow, 8 Out Of 10 Cats, The Friday Night Project) and Helen Rutter (Best Actress, Buxton Fringe).
• New media collective Despite The Monkey, in association with Liverpool Everyman Playhouse, present two shows which fuse innovative 3D sound (via headphones), original music and storytelling: Debris (by Dennis Kelly) and Autopsy.
• The premiere of a new show by Moscow-based satirist Oleg Denisov, one of the only Russian stand-up comedians working professionally on the UK circuit, prior to its European tour.
• Fantastic high-quality productions specially for children, including:
  – Hey Diddle Diddle – a hugely inventive retelling of the classic nursery rhyme for ages 2 and up, from acclaimed company Goblin.
  – The Red Balloon – a charming staging of the classic 1956 film, from the award-winning Lucky Dog Theatre, perfect for ages 4-10.
  – Stop Not Being Silly – a high-impact, super-silly circus show suitable for the whole family and all ages.

Performances all take place 2 – 24 July, at Underground’s two spaces: Underground at the Clubhouse and Underground at the Arts Centre Studio.

Full programme and tickets available from underthefringe.com

We are very pleased to announce that Underground Venues has arisen from the loss of our original home under the Old Hall Hotel, to find a new home for 2017 in festival hub The Old Clubhouse. Following eleven successful years, Underground will return with another hand-picked programme of events at the 2017 Buxton Fringe.

Popular with Festival and Fringe audiences for many years, The Old Clubhouse, opposite the historic Opera House, will form our new base of our operations. A brand new theatre space for 2017 will join an all-day Fringe Club and information desk, while the Arts Centre, just over the road, will continue to host our larger-scale acts.

Underground Venues 2017 will run 4-23 July.

Applications for all types of performance will open at the very start of February.

Keep an eye on the website and our Twitter and Facebook for more information.

Underground Venues is the leading venue-group on the Buxton Fringe, hosting 75 shows in three different theatre spaces. We operate for three weeks every July, bringing together an exciting mix of artists, producers, audiences and festival volunteers.

This year our venue operates 3-25 July (including get-in and get-out).

The Buxton Fringe is the 3rd largest Fringe in the UK and our programme of work this year includes a fantastic range of top-class touring theatre, award-winning stand-up comedy and Edinburgh Fringe previews.

We are looking for a theatre technician join our existing team for the three weeks and manage one of our 40-seat studio spaces. The post involved rigging and plotting lights, helping acts with tech rehearsals, managing changeovers between shows, familiarising companies with the technical equipment and sometimes operating shows.

We offer all accommodation in Buxton, all transport costs, plus £300 towards expenses for the time. Volunteers also have the opportunity to see a wide range of Fringe shows for free and the post is a great opportunity to meet artists and others working at the venue.

Some experience or training of working as a theatre technician is essential. Experience working in a Fringe or festival context is desirable. The post is open to all but may well be suited to a student or recent graduate looking to further their experience working with professional companies.

You will need to be free to arrive in Buxton on the afternoon of 3 July and leave the afternoon of 25 July. All accommodation and transport to/from Buxton is covered.

For more information, or to apply, simply contact jobs@underthefringe.com

For more information about the venue, visit underthefringe.com

That’s right, 2015 will be the tenth year of Underground Venues! – and you can bet we’re excited about it (because you would have no risk of losing your stake, as we are definitely excited and can prove it).

2015 will be the tenth time we take up residence at the Old Hall for the Buxton Fringe, after starting there back in 2006. We will also be managing the Arts Centre Studio in Buxton and be returning to the Oxford Fringe for our fourth year there!

Dates for both Fringes are confirmed as:

Oxford: 22 May – 7 June 2015

Buxton: 8 – 26 July 2015

We are accepting applications for Oxford already – just email oxford@underthefringe.com for full info and an application form. We will be accepting applications until 10 March.

Applications for Buxton Fringe will open late January and be through the website. The deadline is 23 March.

Another year, another summer and the Fringe season is on us again.

As we’ve written about before, a strong pattern of Fringe festivals has grown up over the summer months in the UK. With Brighton in May, Oxford in May/June, Buxton in July and Edinburgh – the biggest of  them all – in Edinburgh. The trail moves south to north as the summer progresses and a growing number of acts are moving with it.

Acts use this ‘Fringe Trail’ to road-test their shows ready for Edinburgh (the biggest live arts festival in the world) – or to kick-start a later tour. Conversely, many revisit the other Fringes after having had success in one.

Here at Underground we are keen to see this Fringe Trail grow so we present here the dates of the four Trail Fringes for 2014:

• Brighton Fringe | 3 May – 1 June | www.brightonfringe.org
• Oxford Fringe | 24 May – 8 June | www.oxfordfringe.org – see Underground Venues’ programme here
• Buxton Fringe | 9 – 27 July | www.buxtonfringe.org.uk – see Underground Venues’ programme here
• Edinburgh Fringe | 1 – 25 August | www.edfringe.com

Yes that’s right, it seems, like Mark Twain, the report of our death was an exaggeration.

Due to generous help of the constantly delayed building works at the Crescent, the wonderful cellars of the Old Hall Hotel that Underground has called home since 2006 will live another day.

This means Underground Venues will be returning, with a full programme of events, at the 2014 Buxton Fringe. Continuing our work over the last 8 years of bringing the finest local and national Fringe talent to Buxton in July.

Audiences can expect another bursting programme of hand-picked stand-up, new writing, classic theatre, music, magic, comedy and kids shows from 9-27 July 2014.

Potential acts can apply to be part of it from January 2014, when application information will be available on the website.

We also involved in creating and shaping the new Oxford Fringe. More on that later.

The Underground Venues season at the 2013 Buxton Fringe has come to an end and what a year it was!

We hosted 65 shows and over 200 performances, entertained 4000 audience members and got through 10 packs of blu-tac and 50 sticks of chalk. We’ve shown once again that Fringe can buck the trend of the recession, thanks to the fantastic line-up of shows, from every genre and style, that we were treated to this year.
There was much excitement about 2013 being the last ever year for Underground Venues. As many of you will know, the Crescent development is due to involve building work in the Old Hall Hotel cellars. But we’re pleased to say we do intend to be back in one form or another at the 2014 Fringe – so keep an eye on this blog, our Twitter or Facebook for more updates.Now hosting three performance spaces, Underground Venues had another year of fantastic reviews, from the Buxton Fringe (see here) and from Fringe Guru (see here) and Underground shows once again triumphed at the Fringe awards. Best Production, Best Actor & Actress, Best Comedy, Best Comedy Performer, Best Youth Production and Best Young Actor all went to Underground shows – along with a huge number of nominations – a big well done to all of them! (Full list here)

It’s goodbye to the punts, the spires and the crowds of students in bizarre exam-garb – the 2013 Oxford Fringe is over.

Following the cancellation of the orinally planned festival, this year’s Oxford Fringe was an attempt by all the acts and venues intending to take part, to keep the Fringe spirit going in Oxford. With essentially no budget, we split the costs of basic advertising between us, and relied on feet on the ground, word-of-mouth, positive press and social media to spread the word.

Underground Venues were once more running the Old Fire Station’s main theatre space for the duration of the Fringe. Following a successful 2012 we planned to increase our programme by 30%, bringing in both big names and promising newcomers to the 90-seat Arts Centre. Now with a replacement Fringe, hastily put together by its participants, it was uncertain if this gamble would pay off.

However, following the final tally after last night’s final show, we are proud to announce the following:

• Total ticket sales were up on 2012
• Gross box office takings were up
• Average audience per show have increased

All of which is a great credit to the performers and promoters involved in Underground Venues this year, as well as our staff and our wonderful hosts at the Old Fire Station.

More importantly, it bodes very well for the future of the Fringe in Oxford, which we will to continue to support and are keen to see continue to flourish.

Our thanks also to the other venues at the Oxford Fringe: the Oxford Playhouse‘s Burton Taylor Studio, the Ashmolean Museum, Art Jericho, Turl Street Kitchen, Albion Beatnik Bookstore, the Friends Meeting House and East Oxford Community Centre. We couldn’t have done it without you.