The Adelaide Fringe Festival is on from next Friday 16 February until Sunday 18 March. This marks the beginning of “Mad March” in Adelaide, which can be an expensive month. But we are here to save you with a list of 10 free things to do at the Adelaide Fringe in 2018.
Opening night street party
On opening night from 5 to 10pm, part of North Terrace will be closed for a street party. There will be 6 performance spaces with over 60 artists as well as live music and roving performances.
Tindo Utpurndee (Sunset ceremony)
Also on opening night, at 8pm at the South Australian Museum Lawns is a traditional Indigenous ceremony in which the living culture of the First Nations is recognised and respects paid to the spirit of the land.
From 8:30pm to midnight for each night of the Fringe (yes, the whole month this time!) the buildings of historic buildings of North Terrace will be illuminated with colourful video projections.
Explore the street art of Adelaide, which is being added to continuously including with the sponsorship provided by the Street Art Explosion which allows Adelaide’s most promising and established artists to create public murals in the lead-up to the Adelaide Fringe. You can find the works on this map.
Fringe in the Mall
This is a great way to get a taste of the Fringe and maybe decide that you then want to buy a ticket to the performer’s show. From Tuesday to Sunday for a few hours each day – details here – you can see some brief Fringe performances.
Free concerts
There are also free concerts throughout the Adelaide Fringe – the Prospect Twilight Sessions are held on Fridays in February, Thursday sessions at the William Bligh (22 Feb, 1 and 8 March), Sunday Acoustic Sessions at the Fringe Lodge (what the Buckingham Arms is calling itself during the Adelaide Fringe) and Sunday Buskers and Brews at the Kent Town Hotel. For some truly homegrown music, the Garden of Unearthly Delights is holding free Garden Sessions on Saturdays and Sundays with music by indigenous artists.
More Street Parties!
The Waymouth Street Party is on Friday 9 March from 4 to 10pm and will see street food and drink vendors along with music and roving performers. Entry is free.
On the Saturday of the closing weekend (17 March) of the Fringe is the Saana Street Party, which won the Bank SA Best Event of the Fringe award last year which will be on in the laneway beside Mama Jambo from 2pm to midnight.
Taking in the atmosphere of the Fringe spaces
Strolling through The Garden of Unearthly Delights, Gluttony and the Royal Croquet Club during the evenings of the Adelaide Fringe is also fun. You may even get to see some free roving performances.
Other free things
There are 12 pages of search results for free things on at the Adelaide Fringe so take a look to see what else you can do!
What’s your favourite part of the Adelaide Fringe Festival?
