REVIEW: Omaha Fringe

Welcome to the Midwest, and possibly one of the friendliest Fringe festivals you will attend. Tamar Newman founded the festival, and now Lara Marsh sits at the helm as Artistic Director. The folks running this Fringe are wonderful, kind human beings who love theater and want to advance the artistic landscape in Omaha. I attended in 2023 and had a beautiful experience, and met some of my favorite Fringe friends.

Friendly staff

One of the best parts about Omaha Fringe is the staff. They are all volunteers and were very easy to communicate with. The staff organized a flyer campaign day at the local farmers’ market a few weeks before the festival. As an out-of-town artist, I couldn’t participate, but they offered to let me send postcards to a staff member, who then distributed my cards on flyer day. I mean, WTF, if that isn’t first class service! Additionally, I was unable to attend the pre-festival preview, and the staff allowed me to submit a short video in lieu of a live pitch.

In the year I attended, one of the staff members photographed every show and made the images available to the artists at no charge. I am always thankful for this kind of service, as it adds an extra bit of artist care. Also, if shows had low ticket sales, the staff were quick to attend and help fill out the audience.

There was a delightful end-of-festival party with snacks, drinks, and awards. Awards were determined by audience feedback.

Beautiful venues

Like many Fringes in the US, the venues were spread out around the city. But all the venues were perfectly suited to theater, and shows were appropriately programmed for each space. At the time I attended the festival, they had a fabulous relationship with the University of Nebraska Omaha. I performed in the UNO black box theater, which was fully tricked out with every technical bell and whistle you could think of (oh, so dreamy!). The University also provided a smaller black box theater with wonderful technical capabilities. The other venues around town were beautiful performance spaces as well, and any Fringe artist would be giddy to perform in any of them.

Things to Know About Omaha Fringe

Omaha Fringe artists and staff: Jessica Johnson, Lauren Hance, Tamar Newman, Clay Naff, and Lara Marsh

The year I was there, the major media outlet struggled to cover the Fringe and theater in general. This is not a reflection on the festival, but on the media outlets. I feel it is important to clarify that many media outlets in the United States do a subpar job of covering local and regional theater, and even worse at covering Fringe. Rarely do I see poor media coverage as a reflection of a festival staff’s efforts. It is a reality of media coverage in the United States.

Even amid the broader media issues in the US, I secured coverage through Broadway World and was lucky to connect with a local radio program and podcast for a beautiful hour-long interview. There are media outlets in Omaha working hard to give theater and Fringe the coverage they deserve, so don’t hesitate to reach out.

Folks living in Omaha are accustomed to attending festivals and concerts. The Fringe staff diligently promotes the festival and is building a strong audience base. I am sure that over the coming years, they will have a robust following of Fringe fanatics who will rival Midwest concertgoers. While my audiences were slimmer than I liked, I had a lot of support from artists and staff, and had very lovely shows.

The festival utilizes the button system. Each patron must purchase one button each season and present it to see any show at the festival. Buttons are usually $5. The button fee goes to the festival, allowing artists to receive the full amount from ticket sales. Additionally, festival passes are available and allow patrons to see as many shows as possible.

If you are coming to Omaha, you will need a vehicle. Public transportation is available, but not abundant.

Overall impression of Omaha Fringe

This festival is small but mighty, and holds a special place in my heart. The staff goes above and beyond to help artists, and their hard work and dedication deserve applause. If you live within driving distance of Omaha Fringe and want to experience a Fringe or try out some new material, this is a great festival to consider. I hope that in the coming years Omaha can be included in the Midwest Trifecta, because it would be a lovely addition for artists heading to KC, Indy, and Minnesota. If you are new to Fringe or have material you want to try out, this festival should be on your list.

Omaha Fringe applications are open through February 14. APPLY HERE. 

Listen to our discussion with Omaha Fringe Artistic Director, Lara Marsh.