Activities that are connected with a major public event but are not an official part of it.
Fringe, amongst its other uses, can refer to events or performances that are conducted on the outskirts of an official festival. The concept of fringe is important with regard to the type of performances that are executed, with risk, experimentalism and innovation driving the spirit and philosophy of a fringe event.
A particularly famous exemplification of a fringe event is the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. Established in 1947, the festival is predicated on the proliferation of open access, uncurated or unsanctioned performances from companies that are not necessarily commissioned in order to open the potential for diverse experience of live art exhibitions, comedy, circus and theatre, amongst other disciplines. The Edinburgh Festival Fringe came into existence when eight groups who were expecting to perform at the Edinburgh International Festival were refused entry. The companies decided to perform unauthorized, creating what would eventually become the world’s largest arts festival.
The first ever World Fringe Day is July 11th 2017. World Fringe Day commemorates the inception of the world’s inaugural fringe festival seventy years ago in Edinburgh. There are now around 200 fringe festivals across the world, providing touring opportunities for unknown companies and emerging performers.
fringe
1 BRITISH short hair that hangs down over your forehead. The American word is bangs
My fringe needs cutting.
2 a row of fibres or thin pieces of cloth that hang down from a piece of cloth or clothing
a blue scarf with long black fringes
3 the outer edge of something
factories on the northern fringe of the city
4 people or activities that are considered strange or extreme
Their views belong to the wilder fringes of European politics.
on the fringe/fringes: He has been forced to live on the fringes of society.
a. activities that are connected with a major public event but are not an official part of it
the Edinburgh Festival Fringe
He made a speech on the fringe of the Conservative Party Conference.
b. [ONLY BEFORE NOUN] belonging to the fringe of a society, organization, or event
a small right-wing fringe group
