With just a few weeks to go to the beginning of the Festival season in the town, Wexford Fringe were thrilled to announce the 2017 Fringe programme at the recent launch in Green Acres Art Gallery on Thursday 13th September 2017.
Crammed full of the stories, reflections and experiences of leading artists, producers and companies from Ireland and around the world, the 65th Fringe Festival encompasses everything from drama to musicals, visual art to opera, Singing & Swinging Pubs to Spiegeltent and much more.
The Festival opens with a giant fireworks display on Wexford’s quay front on Thursday 19th October to announce 17 days of fantastic Fringe Festival events, which run in tandem with the famous Wexford Festival Opera, currently celebrating its 66th year.
At the launch of Wexford Fringe and this year’s guide, Madeleine Quirke, CEO, Wexford Chamber said that she was absolutely thrilled with the 2017 Wexford Fringe Guide. She thanked all those involved in the design and publication of the guide, saying that it was fun, colourful, full of exciting things to do and something different. She paid special tribute to Think Print, who have done an outstanding job on the design and print of this years guide, and to Katie O’Connor, Denise Farrell and Róisín O’Neill of Wexford Chamber who were instrumental in the co-ordination of the guide.
Madeleine commented, “The quotations that designer Aine Boland of Think Print has introduced throughout the guide are lovely and I particularly like the Children’s and Family events section where Aine quotes Walt Disney ‘That’s the Real Trouble with the World – Too Many People Grow up.’ ”
Madeleine also thanked Failte Ireland for their continued support, Green Acres for their generous sponsorship and for the excellent hospitality they had extended to guests at the launch, and guitarist Stephen Murphy who provided music on the night.
Karl Fitzpatrick, President, Wexford Chamber commented, “The Wexford Fringe Festival has become a tourist attraction in its own right, and is warmly welcomed by retailers and the hospitality sector, as it provides a unique opportunity to bridge the gap between the Summer and Christmas trade – while enhancing the town’s global reputation as a kaleidoscopic hub of cultural activity.”
“Wexford Chamber is delighted to be associated with this event, for many reasons, but most importantly because it affects each and every person right across the county. Suitable for all ages and tastes, the Fringe Festival is a very important event, not just from a cultural and social perspective but also from an economic perspective aswell. I would like you to mark your calendars from October 19th to November 5th and together let’s make this the best fringe festival yet.”
Given the honour of opening this year’s Fringe Festival was Mayor of Wexford, Cllr. Jim Moore. He said, “It is remarkable to think that in the 65 years of the festival in Wexford, how we have expanded and developed culturally the role of the opera and fringe festivals into the wider community.” He paid tribute to the people of Wexford, those in business and those in arts and crafts who have ensured that we are presenting our festival on a worldwide stage.
Jim congratulated Wexford Chamber for driving this project, making Wexford a destination for people with so many interests, embedding art in our community in all its forms and further enhancing our reputation.
Wexford Fringe takes place from October 19th to November 5th and Fringe guides are available from Wexford Chamber, the Tourist Office and many other venues around Wexford. The full programme of events can be found on www.wexfordfringe.ie
