Volunteer

Volunteering in the box office

You’ll be greeting patrons, selling tickets to shows, and alerting your Venue Manager if you have any concerns about emergencies or patron complaints.  Box office shifts tend to involve brief times of busy and periods of calm.  Usually there will be two volunteers at one station, and during slow times you can take turns going for a break or watching a show.  Sometimes festival staff will enlist your help with miscellaneous tasks, and just being there to ensure shows aren’t disrupted and available in case we need extra help is a huge relief for us!  We encourage you to bring a silent activity like a book for when you are minding the venue during a show.

Basic math skills and a friendly demeanour are a huge plus.  It’s a relatively easy job and you will be supported by a team. Volunteer orientation sessions will be scheduled just prior to the festival to go over some basic info and answer your questions.

Be a billet

Touring artists will be coming to Nanaimo just for the Fringe, and we’d really like to help make them feel at home.  If you have any space in your home to host one of the festival artists, we would love to hear from you! Our greatest need is billet homes located within walking or cycling distance of downtown.

Our billeting questionnaire helps us determine if one of our artists would be a good match for your home.  Submitting this form is not a commitment.  We will call to discuss billeting and answer your questions before connecting you with a guest artist.  It’s a great way to make a new friend, and we’ll make sure you get to see plenty of festival shows for free.

Volunteering at Fringe Hub

The Fringe Hub is the place for artists and audiences to meet.  This is our clubhouse/town square/home base between and after shows.  There’s no cover and lots of entertainment.

Festival staff will be in and out of the Hub, but we want to be sure somebody’s there holding down the fort, engaging with patrons and answering questions (if they’re interested in knowing more about Fringe or looking for a friendly face to chat with).  We may enlist your help with miscellaneous tasks but mostly you’ll just be relaxing and being present.  Experience with sound equipment is a plus in the event of any technical difficulties.

Performing:  Our Hub stage is open to musicians, poets, comedians, or pretty much anything you can throw at us.  Help us make the Fringe special by sharing with us whatever it is you love to do.