A brief description of the Brighton Festival and Brighton Fringe. For general information or as reading practice for learners of English. I’ve included some descriptions of the language in use below to help develop vocabulary skills.

For anyone lucky enough to be in Brighton during May, both the Brighton Festival and Brighton Festival Fringe are almost upon us. Founded in 1966, these massive events span the whole city, running for most of of the month of May, and were previously combined to form the largest multi-form art festival in England. They divided to form 2 separate festivals in 2006, though both festivals cling to the largest festival claim.

Brighton Fringe

As a completely open access festival, anyone can put on an event in Brighton Fringe, with inclusion in a brochure and listing on the website. For a fee. All art forms are included, with no judgement criteria to limit involvement. It helps both new and established artists attract fresh audiences, press and promotion.

More than half of the talent involved in Brighton Fringe is home-grown, from Brighton and Hove. In 2012 it included 743 individual events, 171 free events, and 3622 performances spread over 193 venues. The numbers for 2013 are expected to be much higher! It includes tons of free events, as well as affordable ticketed ones. Check out the specifics of what’s on here.

Brighton Festival

The difference between Brighton Festival and Brighton Fringe is the open-access element. Brighton Festival is a curated event, so the performances and events involved are all commissioned and supported by the festival organisers. There is a lot of overlap between the sort of events you will see at Brighton Festival and Brighton Fringe, but the Brighton Festival ones have the potential to be larger. For instance, the Brighton Festival opens with the Children’s Parade on May 4th, a huge event where the children of local schools march through town with a host of extravagant floats.

Other events you can expect to see at both events include theatre, film screenings, dance, art, stand-up comedy, opera and kids events in both indoor and outdoor venues, day and night, throughout the city. Check out more Brighton Festival events here.

Example Vocabulary Explanations

 

almost upon us – almost here, used to say something is happening soon, or will come soon.

founded – started or originated.

span the whole city – to span is to cover, or spread across, so this means it stretches across the city.

cling – hold onto.

open access – when access is open, anyone can gain entry.

inclusion – the noun form of include, to be made a part of.

judgement criteria – the items/values that something will be judged on.

home-grown – something that is locally produced.

curated – to curate is to care for, but we use it to refer to a person responsible for  locations and events. Most commonly a curator organises exhibitions, for instance ina  museum.

commissioned – something that is officially requested.

potential – possibility

extravagant floats – extravagant is something very elaborate and fancy. A float is usually a large handmade display in a parade.