So your spare room is just sitting there, empty. Are you looking for some inspiration for what to do with it? You could fill it with junk from that hobby you’ll never revisit.

Or you could use it to host an amazing new housemate. Every year Adelaide Fringe attracts thousands of artists from across the country and globe to South Australia to participate in the southern hemisphere’s biggest arts festival. 

Affordable accomodation is one of the major factors artists consider in deciding whether to attend Adelaide Fringe, and assessing the viability of their season. 

both emerging and established artists that use Adelaide Fringe as a testing ground for new and experimental works (one of the things that makes Fringe so good).Participating in the season can be more of an investment in the future than an immediate pay off.  As a result, many artists depend on the community to rent, share or offer a spare room in their house for Adelaide Fringe. 

Adelaide Fringe lover turned Fringe artist Libby Parker has hosted artists for years.
“We hosted Damien Warren-Smith (who is better known as Garry Starr) at our place during 2016 and 2019 Adelaide Fringe and, I think the best bit about hosting an artist apart from making a new friend, is there's so much you can learn from artists” said Libby. 

“Having Damien in our house inspired me to take my own performance work further and also taught me a lot about the life of a touring artist. It was great to hang out with an artist out in the Fringe hubs because you get to meet so many other artists, which makes for some extremely fun times, and it was also really cool for our kids to get to know an international touring artist so they can learn more about the biz. Also, because Garry Starr is a celebrity dramaturg superstar, we were famous by association for a few weeks.” 

Adelaide local Clive Needham who has previously registered with Adelaide Fringe to host artists said he really enjoyed the experience. “We love interacting with people younger than us and from diverse backgrounds, they have all been flamboyant characters which has been fun.”

“The artists we’ve hosted have been quite different from one another, but definitely interesting for us. It has given us an insight into the highs and lows that performers experience while their shows are on, as well as the lead-up to ‘opening night’. 

We’ve enjoyed some downtime with our guests, when they just needed a sounding board for the variety of issues which they may be facing. Quite often, they just like to have some privacy in a safe environment or else join us for a quiet drink with our friends or family. All in all, it is a reciprocating experience for us and them.”

If making a new best friend is something you might be open to, you should think about opening up your home to an Adelaide Fringe artist. 

Anyone considering hosting an artist during fringe can list their spare room or space here to be added to the Adelaide Fringe artist accommodation directory.