Warren Wonders: Head to The Warren for a festival-within-a-festival at the Brighton Fringe, and a new stage!

It’s that time of year again; venues springing up around every corner, the city filled with performers and punters, even stranger sights than usual on the streets – yes, Fringe is definitely in the air.
Yet to peruse any brochures? Don’t panic. One of the best things about Brighton in May is being able to take part in a festival without even trying. From productions on the seafront to comedy in your local pub, everything is there on your doorstep.
For eleven months of the year, St Peter’s Church North is a pretty green space in the centre of bustling London Road. Come May, it will be transformed into a fairy-lit delight, as Brighton’s Otherplace Brighton bring their much-loved pop-up The Warren back for another year.
If you’re wondering where to go first for Fringe hijinks, consider this ‘festival-within-a-festival’ a one-stop shop.
This year’s site features a total of four venues, a rooftop bar, kids area and stalls run by local traders, and will be the setting for more than 150 shows including raucous, hilarious Fringe sell-outs (and this week’s Latest 7 cover stars), Sh*tfaced Shakespeare.
In addition to the existing Otherplace Theatre Box – a clever repurposed red shipping container – there’s now a 250-seat, bowler-hat shaped Main House, and two brand new venues. Studio 2 is a 60-seater with a raised stage, while Studio 3 is a flexible 50-seater performance space. The four venues will host a programme that spans theatre, comedy, cabaret, dance, opera, spoken word, music and film.
Highlights include Sh*t-faced Shakespeare, who never fail to delight Fringe audiences with their irreverent, boozy take on the Bard’s greatest works; all four parts of the multi-award-winning film noir spoof Bane series; Knightmare Live – a theatrical take on the cult ‘80s kids TV programme, and a preview by cabaret superstar La Gateau Chocolat.
As visitors from previous years can attest, The Warren is the place to be post-show too, when you’ll often find yourself enjoying a pint next to the performers you’ve just watched, or bumping into friends for what turns out to be a big night out.
And if you have little ones, they’ll want to spend every weekend at The Den, The Warren’s dedicated family area, where there are a huge range of free activities and workshops every week, the perfect warm-up for family shows such as Klinka Lalek’s major hit of Brighton Fringe 2015, The Biggest Marionette Circus in the World.
What are you waiting for? Get out and grab a piece of the Fringe.
The Warren is open from Thursday 5 May – Sunday 5 June.
Book tickets online at www.otherplacebrighton.co.uk
Sh*t-faced Shakespeare
Thursday 19 May – Saturday 28 May 9.45pm (7.30pm on Sat 21 May). Tickets: £7 – £14
Douze
Monday 9 May – Thursday 12 May, 10pm. Tickets: £7 – £11
The Biggest Marionette Circus in the World Part II
Wednesday 11 May – Sunday 22 May, various times. Tickets: £8
Le Gateau Chocolat: Icons
Thursday 5 May – Saturday 7 May, 8.45pm (Thurs/Fri) and 9.15pm (Sat). Tickets: £9 – £12