Inaugural Tauranga Fringe Village brings together community and art forms

The Historic Village was a flurry of creativity, people and wonder as a variety of art forms came together.

The Tauranga Fringe Village todayincluded theatre, performance art, installation, visual art, music, market stalls, busking, fashion and comedy.

The Incubator Creative Hub worked alongside Tauranga Arts Festival, Baycourt and the Historic Village to bring Tauranga's first Fringe Village today.

Incubator director Simone Anderson said the day had "exceeded our wildest expectations".

"It's great to see so many people here."

She said it was great working collectively with so many different art forms as they all brought a different demographic of people.

"It's cool to see the village alive like this too."

Anderson said the Fringe Village was a great event because it involved so many different art forms.

Stilt walkers at the Tauranga Fringe Village. Photo / George Novak

She said it was all about grass roots and people could interact with the art forms.

The chapel featured the Fringe of the Fringe – an array of 10 underground alternative bands from New Zealand.

There was a youth stage which included The Nukes performing with children.

The day also included indie films, street performers, exhibitions, a zine library, fashion flash mobs, Gourmet Night Markets food stalls and street poets.

The Village hall was transformed into a pop-up theatre by Baycourt Community and Arts Centre with back-to-back theatre and stage performances.

Charlotte Winter, 6, said she enjoyed one of the fashion shows she saw because "all the dresses were beautiful".

Ellie McMichael, 6, said she had enjoyed listening to one of the bands performing, and that they had visited her school.

The girls described these events as they enjoyed an ice cream in the warm, sunny weather.

(From left) Asher McMichael, 4, Leon Winter, 5, Charlotte Winter, 6, and Ellie McMichael, 6, cool down with ice creams. Photo / George Novak

Wayne and Raewyn Myhill said the event had a great atmosphere and was "pretty chilled out".

They said it was nice to see all the people's crafts and there were good displays.

This event was supported by the Tauranga Arts Festival, the Tauranga City Council Events and the Historic Village.