Fundy Fringe Fest
Saint John can expect a week of unexpected and uncensored theatre, as Fundy Fringe Fest gets underway.
Fringe Fest will see the fringe’s of Saint John’s art world brought to the forefront, with theatre, dance, film, music and more.
Festival director Sarah Rankin says the community can expect a week full of excitement.
“The Saint John Community is going to get an insane amount of really creative, out-there, wacky work that they will never ever see again possibly. It’s just a great way to end the summer,” she said.
“It’s going to be a really great way for Saint John to come together and basically do a gallery hop of art.”
There are events and shows happened from Monday to Saturday.
Shows are all $10, or you can buy a festival pass, says Rankin, which gets you admission to 8 shows for $60.
Rankin says artists participating get to experience what it’s like to put on a professional show without all the costs.
“Because we’re not a juried festival, and we don’t curate, the artist freedom of the artist is at its greatest, and so they can really try pretty much anything they want in a low risk environment, because it’s not costing them a lot to put the show on,” she said.
This is the seventh year of Fundy Fringe, and Rankin’s sixth as festival director.
The idea behind Fringe is to explore stories and celebrate artists that exist on the edges, and give them a chance in the spotlight, says Rankin.
“Innovative performers who just haven’t been given the chance yet to push themselves to a professional level, and so they’re on the fringe of our own artistic society in that way, and they’re telling the stories of individuals who are on the fringes as well.”
Rankin says the festival takes care of all the hard stuff, like setting up venues and teching the shows. The rest is left to the artists.
“It becomes almost an incubator of arts, where they can throw something at the wall that maybe isn’t your typical theatre fare, maybe isn’t a topic that isn’t often brought up in theatre, like poverty, like addiction,” she said.
She says Fringe is also unique in that artists get to keep all of their ticket sales.
“100 per cent of the ticket sales go right back to the performing artist that you’re seeing. That $10 goes right into their pocket,” she said.
She says the festival raises funds in other ways, such as their button campaign, through program sales, and via donations.
She says there are still opportunities for people to get involved and volunteer.
“There’s always opportunities for everybody to participate at the Fringe, be it on stage or off stage.”
Fringe Fest kicks off Monday with a preview night at 9 PM, which Rankin says gives a sneak peak into what artists will be performing.
“If people are unsure of what they want to catch at the festival, they should really come to our Big Tease night,” said Rankin.
As well, Rankin says there are a number of free activities happening around the city, including an improv night on Friday, a movie night, a dance party on Saturday.
A full list of events and shows can be found online.
