Fringe Fort Myers: Everything you need to know about Southwest Florida’s first fringe fest
You never know what you’ll see onstage at a fringe festival. That’s why Frank Blocker loves them.
“Everybody’s doing something that pushes different theatrical boundaries, and it’s wonderful,” Blocker says. “That’s all you’re going to see, pretty much, is things you’ve never seen before.”
Now Fort Myers gets one of those wild, unpredictable fests of its own. Nine different acts, including Blocker, will perform on four stages over four days at the new Fringe Fort Myers.
The event is a longtime coming, says organizer Bill Taylor. He originally tried staging it in 2020, but the pandemic happened and he canceled Fringe Fort Myers about a month before it was set to start.
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“We had everything planned,” Taylor says. “Everything was ready to go. It was all down to final preparations.
“And then, of course, the rug got pulled out.”
Taylor was disappointed, he admits. But he was determined to bring Fringe Fort Myers back − eventually.
“I did it once,” he says, “and I can do it again.”
Here’s everything you need to know about Fringe Fort Myers, from tickets and locations to the acts you’ll see onstage:
What is a fringe festival?
Fringe festivals are a worldwide phenomenon inspired by the long-running Edinburgh Fringe Festival in Scotland (also known simply as The Fringe).
That sprawling, three-week performing-arts festival draws theater troupes, comedians, dancers and other performers from all over the word for more than 59,000 performances of original work in more than 300 venues.
Fringe festivals are best-known for their experimental, underground and cutting-edge performers. But just about anything goes, Taylor says, including theater, dance, puppetry and storytelling.
Fringe festivals aren’t regulated by any one organization, according to the U.S. Association of Fringe Festivals. But they’re generally committed to open expression, original works, bare-bones production and cheap tickets.
When and where is Fringe Fort Myers?
Everything kicks off Thursday, June 1, with a preview show in the Alliance for the Arts' Foulds Theatre. Each act gets three minutes to “pitch” their show to the audience.
Then the nine acts perform Thursday night through Sunday, June 1-4 at the Alliance and the neighboring Broadway Palm dinner theater.
How much are tickets for Fringe Fort Myers?
Tickets are $12 per show, plus a $3 fee. All of that $12 goes straight to the performers, Taylor says. The fee goes to Fringe Fort Myers.
Two ticket packages are also available: Three shows for $42 or six shows for $78. All shows are included except the Carousel of Burlesque (no discounts available for that one).
You can also win free tickets by competing in the festival’s Ministry of Silly Walks competition at 6 p.m. Friday, June 2, on the Alliance for the Arts sidewalk near McGregor Boulevard. It’s free to participate.
Taylor’s got the idea from one of comedy troupe Monty Python’s most famous sketches. For the contest, people will demonstrate their silliest walks and compete for two tickets.
The contest has nothing to do with fringe-fest tradition. “It’s just something weird I pulled out of my hat,” Taylor says and laughs. “I love Monty Python!”
What can you expect at Fringe Fort Myers?
That’s the great thing about fringe festivals, Taylor says. You never know what to expect.
Anything goes.
“It covers the whole gamut of types of performances,” Taylor says. “Theater, dance, stand-up comedy. We’ve got burlesque. We’ve got flamenco dancing. Just all kinds of different stuff.”
Each act will perform three times over the course of the four-day festival, and most performances are one hour or less. So you can see every single act if you want.
“That’s kind of the whole point of Fringe, to see shows you’ve never seen before,” Taylor says. “Get outside of your comfort zone a little bit and try new things.”
How were the performers chosen?
As per fringe tradition, Fringe Fort Myers allowed anyone to apply to perform – no matter how unusual or unorthodox. Then all nine acts were randomly chosen by pulling their names out of a hat.
Three hats, actually: One for local acts, one for state and one for national.
“We drew three groups out of each one of those hats, randomly,” Taylor says. “And that’s how we got our schedule of shows.”
In all, they got 35 submissions and chose nine of them for the inaugural Fringe Fort Myers.
Who will be performing and when?
Many of the performers are fringe veterans. Blocker’s “Southern Gothic Novel,” for example, has appeared at the New York International Fringe Festival and others.
Here’s a look at all the shows happening Thursday through Sunday, June 1-4:
FOULDS THEATRE AT THE ALLIANCE FOR THE ARTS
Future Perfect (7:30 p.m. Thursday, 8:30 p.m. Saturday and 4 p.m. Sunday): A Fort Myers-based modern dance show exploring “the ideas of temporality, choices and expectations” and the journey to a better future. Suitable for all ages.
Flamencodanza (7 p.m. Friday, 5:30 p.m. Saturday and 1 p.m. Sunday): The Madrid, Spain act performs contemporary flamenco dancing accompanied by guitar. Suitable for all ages.
The Carousel of Burlesque: History of Burlesque in the U.S.(8:30 p.m. Friday, 7 p.m. Saturday and 2:30 p.m. Sunday): Naples burlesque dancers shake, shimmy and (yes) strip their way through the history of burlesque dancing. They’ll be following the art form from “the Victorian vixens to the promiscuous present.” Contains nudity. Recommended for ages 18 and up.
BROADWAY PALM'S OFF BROADWAY PALM THEATRE
Tiny Theatre’s “The Hunt for Milo Gatto” (7:30 p.m. Thursday, 8:30 p.m. Saturday, 4 p.m. Sunday): Alabama theater duo Tiny Theatre returns to their former Fort Myers home for this goofy original short play. Husband and wife Brendan Powers and Rachel Burttram play all the roles. The story: “When calamity befalls a prominent member of the city, Detectives Lila Bockhorn and Harrison Locke are eager to track down one Milo Gatto. But hurdles hit fresh out of the gate and only the audience can keep the investigation alive by solving a variety of word games and puzzles.” Suitable for all ages.
“Cold Feet: A Comedy Extravaganza” (8:30 p.m. Friday, 7 p.m. Saturday, 2:30 p.m. Sunday): Three Miami comedians perform this comedy show that debuted in New York City in February. Featuring original comedy music, stand-up and sketches. Contains adult language and content. Recommended for ages 18 and older.
“Southern Gothic Novel” (7 p.m. Friday, 5:30 p.m. Saturday and 1 p.m. Sunday): Naples actor Frank Blocker wrote and performs this one-man comedic show that he describes as “a cinematic novel in the form of a play done by one person.” The plot: “There are 5,218 people living in Aberdeen, Mississippi. This is the story of 17 of them. And the men that caused all of the trouble.” Rated PG-13 due to adult language.
ALLIANCE FOR THE ARTS CLASSROOMS
“The Light Bringer” (7:30 p.m. Thursday, 5:30 p.m. Saturday and 1 p.m. Sunday): Tampa’s Laila Lee wrote and performs this “true life storytelling show” about a Palestinian immigrant and her family who find more freedom in the US than expected. In the one-woman show, Lee recounts growing up Muslim in the American South and discovering her own place in the world. Rated PG-13 for adult language.
“Francine Wolf: Please Don’t Tell My Kids” (7 p.m. Friday, 4 p.m. Saturday and 2:30 p.m. Sunday): Largo actor Francine Wolf performs this one-woman show filled with “regrettably true autobiographical tales, from artistic adventures to an historic court battle.” Contains adult language. Recommended for ages 18 and older.
“Paco Erhard: Worst. German. Ever.” (8:30 p.m. Friday, 7 p.m. Saturday, 4 p.m. Sunday): German comedian Paco Erhard performs an original stand-up show that covers everything from nationalism to his new six-month goal: Fixing America. Contains adult language and content. Recommended for ages 18 and older.
How can you preview the shows?
Fringe Fort Myers kicks off at 5 p.m. Thursday, June 1, with the “Flamingle with the Artists” reception in the Alliance for the Arts gallery. That's followed by the 6:30 p.m. preview show in the nearby Foulds Theatre.
Each performer gets three minutes to sell their show to the audience. How they do that is up to them.
“They can perform a scene from their show, talk about the show or just burp for three minutes,” Taylor said in a news release for Fringe Fort Myers. “Whatever they think will get you to buy a ticket!”
Tickets for the preview show are $5.
What else is happening?
An outdoor stage will feature live music every day starting Friday night on the north grounds of the Alliance for the Arts.
There’s also a Kids Fringe festival featuring the free Family ArtLab, a family-friendly Alice in Wonderland interactive show and outdoor performances with circus aerialists and acrobats from Citrus Circus.
If you’re hungry, food trucks will be there Friday through Sunday. And Arts & Eats Café will also be open in the Alliance’s Edwards Building.
Is this going to be an annual thing?
Definitely, Taylor says.
He started small this year with just nine acts over four days, but he plans to keep growing it every year after that. The Orlando International Fringe Theatre Festival, by comparison, features about 850 shows over two full weeks.
“This year, I just want to get it off the ground and figure out where we’re at,” Taylor says. "And then start expanding."
Where can you learn more?
For more information on Fringe Fort Myers, call 939-2787 or visit artinlee.org/fringe, twitter.com/fortfringe or Facebook (search “Fringe Fort Myers”).
— Connect with this reporter: Charles Runnells is an arts and entertainment reporter for The News-Press and the Naples Daily News. For news tips or other entertainment-related matters, call him at 239-335-0368 (for tickets to shows, call the venue) or email him at crunnells@gannett.com. You can also connect with him on Facebook (facebook.com/charles.runnells.7), Twitter (@charlesrunnells) and Instagram (@crunnells1).
This article originally appeared on Fort Myers News-Press: Fringe Fort Myers: What to know about tickets, the shows and more
