We sure do miss you! While we are apart, our Artistic Producers, Zach Blackwood and Katy Dammers, will prep a new list each week to keep your ears and eyes full until we can be together again…

In Case You Missed It

Play | Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui and Shantala Shivalingappa | Fringe Festival 2011  A highlight of our 15th annual FringeArts Festival, Play is a work of dance by international choreographers and dancers Sidi Larbi and Shantala Shivalingappa. The piece examines the twofold concept of roleplaying in the context of theater and in a relationship between two people. The narrative is one of love and separation, transformed by the nuance of body language.

Release | Vijay Iyer and Bill Morrison | Fringe Festival 2010  Created by filmmaker Bill Morrison and composer Vijay Iyer, Release manipulates the archival footage of the release of Al Capone from Eastern State Penitentiary in 1930. The film loops a split-screen panoramic shot of the scene, reflecting on the nature of spectacle and media. 

Rome and Jewels | Rennie Harris | Fringe Festival 2001  In the production Rome and Jewels, Philadelphia native Lorenzo “Rennie” Harris reimagines Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet for the modern generation, incorporating elements of rap and hip-hop. Two warring gangs, the Monster Qs (Montagues) and the Caps (Capulets), engage in an Elizabethan rendering of gang culture– turf wars, dance battles, power and hierarchy– while Rome seams poetry with rhythmic beats. 

We 💙 Our Alumni

Seagull (Thinking of You) | Tina Satter / Half Straddle   Writer and director Tina Satter’s work, seen in last year’s Fringe Festival (Is This A Room), reimagines Chekhov’s iconic play The Seagull by drawing on the Russian dramatist’s compositions, letters and translations. Seagull (Thinking of you) is darkly absurd, a self-conscious rumination on love and failure, accompanied by a score of Russian folk metal by the Half Straddle ensemble. 

The Digital Face | Liz Magic Laser  Artist Liz Magic Laser last took the FringeArts stage during the 2013 Fringe Festival (The Living Newspaper: On Location) and her practice makes use of a variety of mediums including video, performance, sculpture,  and installation. Her work often dissects ideas of power and how it is performed, and in The Digital Face, Laser examines hand gestures in contemporary presidential State of the Union addresses through the speeches of Barack Obama and George H. W. Bush.

Streaming Now

International Market of Contemporary Circus Presentations (July 6-9) | Montréal Cirque Complétement  With its International Market of Contemporary Circus (MICC Market), TOHU, one of Canada’s leading circus theaters, is proud to have helped increase the visibility of so many circus artists and professionals over the years and to have created a key annual point of encounter for the circus world. This year, they have decided to take the MICC Market virtual!

Join North American, European, and other international presenters as they discover and connect with touring circus artists from around the world.

PillowTalk: Street Dance as Means of Social Change (July 10 @ 5PM) | Dr. Shamall Bell  National landmark and home to the nation’s longest-running dance festival, Jacob’s Pillow’s mission is to support dance creation, presentation, education, and preservation and to engage and deepen public appreciation and support for dance. Their curated series of PillowTalks are  entertaining and informative discussions with choreographers, writers, filmmakers, and cultural experts. 

This Friday, a visiting faculty member at Dartmouth Street Dance Activism Scholar, Dr. Shamell Bell will sit down to discuss street dance as an alternative strategy for radical social change.

The Let Out Virtual Release Party for New Album The Mess | Ill Doots   Ill Doots is a Philly based artist collective known not only for making quality music but creating experiences that feed the audience’s mind, body, and soul. Their engaging and theatrical live shows have gained a reputation for giving audiences unforgettable experiences of community, catharsis, and raw energy.  FringeArts audiences had the pleasure of jamming with the band during our 2020 New Years Eve Party. 

To celebrate the release of their new album, The Mess, the group is inviting their favorite artists and bands to bring the energy of their live shows to you with a virtual concert/release party.

We’ll see you for next week’s Curators’ Choice, but in the meantime, let us know what you thought of this week’s selections on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter!