Fresh, fun and fringy. Close out your summer festival binge with the Fringe.
Now in its third year, the Milwaukee Fringe Festival brings to you a lineup of more than 20 sets to experience on the weekend of Aug. 25 and 26 at the Marcus Center for the Performing Arts (929 N. Water St.), showcasing some of the finest alternative artists, musicians and performers from Milwaukee and elsewhere.
What’s so special about this year’s Fringe Festival? Show-goers will have access to new, original work, unlike any that’s been part of this summer season. The Fringe comes to you as a celebration of the human experience—reconnecting you with the subtleties of life that often go unnoticed. Through the media of dance, theater, music, singing and painting, celebrants can take part in all corners and depths of expression. It’s raw, it’s abstract, it’s our narrative. And, in the words of Brian Nau, visual artist featured in this year’s lineup, “It’s not just another beer-swig festival.”
Nau, contributing for the third year in a row, finds the Fringe to be an ever-growing event where people come together to enjoy and find opportunities to access those subtleties of life. “This is not just an event to grab a beer, look at stuff and walk away. The fest continues to offer a chance for people to experience deeper parts of themselves and others. There’s a consciousness developing around the Fringe, and it will evolve and grow to become the most fun festival in the city,” he says. Nau intends to host a live painting at this year’s fest, inviting participants to contribute their ideas and brushstrokes to a collaborative work that captures human interconnectivity and the spirit of the Fringe.
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The Fringe perpetuates a rooted tradition in Milwaukee for alternative art meant to bring audiences fresh takes on a variety of themes. Come see the legendary Elizabeth Fuller and Conrad Bishop, founders of the experimental Theatre X and now performing as Independent Eye. Fuller will perform the one-woman show Survival, a commentary written by Bishop on surviving the Donald Trump era. Two other Theatre X veterans will be on hand. Flora Coker directs John Schneider (accompanied by Mrs. Fun—pianist Connie Grauer) in a new take on songs by Lorenz Hart and Richard Rodgers, such as “My Funny Valentine,” that confronts challenges faced by the LGBTQ community in both the past and the present.
A Festival of Fringy Fun
Painting, theater… What else will be part of this year’s Fringe?
Mezclando Dance and Tamarind Tribal Belly Dance will bring unique cultural flare to the outdoor stage. Indoors, the Angry Men Puppet Show present a humorous, bawdy act intended for adults only. Pius XI High School brings home the play they took to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival—the grandma of fringe festivals internationally. Performance artist Chad Piechocki returns in an original collaboration with DIY Chamber Music. Playwright Michael Lucchesi returns with a new play reading. Present Music Underground is a new Fringe venture by Milwaukee’s venerable New Music group. Chicago performance artist Tyler Anthony Smith brings his extremely funny drag performance. Contemporary dance company SueMo: A Dance Experience returns with all new work. Catey Ott Dance Collective and Lake Arts Dance bring modern dance and ballet. Aperi Animam returns with haunting choral singing. How’s that for starters?
On Sunday, the bands A Western Edge, 4th Home and Lifetime Achievement Award will perform on the outdoor Peck Pavilion. You’ll find the unique interactive artist Anja Notanja along the riverside near Houdini Magic. Keep your eyes peeled for human statue Alice Wilson; with more than 14 years of theater and modeling experience, Wilson returns to the Fringe once more to wow, impress and startle passersby with stunning makeup and costuming… if you can spot her!
The Milwaukee Fringe Festival is sponsored by the Marcus Center, Wisconsin Board of Tourism, Wisconsin Arts Board, Nice Plays and many others. Tickets for the indoor shows will be available for purchase at the festival. Prices are $15 for a single-show ticket; $30 for an all-inclusive day pass; and $45 for the all-inclusive two-day festival pass.
For more information, visit mkefringe.com.
