Cincy Fringe Blog

Well, we did it. 31 shows in 11 days.

I'm not completely sure what I'm going to do with myself tomorrow.... sleeping in will be a part of it for sure, to recover from teh Finale Party that begins in about 60 minutes.

This was far more fun that I thought it would be. I'm not going to commit doing this for next year yet. 

However, I will be reserving this week off from work.

Cheers. On to the party.

I'm trying to decide whether I ought to feel embarrassed for just saying the words "Assholes and Aureoles" to a gentle elderly couple who wandered into New Stage looking for a show.

(They were looking for something else)
(I think they were a little bit confused by my response to their question)
(Would I have so enthusiastically said "Asshole" to that lady in any other context?)
(Probably not. Fringe is cool)
(And she didn't get mad)
(It's been an awesome twelve days, thanks everybody)

I just want everyone out there in Fringe land to know that my socks have been rocked. This has been an incredible festival in so many ways. I'm thrilled with the caliber of work this year. I haven't seen a bad show, nor have I really talked about anyone else seeing a bad one. It's been a great time, and I hope that everyone else is having as much fun. And oh yeah, we broke goal last night with 37 more performances to go. This is the earliest yet!

There is something about the Fringe Festival that is magic. You feel it balls to bones. It's a little ethereal.

But there is a more tangible magic. This is the magic of strange shit appearing on my desk. Today this included half of a tub of cold mashed potatoes, and an 8" serrated blade knife.

Where do these items come from? Who can say?
The Fringe giveth and the Fringe taketh away.

Berma-shave,

MD Eric

This thing is flying by at light speed. Damn.

Last night marked the halfway point for this year's Festival...at least in number of days. The beauty of the Fringe, however, is that we have a huge number of shows left...hopefully I'll get to see a couple.

In case you missed it, on the opening night of shows WLWT was at the Fringe Bar Series to cover the Festival. Check out their online story.

Randy Waterhous figured out another way to see all of the shows! Here's the schedule . . . if you DARE!

Wed 5/27 Cinema Fantastique, 7:30 PM
Wed 5/27 KAZ/m, 8:45 PM

Thurs 5/28 Cemetery Golf, 7:00 PM
Thurs 5/28 Brother Bailey's Pageant, 8:30 PM
Thurs 5/28 The Terrorism of Everyday Life, 9:45 PM

Fri 5/29 Guns and Chickens, 7:00 PM
Fri 5/29 Painted, 8:15 PM
Fri 5/29 It Might Be Okay, 9:30 PM

Sat 5/30 The Gayer Show, 2:00 PM
Sat 5/30 The 4 Food Groups, 4:00 PM
Sat 5/30 Free At Last . . . , 7:00 PM

Sun 5/31 Gravesongs, 2:00 PM
Sun 5/31 No Stranger Than Home, 3:15 PM

Last night the trek through 31 shows started with A Perfectly Wonderful Evening.

They started the evening with massive sound problems. Reminder: if you are looking for perfect production values from a play, Fringe is probably not the best place to search.

so here I stand at 950pm in the Underground at the beginning of the Fringe Kick Off Party and I find myself hoping already that Les brought at LEAST a case of those hangover patches he was sporting last year!!!!!

woooohoooo! It's Fringe!!!!!!!!!!!

Brian Wheeler
volunteer manager
Cincinnati Fringe Festival

Who knows where words come from? Here's one that's been getting a lot of usage around Fringe HQ lately.

BORNTRAGER
born-TRAY-ger
(verb, -ed, -ing)
from the Latin "duggles borntraegorus"

def:To call the box office and trick Alex into thinking you're a 90-year-old woman with a very long list of highly involved questions about Fringe; to possess a phone voice that is very believably that of a 90-year-old woman; to be a righteous production manager that everybody loves to have around.

Origin:

Hey everybody. Sadie here, serving as Artist Liaison for this year's Fringe. This is my first year on festival staff, but lemme tell ya, The Cincinnati Fringe Festival literally changed the course of my life.

We are but a mere three (say it with a rolling 'r') days away from the Official CityBeat Fringe Festival Kick-Off Party...and thereby the start of the 2009 Cincinnati Fringe Festival. Oh yeah.

Venues are being loaded in as I type - most are already done. Rock on, Doug.

Volunteer slots are filling up fast...but there is still time to help. Thank you, Brain, Bridget, Matt (your software is...well, cool) and Jay!

Passes and tickets are selling. You know. You've already talked to Alex.

One addition to the 6th Annual Cincinnati Fringe Festival are nightly newscasts from your lovely Channel Fringe anchors, Megan Venzin and Sadie Bowman. Though Megan and Sadie will be Segwaying through the streets in pursuit of news, we need your help to get the hottest stories. We can't be everywhere at once, and Segways only get to 12.5 mph, so please send ANY interesting/funny/ridonkulous happenings to actionnewstipline@knowtheatre.com for a chance to see this content included in our nightly newscasts!

Can anyone confirm or deny any of the following rumors heard "on the street?"

1. CincyFringe is looking for nude equine dancers.
2. Trashy Pam will be on sale nightly at the Bar Series. (If you don't know Trashy Pam, then, ah, just one bit of advice: go slowly and only touch her with your lips. Also, Pam does go both ways: she goes down and is known to come right back up again.)
3. Water Boarding is an event in the Fringe Olympics.
4. Chris Finney is the 2009 Fringe Urinal Cake Sponsor.