Early Thoughts on “The Big Kahuna”

After picking up a copy of the 2008 Fringe program over the weekend, I’ll be darned if it isn’t already marked up with post-its and incoherent scribbles. The 27th edition of the festival, “Fringe”-less in its name The Big Kahuna, begins on August 14 – just over a week away. As such, my personal countdown to my favourite time of year in Edmonton has begun.

The electronic ticketing system introduced last year to a boon of complaints remains, with the $2 additional fee that supports the still undefined “Box Office operating costs” left intact. While no tickets will again be sold at the venues themselves, Bring Your Own Venues (more commonly known as BYOVs), have been issued a grace this year, as tickets will only be available at the venue door when the clock hits two hours prior to showtime. Given the location of some of the peripheral venues in Old Strathcona, and the addition of New City, a lounge/bar located in Downtown Edmonton as a BYOV this year, it makes geographic sense for venue distribution of tickets. The obvious question, of course, is why a non-Old Strathcona venue was permitted to be a BYOV at all? As for the other suggestions collected in the January Town Hall meeting I attended – none appear to have been implemented, or at least can be gathered from the program itself (I wonder if Kenneth Brown’s veiled threat of producing his “gems” elsewhere if changes aren’t made will stick with his proposed plan to present his war trilogy over the next three years?).

New to the festival this year is the Fringe Midway – an extension of the $2 optical illusion sideshows of Fringes past. Quick and dirty serials, shorts, and this year’s Weed Woman sideshow are an addition great on paper at least – quick treats for those looking for a brief show or those short on cash but still looking for something other than outdoor buskers or antics.

My peripheral glance at the program so far has yielded a number of “repeat offenders”, so to speak. TJ Dawe, for example, is producing/directing/starring in/wrote five shows on tap this year. Daniel McIvor, whose A Beautiful View (at Theatre Network) was loved by the media last year, has three plays up at the festival.

Ones to bank on, based on name-recognition and critical favourites:

• Teatro la Quindicina’s return to the summer festival – Happy Toes;
• anything TJ Dawe is involved in (his own Maxim & Cosmo, Keir Cutler’s annual Shakespearean tirade, one-man-everything Charles Ross’ show);
• musical marvel Rainer Hersch; and
• Fringe darling Jon Stewart’s edgy new work.

I succumbed to the great deal of the Frequent Fringer pass (which allows me to bypass the aforementioned $2 Box Office fee), but it also means I’ve saddled myself for 10 shows in 6 days because of a late-August sojourn to Vancouver.

It will be an intense ride, but I’m ready for it. 9 days and counting…