Offbeat, Original Performances
If you visit the Montreal Fringe Festival website, you'll be greeted by a proudly pointed middle finger. It sums up the festival's attitude nicely, which is one of unbridled artistic freedom and self-expression. For this event, there is no jury to carefully select what makes the bill; anyone can apply and artists are selected by lottery. There is also no censorship so artists can perform whatever they desire, as eccentric as it may be. Finally, it caters to artists and festival-goers alike, keeping ticket prices low and with the entire ticket cost given to the performers. Can it get any more egalitarian that this?
With these principles in place, the festival undoubtedly offers a wildly creative and diverse selection of shows. There are theatrical, comedic and dance performances, as well as others that are too wacky to classify. This year, there will be about 700 performances in all, both indoor and out.
The Montreal Fringe Festival runs from June 12th to June 22nd. For show descriptions, schedules, and ticket information, visit www.montrealfringe.ca.