On the Fringe: Nanaimo Fringe Fest Review

For two weeks in the middle of August, the arts scene in Nanaimo breathed and pulsed with the fourth annual Fringe, an independent theatre festival, which brought together international and local artists, musicians, and theatre enthusiasts. With eight plays, 48 shows and 30 non-theatre performances in three venues, the festival attracted over 1000 visitors, marking 32% increase in attendance since 2013. The plays presented a wide spectrum of theatre genres, ranging from stand-up comedy and storytelling pieces to intense sci-fi or psychological dramas. I saw 6 out of the 8 plays and talked with the festival producer Chelsee Damen.

Fringe Mini Reviews

“Danny & the Deep Blue Sea”cornered the audience’s emotions with brilliant, nerve-draining performances of beginning actors Carly Neigum and Raymond Knight, who portrayed a duo of social outcasts in the deep muddy waters of Bronx. An ambitious and deeply moving metaphorical love story of two broken souls where violence and masochism is the only natural response to the world,

resolves in a cathartic scene that turned all aggression into hope of forgiveness and understanding.

The true story of “Christmas in Bakersfield”, on the other hand, amused the crowds with sassy but agreeable humor of California-based actor Les Kurkendaal, whose epic monologue about a surprise confrontation with his boyfriend’s conservative Caucasian family promises that “White Christmas ain’t gonna happen,” mostly because Les is black.

During “StickMan”, a witty yet slightly forced stand-up wordplay, Welsh comedian Noel James seemded to refuse to let the crowd go until they provide a satisfactory level of laughter decibels. His repeated requests to laugh harder may have very well been a meta part of the show, consisting of nonetheless engaging drug jokes or celebrity impressions, but james’s demands on the small late night group of audiences outweighed the actual joy we could have taken from the whole experience.

“The Suckerpunch” brought tense and dramatic outlook into the near future where technology allows us to travel 5 seconds back in time, and erase the mistakes we make or regrets we have. The breathtaking performance of Vancouver-based actor and playwright Brent Hirose masterfully balanced what could have been an overwhelmingly pessimistic journey to a sterile and artificial world of shallow joy. Hirose’s ability to switch back and forth between four different characters and portray each of them with equal persuasive energy was one of the highlights of the whole festival.

The Best of Fest award based on audience votes, however, went to the sharp romantic comedy “Square – A Stage Pornography”, in which two old grade school acquaintances engage in an explosive conversation to discover each other and uncover gradually more and more skin. There was no time to be shocked or even distracted by the actors Gary Alfred and Samantha Pawliuk’s complete nudity, as the dense, pun-heavy dialogue draws almost all attention to itself and thus challenging us to suspense our inhibitions and really listen what these two twenty-somethings have to say.

A personal gem of mine, “MUSE” offered a peek into the psyche of Grace, a mental institution patient with a weakness for cellos, spontaneous melodies and a little bit of mischief. Her neurological condition forbids her to communicate clearly with the outside world, but all the more vivid and musical her life is on the inside. With realistic and captivating performance of actress Natalia Hautala, brilliantly interacting with the audience as part of her imaginary escape world, the story brings a critical perspective on the heathcare system in which psychiatric patients are submitted to harsh and insensitive treatment by indifferent authorities.

At the Hub with Chelsee Damen

Nanaimo Fringe producer Chelsee Damen was probably the busiest person in town during the two weeks of the festival. Her stories about losing her toothbrush at one of the venues, or not sleeping in a few weeks only illustrate the rare moments when she couldn’t be seen running back and forth between The Museum and Harbour city theatre Venues, or videotaping Hub concerts at The Vault Café.

Did the Fringe surprise you in any way this year?

The outpouring of support and enthusiasm this year went well beyond what we’ve experienced in the past. There was truly a sense that we have put down some roots and gotten connected with the community. I was delightfully overwhelmed by media and public inquiries in the weeks leading up to the festival. And though this had tipped me off we were going to get a great crowd this year, it was still surprising to look out over a full house at the preview show and have it sink in that the event we have prepared all year for has arrived and all these eager faces have turned up to be a part of it. Fringe is all about bringing the community together, and in the theatre that night I was elated to see that the vision we started with 4 years ago is taking shape.

What was the biggest challenge for you and the volunteer crew?

In 8 days we had: -48 plays -over 30 performances in the hub -preview show -best of fest award -design jam What I find challenging is not being able to be everywhere at once. Thankfully, we have incredible staff and a big team of keen volunteers, so I know all my teammates are always looking after things all around the festival. With so much going on at various locations I can only ever experience a part of it. The volunteers and staff have the tough job of sticking to a tight schedule and careful coordination. It’s an exciting and sort of insane experience, and I feel like the people who help make fringe happen are family.

How would you summarize your whole experience this year?

There’s nothing like seeing a play or two and then heading over to the cafe to talk about the plays with a big bunch of friends and neighbors, and the performers themselves. Walking through downtown I was always running into people just coming from or going to a show, or discussing the festival lineup. For two weeks we were all sharing something. It was exhilerating and strange, and we were all in it together.

What is the plan for next year? will you stay in your position of festival producer?

I plan to produce the fringe next year. I helped create the event in 2011 and have been deeply invested in it. I hope to always participate in Nanaimo Fringe in some capacity. Fringe is a project I am passionate about and I aim to share that more as we develop. I would love to see my role eventually become a partnership with one or two other people. Partly because I aspire to have room in my life for other projects, and also because I think it would add new dimensions to fringe planning. Collaboration is a value we have worked on building in our organization over the past year, and one I see us continuing to focus on in coming years. None of this would have come about without a village and I imagine that village growing. Our board of directors, staff, volunteers, relationships with other community groups, and engagement with the public have made so much possible. As we grow, I want that engagement and communication to grow also.

Check out the Fring Fest photogallery.

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