Tonight’s the Night!

Guess what? It’s September. September 7 to be exact. And tonight is Opening Night! We’ve been running around like chickens with our heads cut off getting ready! And we have a few final surprises for you…

Gina Bastone, famed clown and mask maker, best known for her role in Cirque du Soliel and for being one of the powers behind the Number 14, will be putting of a little ditty will be onstage. Rumour has it that some sort of cake is involved.

And David C. Jones wrote a sketch called A Night At The Theatre. See Diane Brown, Jack Paterson, Camyar Chai, Max Reimer, and others perform this eyebrow raising bit.

The Chong Family, back in the day.

Tommy Chong is coming! Precious Chong, of Zdenka Now!, is Tommy’s darling daughter and she agreed to bring her dad on board to our Opening Night. Precious will be performing as Zdenka, a public access television host, whose special guest will be Tommy Chong himself. Come see this father-daughter team in action, along with all the other special performers tonight!

We still have a handful of tickets, so buy yours online now or take a risk and pick one up at the door!

Join in on the Ass-Spanking

Plank Magazine and the Fringe share a love for chickens as well as theatre.

Since 2008, Plank Magazine has been spanking culture’s ass. That’s their tagline. We like to think that those spanks are the same kind of friendly bum slaps baseball players give each other–as signs of encouragement and a way to say “that was a job well done.” For the Fringe, this has meant that Plank tries to review every show in the Festival, and this will be their third year reviewing the Fringe!

Do want in on the action? Well, you can read reviews on Plank’s website, but you can also write reviews! To write a review, visit their website and fill in the contact form. Your submission may even help the good folks at Plank make a decision on which show will win the Talk of the Fringe Award. The Talk of the Fringe Award goes to the show with the most online and in-person buzz. So get buzzing and find out who the winner is at the Fringe Awards Night, September 19, at Performance Works.

Agro Café Deliciousness

Agro Café uses Fair Trade coffee, roasts it in Vancouver, and creates a pleasant atmosphere for you to enjoy it in. In the evenings during the Festival though, we here at the Fringe are taking that spot over and turning it into the St. Ambroise Fringe Bar at Agro Café!

Cheers from our Count Room Manager, Gosia. Join her and the rest of the Fringe family at the bar!

So what can you expect? Lots of fun with bands and DJs every night (check the schedule for who’s playing when) and Agro will also be hosting a delicious BBQ! In addition to the ever popular Fringe Fries, Bison Sliders, Grilled Chicken Wings, Salmon Tacos, and more will be available for consumption at the Agro. Check out the whole menu they created just for us.

Don’t forget to stop by before, after, and in between all your Fringe shows! Agro Café is located at 1363 Railspur Alley.

Chocolate, Chocolate Everywhere…
and so much of it to eat!

Those kids at Cocoa Camino, they really know their chocolate… hey, they’re the number one selling fair trade organic chocolate bar in the country for a reason (mmm, Espresso Bar, my favourite).

But did you know that Cocoa Camino makes hot chocolate? Yep. Organic cocoa. And it comes in a variety of flavours including Chili and Spice. At the St. Ambroise Fringe Bar at Agro Café, we’ll be selling Cocoa Camino’s Dark Hot Chocolate. Get a virgin or make it boozy with Irish Whisky, Irish Cream, or Crème de Menthe. Are you salivating yet?

Plus, keep a look out for free Cocoa Camino products around the Festival. It’s a secret, so no details for you! But we’re sure you’ll be able to get your chocolate fix at the Fringe.

Talks and Workshops

One thing Fringe-goes keep telling us it that they want more events where they get an opportunity to talk to and hear from Fringe artists. So this year, we created a whole series of talks and workshops for you–and most of them are free!

The clowns from Raunch.

Be sure to check out the Clown Conference, a real meeting to talk about clowning, featuring some of our favourite clowns, David Gaines from 7(x1) Samurai, Jacqueline Russell from Raunch, and Chris Gibbs from Antoine Feval. Drop by to witness it September 16 at the St. Ambroise Fringe Bar at Agro Café.

Or stop by Fringe on the Road on September 13 at the St. Ambroise Fringe Bar at Agro Café. The Fringe circuit is unique and Vancouver is the last stop of the Fringe tour across Canada. Talk to some of the artists like Gemma Wilcox from Shadows in Bloom and Jem Rolls from One Man Riot about what it’s like and why it’s so special.

There are workshops for you to learn about theatre too! You can learn how to create a piece of site-specific theatre in On Site on September 14, or how to move using the Lecoq-based method in Clarity in Motion.

For a full listing of workshops, check out our website.

Only 52 Tickets Left to Opening Night!

Antoine Feval thinks you should attend Opening Night.

You have a week and a day to buy tickets to our Opening Night Appi-Teasers–and you better buy them quick cause we only have 52 tickets left! Get yours now!

What can you expect from the Opening Night? Well, we told you about our auction items in our last newsletter, and you know that there’ll be previews of shows like Moving Along, Zdenka Now!, Lucky 9, and more, but did you know that David C. Jones is our host?

David C. Jones sizing up the 2009 Opening Night Audience while Festival Manager Isabella Kessel smiles on.

David C. Jones is an actor, writer, producer, director, teacher, comedian, and regular host and emcee who’s been described as a “Pillar of the Vancouver Entertainment Community.” He founded and ran the sketch comedy group, Rock.Paper.Scissors. for 12 years, formed the Sketch in Time Society, a non-profit charity that stages fundraisers for charity groups and non-profits, and he’s won numerous awards, including Best Comedian in Vancouver from the Georgia Straight! He’s also the host of Tops and Bottoms on OutTV. Check out this little interview with David about his show.

The audience rolling in their seats for David C. Jones.

David hosted our live auction in 2009 and his antics got the crowd rolling in the aisles! Literally (someone faux fainted!). We’re expecting that he’ll outdo himself this year! Joins us and be part of the fun!

And don’t forget! If you purchase tickets to Opening Night before midnight on August 31, you’ll be entered into a draw to win tickets to Cirque du Soleil’s Kooza.

Mac Station Powers Fringe Box Office

Even kitty likes the iPad.

It’s hard to believe that Mac Station has been around for 17 years, but it’s true! The computer store with a soft spot for the arts, Mac Station supports the Fringe as well as Out On Screen, Arts Umbrella, and the Whistler Film Festival.

Mac Station helps make our Box Office run smoothly by providing us with computers! And while our online Box Office has been open since August 4, those of you who prefer dealing with live people, can visit our “physical” Box Office starting September 2. Located at 1592 Johnston Street on Granville Island (kitty-corner from the Public Market’s main entrance), you can drop by from noon to 8:00 p.m. until the end of the Festival.

If you visit the Box Office on Saturdays and Sundays during the Festival, you can play with an iPad! Mac Station will be demonstrating how to use the nifty device, but, if the kitty in this video can figure it out, we’re sure you can too!

Speaking of iPads, check out the Fringe Friend-zy contest for your chance to win one!

Fringe Friend-zy!

Hey Fringe-goers! We’re having a contest to give away a shiny new iPad during this year’s Festival, courtesy of our presenting partner, Mac Station!

The first step towards entering the contest is to connect with Mac Station and the Vancouver Fringe through our social media channels:

Mac Station Twitter, Mac Station Facebook Fan Page, Vancouver Fringe Twitter, and the Vancouver Fringe Facebook Fan Page.

You don’t need to connect with all of these to be eligible, but the more you do, the more chances for you to win.

Hint: You might also want to get familiar with Foursquare. It’s not necessary, but it adds more chances for you to win.

You can also enter the contest by visiting the Mac Station booth at the Vancouver Fringe Info Centre (located at 1592 Johnston St: kitty-corner from the Granville Island Public Market).

More details are coming soon, so keep your eyes peeled to your monitors. And that’s it! Free iPad? Seems good to me! See you out there (in the social media sphere that is)!

* The contest will run from September 1 to 17, with the draw happening on September 18. Contest is open to anyone who submits an entry, except for employees of Mac Station and the Vancouver Fringe. Winner must be 18 or over and reside within North America.

Tasty Treats

Andrea Yu of Heptademic Redux

The food theme continues with tales from our artists. This one comes from Andrea Yu of Hardline Productions, the producers of Heptademic Redux. Andrea may look sweet in this photo, but she tells of a night of “blind rage” in the search for buffet:

One of the most epic nights I’ve ever experienced was when a bunch of my former classmates and I decided we wanted buffet. The most intriguing part wasn’t the buffet itself, but the journey to get there. In short form, here are some events that happened: We ended up in Delta (the buffet was in Burnaby), three of us had to step out of the car at different points in the night due to blind rage, my brand new pair of sneakers got smothered in dog crap, and our car almost got hit by a trolley! This isn’t counting the fact that when we finally found the buffet after an hour of searching, we discovered it was closed–and our next option was two hours away.

While normal reasoning should have told us to just go to a nearby restaurant, our craving for buffet was insatiable and we actually travelled the two hours. When we reached our second destination, our hunger blinded us to the fact that the food was pretty rancid and actually had depressive side effects. To this day we still don’t speak about that night.

Get Inspired for School with Cirque du Soleil®

Win Tickets to KOOZA by Cirque du Soleil®!

You could win free tickets to KOOZA!

It’s hard not to notice the giant yellow and blue striped tent on Pacific Boulevard. It’s Cirque du Soleil’s Grand Chapiteau, where they are currently presenting the touring show KOOZA: a clowning and acrobatic extravaganza, which tells the story of the pensive, solitary Innocent and his encounter with the Trickster, the King, and other intriguing characters.

Cirque du Soleil has been creating their shows since 1984, when Guy Laliberté proposed putting on the first Cirque show for Québec City’s celebration of the 450th anniversary of Jacques Cartier’s discovery of Canada. With a little funding from Québec’s provincial government, the show toured Québec. The success led to further tours and the rest is history.

Are you hoping to catch KOOZA by Cirque du Soleil in Vancouver? Well buying tickets to the Fringe’s Opening Night: Appi-Teasers just might be your way in! When you purchase tickets to the Fringe’s Opening Night before midnight on August 31, you’ll be entered to win tickets to KOOZA by Cirque du Soleil! For contest rules and regulations, visit our website, and don’t forget to enter to win KOOZA tickets by getting your tickets to the Fringe’s Opening Night before August 31!

Auctions are Hot.

Another Silent Auction item is a snowmobile tour from Outdoor Adventures Whistler

Our Opening Night is always a bevy of amazing auction items! This year is no different. In addition to the exciting Silent Auction packages that range from whale watching with Wild Whales Vancouver to bowling at Grandview Lanes to acupuncture treatments from Poke Community Acupuncture, we’re proud of what we’ve gathered for our exhilarating Live Auction.

Take our Granville Island Getaway package for instance. I know you’re thinking, “gee, Granville Island? How is that a getaway?” It’s a perfect getaway when you have a night’s stay at the boutique luxury Granville Island Hotel and a $50 gift certificate to the Dockside Restaurant (which has one of the most incredible views of the city). Plus, with a couple’s bath robe set from Justin Stitches and a gift basket filled with sensual loveliness from Tart Boutique, known as a “haven of hedonistic delights,” it’s sure to get your juices flowing… but only if you come and bid on it!

Join us September 7 during our Opening Night Appi-Teasers for your chance! Get your tickets now!

Red Bastard Dancing with Bunny Ears on CTV

Not only does CTV fill our much needed desire for So You Think You Can Dance, but they’re one of the few channels that come in with bunny ears! But the reason we like CTV the best is because they’re airing the Vancouver Fringe’s first commercial ever!

Red Bastard dancing on our YouTube channel. Maybe he should audition for So You Think You Can Dance?

Eric Davis, a.k.a. Red Bastard, one of the most popular artists in the 2009 Fringe, was passing through Vancouver back in April and we asked him to be our commercial’s star! With a little help from videographer Michael Sider and our good friend Lianna Walden, we shot over an hour of footage to create the 15 second commercial you can catch on CTV, plus two slightly different versions you can see on our YouTube Channel, and a 10 second version that’s playing on the video screens up at Robson and Granville!

Thanks to CTV for the chance at some airtime!

App Time!

The Vancouver International Fringe Festival’s App is now available for download!

Here is what the app looks like!

We like to think we’re with the times. And because it seems like every other festival is getting its own mobile event guide, we thought we would get in on the action too.

Powered by Xomo Digital, the Vancouver-based producers of the official 2010 Vancouver Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games mobile event guide, the Fringe’s app is available for free through the iTunes App Store for your iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad!

The app allows you to view the Fringe’s schedule, read info on the artists, buy tickets, find your venues, and plan your whole Fringe experience directly from the palm of your hand! You can even share your thoughts through Facebook and keep up with the latest happenings through the app’s built-in Twitter feed!

So go get it, and we’ll see you out there!

Tasty Treats

Looks like one of Barry's jobs was killing zombies. You think he did that on a full belly of sushi?