2020 Lottery Results Are In!

December 19, 2019

Richard Lett in his Santa hat was in the room when he won a spot in the Mainstage Category Lottery! Photo by Bruce McPherson Photography.

2020 Lottery Results Are In!

This past Thursday, December 12, the Fringe once again relied on the anti-curation method of selecting shows to be part of the Mainstage Category at the 2020 Vancouver Fringe Festival. This year, the Fringe combined the Lottery with the annual Fringemas gathering! Between draws, the night was peppered with performances from stand-up comics Matty Vu, Andrea Jin, Gina Harms, and Rachel Schaefer, in addition to our host Emma Cooper’s gags, and rounded out with a spectacular set from Lil Clitty.

A few Lottery spots were reserved for the winners of the Canadian Association of Fringe Festival (CAFF) Touring Lottery winners. As a member Festival, we hold spots for artists who apply via CAFF and go on to tour the Fringe circuit all summer long. This year, stalwarts Jem Rolls and Paco Erhard will be joined by Sydney Hayduk (who performed alongside Jeff Leard in Angels & Aliens) and Joanna Rannelli of Power Pause Productions who was part of the 2019 Dramatic Works Series with The Most Massive Woman Wins.

The draw always goes fast! We started with the International category. This small grouping will see the return of Gemma Wilcox (The Honeymoon Period is Officially Over, Magical Mystery Detour) and Weeping Spoon Productions (The Ballad of Frank Allen, Zack Adams: Love Songs for Future Girl).

The North American category sees applications from artists across Canada (excluding BC) and the USA. Selected were favourites, Martin Dockery (Delirium, The Bike Trip) and Pucking Fuppets, aka Adam Francis Proulx who won the Public Market Pick of the Fringe in 2015 for Baker’s Dozen: 12 Angry Puppets. We are happy to welcome new faces, including Hannah Kim, whose show is You Can Call me Yoko Ono, and Melanie Moseley, who plans to bring us Sexology: The Musical!

Finally, the most exciting part of the evening, the Provincial category! The room was full of hopefuls, eagerly waiting to see if their name would be drawn. Some familiar artists were drawn, including Joylyn Secunda (The Moaning Yoni), Direct Theatre Collective (Hysteria), and Shawn O’Hara (Field Zoology 101, Fake Ghost Tours). But everyone was especially excited when Richard Lett’s name was drawn because he was in the room! Richard was part of the Fringe in 2016 with Sober But Never Clean.

We’re also super excited to share the results of the inaugural year of our equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) project’s applications fee subsidy for racialized artists who identify as Black, Indigenous, and/or People of Colour (BIPOC). The Fringe received 44 applications from artists whose core creative team identify as BIPOC. Of those, 10 artists were drawn in the Lottery! We’re excited to see volunteer Maya Mojtahed with her company Persian Arts and Literature Association, and Laura Fukumoto, who co-wrote the 2019’s Where the Quiet Queers Are (which was also a TD Fringe Forward Award runner up). Overall, the Fringe is proud to say that 29% of the Lottery winning artists this year identify as being from various underrepresented communities. The Fringe will be continuing its EDI work, moving closer towards the Fringe Vision of Theatre for Everyone.

For full Lottery results, including the waitlisted artists, click here.

The 2020 Fringe New Play Prize winner is JK JK and here’s one half of the team, khattieQ, performing a song from Catalina La O presenta: Ahora Conmigo, which will be presented at the 2020 Fringe Festival! Photo by Bruce McPherson Photography.

Announcing the 2020 Fringe New Play Prize Winner!

The Fringe has again partnered with Playwrights Theatre Centre (PTC) to present the Fringe New Play Prize, and this year’s winner is JK JK, aka Jenny Larson and khattieQ, whose show Catalina La O Presenta: Ahora Conmigo, will be part of the 2020 Vancouver Fringe!

PTC selects the winner of the prize from a slew of submissions and the winner receives a free Mainstage spot at the 2020 Festival, the design and execution of a development process for the play with PTC’s Project Dramaturg Joanna Garfinkel, and a free spot in PTC’s how-to-produce-theatre seminar series Block P (which is accepting submissions to participate till January 20!).

Catalina La O Presenta: Ahora Conmigo, draws inspiration from Puerto Rican musical legends Myrta Silva, Lucecita Benitez, and Yolandita Monge. This interactive, bilingual cabaret performance is part (physical) clown show, part punk rock performance, y todo emoción performed by khattieQ.

Catalina La O’s mother is lost, unable to join her in Puerto Rico for the finale taping of Catalina’s one-hour TV program, “Ahora Conmigo.” Then a destructive hurricane hits Puerto Rico and throws Catalina into her darkest hour. Emerging from the aftermath, wet and wounded, Catalina seeks refuge in her television studio. Though her backing band and television crew have all gone missing, Catalina believes her beloved audience still survives. She sings and performs to them and to herself, sharing stories and songs of heartbreak, resistance, and survival.

Congratulations to the artists! Everyone at the Fringe is excited to see your show next September!

Other Ways of Being an Artist

Didn’t make it as an artist through the Lottery? One of these spaces could still be your venue! From top to bottom, the Firehall Arts Centre, Havana Theatre, and the duck pond on Granville Island.

So you’re way, way down on the waitlist for the Mainstage Category, or maybe you missed the deadline. Do not be discouraged! There are other ways you can still be a 2020 Fringe Artist!

Site-Specific:
Applications for the Site-Specific Show Category are now open! Site-Specific shows are created for their space and may not take place in a traditional theatre environment. Site-Specific applicants provide their own venue, technician, lighting, and sound. The location of these shows must be pre-approved by the Vancouver Fringe. For details, click here.

Dramatic Works:
Applications for the Dramatic Works Series are now open! Love drama? This is for you. Sponsored by the Lochmaddy Foundation, Dramatic Works Series Artists must apply with a published dramatic script that is between 30-100 minutes in length with two or more actors. Applications are accepted on a first come, first served basis, pending eligibility. Learn more details and apply here. 

Bring Your Own Venue (BYOV):
The BYOV Category won’t open till January, but you can find some info here. Keep in mind that you must apply to a pre-approved venue and be accepted by them before you apply to the Fringe. Each pre-approved BYOV has its own application process. Visit our BYOV info page for pre-approved venue information here. But please note that this information has not been updated for 2020. We will update this page early in January.

Advance Theatre: New Works by Diverse Women:
Ruby Slippers Theatre, in partnership with the Vancouver Fringe Festival, Playwrights Theatre Centre, Playwrights Guild of Canada, and Savage Society proudly present Advance Theatre! Presented as dramatic readings, Ruby Slippers Theatre will select five scripts by women-identified playwrights. Submissions are being accepted until February 15, 2020. Click here for more info.

Donate Now for a 2019 Tax Receipt

It’s your last chance to snag a 2019 Charitable Tax Receipt! Donate to the Fringe by 11:59pm on December 31! Donations of $25 or more are tax deductible.

For more information or to donate click here. Or, if you’re interested in some sweet perks like t-shirts, VIP tickets, and more, click here to receive a reduced tax receipt in exchange for benefits!

Thanks Thunderbolt Sign!

Need signage? Thunderbolt Sign is offering Fringers a deal!

Fringe Sponsors are great! Thunderbolt Sign has been a Fringe sponsor since 2016, helping us make banners and all sorts of signage, including Buzz Boards! Did you write a review of the shows you saw on a Buzz Board this year? Equipped with felt pens, Buzz Boards were located in the Fringe Hub by the Box Office and outside the Phillips Fringe Bar.

If you’re a business owner or need a sign for any purpose, Thunderbolt Sign is offering you a great deal now through January 14! Check out the deals here and connect with our pal Carl Rivera. Thanks Thunderbolt Sign!

Whos in Fringeville?

December 10, 2019

Fringemas is (Almost) Here

Yes, we draw our shows out of a hat (yes, that bin is a hat)! Photo by Bruce McPherson.

Get ready to make merry with the Fringe—we’re having the 2020 Mainstage Lottery Party this Thursday, December 12, at CBC Studio 700, and you’re invited! Have an exclusive first look at who’s coming to the 2020 Festival as names are literally drawn out of a hat!

If you needed more reasons to party with us, the wonderful Emma Cooper, who you may remember co-hosted this year’s Awards Night and was part of Rape is Real and Everywhere, is hosting this year’s Fringemas festivities. Also joining the party are comedians Matty Vu, Andrea Jin, Gina Harms, and Rachel Schaefer who will be spreading holiday cheer onstage! Rounding out the Lottery Party’s entertainment is our headliner, Lil’ Clitty, whose naughty lyrics are certainly not PG-13!

Doors open at 6:30pm, with the Party starting at 7:00pm. CBC Studio 700 is accessible for wheelchair and mobility aid users. This casual event is free, and no RSVP necessary—just don’t be a Grinch. Come prepared to have a holly jolly Fringemas!

Coming Soon: Site-Specific Applications

Did you know that Where the Quiet Queers Are was performed in an indoor parkade? One of many possibilities in the Site-Specific category! Photo by Al Ricard.

Ever wanted to create a Fringe show in a park, a dumpster, or even a tire swing? Just hold tight—applications for the Site-Specific category open on Friday, December 13, after the Mainstage Lottery has been drawn on December 12! Site-Specific shows are presented in venues outside of a traditional theatre setting, within walking distance of Granville Island or Havana Theatre on Commercial Drive. These shows also provide their own technician, lighting, and sound. Go to Eventotron to begin your application, and check out our website for more details on this category!

Lead the Fringe

Lead the Fringe like Laura has over the past two years. Photo by Al Ricard.

Want to be a leader in Vancouver’s innovative independent theatre scene and assist in further actualizing the Fringe’s vision of “Theatre for Everyone?” You can by applying to be our Executive Director today!

The Executive Director leads the organization, artists, audiences, and volunteers in building on the society’s mission of cultivating artists and audiences, advancing equity, diversity, and inclusion, and creating an open and vibrant independent theatre community. Click here to read the whole posting. The application deadline is December 13, 2019.

Get that Tax Receipt!

Save yourself from the Taxman by getting a charity tax receipt from the Fringe!

Did you know the Fringe is a charity? We rely on donations from Fringe fans to keep the Festival running, to create opportunities for emerging artists, and to connect you with the stories they share.

Not only does donating create a warm fuzzy feeling in your heart, but you also get a tax receipt. Hold a little back from the Taxman and make a donation before the year ends! Donations of $25 or more are tax deductible.

For more information or to donate click here. Or, if you’re interested in some sweet perks, click here to receive a reduced tax receipt in exchange for t-shirts, VIP tickets, and more!

The Theatre Scene

Just a taste of what Vancouver has to offer in the way of Theatre!

Pop-Up! Concert – Amplify Choral Theatre’s Where the Quiet Queers Are
Saturday, December 14
1:15pm Net Loft / 2:15pm Public Market by Blue Parrot on Granville Island
Amplify Choral will be performing a 20-minute musical excerpt of Where the Quiet Queers Are, which premiered during the 2019 Vancouver Fringe Festival. Featuring a diverse team of queer choristers and theatre makers, incorporating choral music, movement, and original poetry, it tackles a queer narrative rarely addressed, even in LGBTQ+ media.

East Van Panto: Pinocchio
Now – January 5, 2020
York Theatre
East Vancouver jokes abound in another instalment of the East Van Panto, this time featuring Fringe alumna, Pippa Mackie as Pinocchio!

Catch Wonderheads as they re-imagine a classic holiday tale! Photo by Kate Braidwood.

A Wonderheads Christmas Carol
December 20 at Kay Meek Arts Centre
& December 21 at Massey Theatre
Fantastic mask makers, Wonderheads, whose hit Fringe show Grim and Fischer won numerous awards at the 2011 Vancouver Fringe, are back in town for two nights only with the classic Dickens’ holiday story. Catch their version of Scrooge at the Kay Meek Centre in West Vancouver on December 20 and at the Massey Theatre in New Westminster on December 21.

Infinity
January 7-19, 2020
The Cultch Historic Theatre
Fringe alumni and co-founder of the Electric Theatre Company, Jonathan Young stars in Hannah Moscovitch’s Infinity. In this absorbing drama infused with science and classical music, three exceptional minds collide like charged particles in an accelerator. And The Cultch is offering Fringers a deal! Get premium A and A+ seats for just $39 when you use promo code: VOLCANO. Valid for performances on January 7-15, this offer ends on December 17.