Latest news with #EdmontonFringe
Edmonton Journal
4 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Edmonton Journal
Fringe Review: No Tweed Too Tight
Article content Stage 15 — Campus St. Jean (8406 Rue Marie-Anne Gaboury) Article content Fringe stage legend Grant Canyon returns for another inebriated and incoherent tale of murder, mystery, and malarky. Article content This isn't the first time Ryan Gladstone's beloved character has graced an Edmonton Fringe stage. Gladstone stars as Grant Canyon, a high-profile insurance investigator in the 1970s prone to kung-fu poses and drunken blackouts. Article content Article content The one-man show often feels like watching Memento starring Ron Burgundy and set on the plane from Airplane!. Gladstone gives a tour de force performance as he trades witty barbs and pugilistic barbarity with himself, deftly switching back and forth between Canyon and his adversaries. Article content It's the kind of character work you'd see on many comedy YouTube channels these days, except those performers have the luxury of editing, green screens and costumes. Gladstone has none of those conveniences, which makes for a compelling watch as this washed-up and two-bit insurance investigator pulls the threads of an already torn-up sweater and unravels a mystery he can barely remember. Article content The fact that Gladstone has been touring this character for so long is both a blessing and a curse, though. While the writing is sharp and the jokes are amusing, there are a few elements that are painfully and obviously dated. I particularly balked at Gladstone's attempts at some truly awful South American and Eastern European accents that veer a little too close to offensive to get a chuckle out of me. It may be set in the 1970s, but the audience lives in 2025.
Edmonton Journal
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Edmonton Journal
'A Fringe full of stars': Edmonton Fringe festival 2025 returns with a cosmic celebration
Article content The Edmonton International Fringe Theatre Festival returns, celebrating the performers, attendees, and volunteers who make the festival possible. Article content The 44th edition of the Edmonton Fringe runs Aug. 14-24, featuring 221 indoor shows across more than 40 venues. The festival's opening ceremonies are scheduled for 7 p.m. on Thursday at ATB Park on the ATB stage, near 83 Avenue and 104 Street. The first Fringe performances begin at 8 p.m. the same evening. Article content Article content This year's theme is 'A Fringe full of stars,' a celestial theme that celebrates all the people who make Fringe such an enduring part of Edmonton's arts history. Article content 'When I tell you we got goosebumps when we decided on this theme, I'm not exaggerating,' said Megan Dart, executive director of the Edmonton International Fringe Theatre Festival. 'Whether you are on stage, backstage, volunteering in support of the festival, or coming out to support artists, everyone in the fringe constellation is a star.' Article content Dart said the best implementation of the celestial theme can be found at KidsFringe, which offers 'a great amount of creativity that is put into interpreting the theme.' KidsFringe is free to attend at Light Horse Park, and features craft stations, an adventure forest, and daily activities for kids to enjoy. Article content Keeping Fringe Sustainable Article content In 2024, the festival kicked off the 'Sustain Fringe' fundraising campaign, asking Edmontonians to help the festival raise $300,000 to maintain its scope and scale as it recovered from COVID lockdowns. They also sought generous residents willing to pledge a monthly donation of $5. Article content Article content The fundraiser was a huge success, and Dart said in the past year, the festival jumped from 34 monthly donors to more than 500. Article content Article content 'Because of them, we were able to return this year and continue delivering the Fringe experience that everyone knows and loves,' Dart says. Article content Despite the increase in monthly donations, Dart said organizers are still struggling to produce the Fringe at the level that Edmonton has come to expect. This year's event is only moderately larger than 2024, which featured 218 shows across 38 stages. Article content In the past year, the cost of producing the festival has increased by 8.5 per cent, and some amenities had to be cut or reduced. Article content The free Fringe shuttle, which previously transported attendees between the main Fringe area and Edmonton's French Quarter, near 89 Street and Whyte Avenue, is one such service that will no longer be running due to budget cuts.
Scotsman
30-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Scotsman
My Festival: Alan Davies
Alan Davies: Think Ahead | Tony Briggs The seasoned stand-up and Q.I. star opens up about his worst ever review, the anxiety of being stuck watching a terrible show, and his extracurricular Fringe activities. Sign up to our Arts and Culture newsletter, get the latest news and reviews from our specialist arts writers Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... There are thousands of shows in Edinburgh this month. Please tell us why we should come and see yours. Years ago, at the Edmonton Fringe in Canada, there was sketch group called Free Food and Beer. All their posters appeared to promise free food and beer. They sold a lot of tickets. I can offer a guaranteed seat for each ticket holder and - limited - air to breathe. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad What will we learn from your show that we didn't know before? That, unlike most comedians, who are famously outward looking, I'm entirely self-absorbed. Who or what was the biggest inspiration for your show? That I spend more time in the pharmacy than the gym. What's the best review you've ever had, and the worst? I gave a less than confident performance in a production of The Odd Couple many years ago and resolved not to read any notices, expecting them to be unkind. Walking down the steps outside the venue - with Dave Johns who was also in the cast - we passed the audience lining up for the next show. When they saw me people started to call things out. 'We liked it, Alan.' 'Yeah, don't listen to them, Alan.' 'We thought it was good!' This all culminated in a large number of them breaking out into a sympathetic round of applause. As I waved and smiled meekly I said, without turning to Dave, 'How bad are these reviews?' 'Don't worry about it, man,' he said. Who or what are you most excited about seeing this year? Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Every year I find someone I've never seen before that I love. A couple of years ago it was Lucy McCormick, in the past it was Kiki & Herb. Last year I enjoyed Will Owen. The only certainty in my Fringe is that I will seek out John Hegley. Who do you most like spending time with in Edinburgh? These days it's a family affair. Katie and I are always on the lookout for kids' shows, though now two of ours are teenagers so the must-see list changes each year. Tell us something about you that would surprise people. On a Saturday afternoon I will seek out Hibs or Hearts, but I won't be drawn on a preference. What are the best and worst things that have happened to you at a festival? Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad The second worst thing that can happen is being stuck in a terrible show and not being able to get out. The worst thing is knowing someone in the show and having an arrangement to meet them afterwards. The best thing is approaching your venue and seeing the words 'sold out' next to your name. Thanks for the interview! We'd like to buy you a drink. Where are we going and what are we drinking? I met a Glaswegian recently who was bemoaning the fact that in his city you're not allowed to drink in the street, so perhaps we should take advantage of the rules in Edinburgh and sup something while watching some world-class street performers. As for what it is, surprise me, that would be in the spirit of the Fringe.
CTV News
13-06-2025
- Entertainment
- CTV News
44th fringe festival ‘full of stars' to look slightly different with cost-saving changes
Attendees are seen at a venue at the Edmonton Fringe Festival in an undated handout photo. The Edmonton Fringe Festival says a new fundraising campaign that lets donors "adopt" and then name a portable toilet has been a success. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO-Edmonton Fringe Festival, *MANDATORY CREDIT* The theme of the 44th Edmonton International Fringe Theatre Festival was revealed on Friday: 'A Fringe full of stars.' 'The stars for us really is about not just those who are on stage, but those who are backstage, those who are volunteering, those who come to see 45 shows during the festival,' artistic director Murray Utas told CTV News Edmonton. 'What we can expect from this theme is a very vast look at our existence…. And I think that it makes sense with the global nature of our festival, being international.' Running Aug. 14-24, the festival will consist of 223 theatre productions at 40 venues and some 1,600 artists from across the globe. Among the Fringe favourites that are returning are the Indigenous pêhonân Series, free Kids Fringe and nightly music series in ATB Park (Wilbert McIntyre Park), and Sea Change Brewing Co. as the event's exclusive beer provider. Some things will look different, however. Executive director Megan Dart said the festival may not be able to provide its usual free shuttle service between the festival and Edmonton's French Quarter. It is also not providing staff with T-shirts. She said the festival is doing everything it can to 'preserve that audience and artistic experience,' but continues to be in a precarious financial position with festival costs increasing 8.5 per cent over last year's nine per cent. 'Last year, by many measures, was one of our most successful festivals in the history of fringe theater. But the truth is, we are still facing incredible financial struggle as an industry,' Dart told CTV News Edmonton. But the festival is celebrating growing its number of monthly donors from 34 to 540 over the past year. And ATB Financial has committed to being the festival's lead partner through 2027. Dart said, 'Yes, we are still in survival mode, but we are still here. We are scrappy. We've been building this movement on duct tape and dreams for 44 years; we will continue to do that.' Tickets go on sale Aug. 6. Under the fringe theatre model, 100 per cent of the ticket price goes to performers, while the ticket fee portion goes to the festival, which was increased in 2024. The Edmonton International Fringe Theatre Festival is known as the largest and longest running of its kind in North America. With files from CTV News Edmonton's Dave Mitchell
