KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
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INTRODUCTION
WELCOME TO THE 2021 KEYBANK ROCHESTER FRINGE FESTIVAL As we celebrate our tenth anniversary this year, Fringe can be proud of so many accomplishments, including presenting almost 4,000 performances since its debut in 2012. While statistics like this are impressive, we can claim a more subtle but equally important contribution. While arts and culture are proven economic drivers, they also provide much-needed, healthy community cohesion as a result of shared experiences. Studies have shown that events like Fringe can actually lower a community’s collective blood pressure, promote better communication and collaboration, and inspire positivity and pride. This year, we’re thrilled to offer more than 425 in-person and online events, while working tirelessly to keep everyone safe in what is arguably our most challenging – but perhaps mostneeded – festival ever. Welcome to our 10th Fringe! Cordially, Erica Fee Festival Producer / Board President
BOARD OF DIRECTORS Justin L. Vigdor
(Board Chairman) Of Counsel, Bond Schoeneck & King PLLC
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
Chris Adams
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Missy Pfohl Smith
Director of the Institute of Performing Arts and the Program of Dance & Movement (University of Rochester) and Artistic Director, BIODANCE
(Treasurer) VP of Finance, LMT Technology Solutions
Lynn Rowoth
Dr. Sylvie Beaudette
Alexa Scott-Flaherty
Assistant Professor, Eastman School of Music; Director, Summer @ Eastman; Co-Chair, Eastman Centennial Planning Committee
Mark Costello
(Corporate Secretary) Partner, Boylan Code LLP
Erin DiVincenzo
Global Solutions Marketing, Reward Gateway
Erica Fee
(President) Festival Producer and Executive Director
Associate Vice President, Rochester Institute of Technology
(Vice President) Visiting Lecturer, RIT Performing Arts
Darren Stevenson
Founder and Artistic Director, PUSH Physical Theatre
Dr. Jefferson Svengsouk
Emergency Medicine and Palliative Care Physician (URMC), Chair of the National Standards Board for Therapeutic Musicians, Musician
Robert M. Vigdor Attorney
Welcome to the 2021 KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival! We are so glad to see everyone together again and are very proud to support this unique and inclusive celebration of art and imagination. The Fringe has become an integral part of our community and a renowned celebration of the arts. Each performance will be a wonderful celebration of Rochester’s creative spirit and all bring incredible energy and notoriety to our great city.
INTRODUCTION
A WORD FROM OUR TITLE SPONSOR
Like the Fringe, KeyBank values the connections that bring us together, that create shared experiences, and that provoke thought and conversation. We are invested in making this community a better place to live and believe that the Fringe adds immeasurable value to our quality of life. We are committed to Rochester and since 2017 have made community investments totaling more than $499 million as part of our National Community Benefits Plan. Helping communities thrive is KeyBank’s purpose. We are bringing this to life through investments in affordable housing and development, growing small businesses and jobs, mortgages for underserved communities, and transformative philanthropy. And we are continuing to support initiatives that will help our region navigate the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. From Street Beat to Gospel Sunday to Cirque du Fringe, there is something for everyone at this year’s KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival. Thank you for coming and enjoy the shows! Cordially, Phil Muscato KeyBank Rochester Market President
LEADERSHIP TEAM Lisa Hardt Asst. Producer, Virtual Fringe
Renee Anderson Director of Food & Beverage
Kendal Hooper Associate Producer
Margit Brazda Poirier & Carolyn Kourofsky (Grants4Good) Grantwriters
Samantha Marchant Administrative Coordinator
Tyler Cassidy-Heacock Dir. of Development & Donor Relations
Bonnie Miguel Creative Director Jamie Pillsbury CFO
Sally Cohen Publicist
Matt Robinson Head of Patron Experience & Tech
Rob Ferguson Senior Assoc. Producer
Casey Sanders Director of Sales
Mallory Giambra Director of Social Media
Gloria Smith Marketing Director
Tempestt Halstead Associate Producer
Emily Stork Festival Lighting Designer & Production Consultant
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
Erica Fee Festival Producer/CEO
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INTRODUCTION
STAFF CONT.
HR DIRECTOR
ACCOUNTANT
ONE FRINGE PLACE & CIRQUE DECORATOR
Patrick Gallivan
ADMINISTRATIVE CONSULTANT Chandra Freeman
ON-SITE MAINTENANCE Jeff White
OUTDOOR STAGE MANAGER
BAR STAFF
PHOTOGRAPHERS
Tom Macomber
Wendy Andrews Elizabeth Bremmer Kate Bringley John Cullen Brian Eastman Sandy Gallagher Eileen Hammond Lauren Harmon Erica Kelly Sherrie Kelly Georgina Konecny-Perry Andrea Kopf Pamela Landers Cam Lewis Paul Minniti Amorette Miller Raheem Miller Kim Morse Patrick O’Connor John Perry Kimberly Pfromm Kristina Storrin Kat Sweeney Brad Tome Seth Trapani Brian Wirth Lynda Wirth
Christopher Hennelly
BOOKKEEPING Michael Lill Tracey Mykins
CIRQUE INTERIOR DESIGNER Adele Fico
COPYWRITER Evan Weese
CUSTOMER SERVICE REPS Jamie Barnatones Becky Block Maeve Cullinane Jasmine Davis-Higdon Laura Galbraith
GOSPEL SUNDAY MUSIC BOOKER Ben Fang
GRAPHIC DESIGNER
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
Jesse Lucas
BAR MANAGER
BOOKKEEPER (ON-SITE)
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Kara Palumbo
Meghan Murphy Terry Bakk
HOUSE MANAGER Meghan Tonery
ADVISORY COMMITTEE
Evan Vasquez
Erich Camping (Chief) John Schlia Keith Bullis
PRODUCTION ASSISTANTS Deborah Alvarez Stephen Burggraaf LeNora Candee Sophia Mostafa Lucy Mundschau Clair Torregiano
PRODUCTION STAGE MANAGER Marni Lewis
SALES MANAGER Stephen Penta
SECURITY Swoop1
SOCIAL MEDIA ASSISTANT Mirishahe Beha
STAGE MANAGER Bethany Antill
STREET BEAT COORDINATOR William Young
TECHNICAL DIRECTORS Hamilton A/V
TECHNICAL SUPERVISOR Kate Sweeney
TENTMASTER Nat Brown
TICKETING CONCIERGE Brian Cudzilo
VACCINE VERIFICATION ASSTS. T’Kai Battiste Andrea Brown Tammy Lindsay Joshua Lowe Irving Pudetti Faith Reh
WEB DESIGN & DEVELOPMENT InHouse Worldwide
Mike Calabrese Owner, Java’s and Good Luck
Rev. Imani Olear Senior Pastor, Reformation Lutheran Church and Owner, Tru Yoga
Mark Cuddy Artistic Director, Geva Theatre Center
Gita Ramachandran Business Start-Up Consultant & Retired Executive
Wayne Harris Deputy Chief (Ret.), Rochester Police Dept.
Stephanie C. Reh CEO, The Accountability Evangelist
Dr. Grant Holcomb Director Emeritus, Memorial Art Gallery Ruby Lockhart Former Executive Director, Garth Fagan Dance
Dr. Elaine Spaull Director, Center for Youth Heidi Zimmer-Meyer President, Rochester Downtown Development Corporation
PUBLIC SUPPORT
FOUNDING HIGHER ED PARTNERS
SPONSORS & PARTNERS
TITLE SPONSOR
COMMUNITY SPONSORS Daisy Marquis Jones Foundation
Ames Amzalak memorial Trust
CO-PRODUCING SPONSORS
LEAD HOTEL PARTNER
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
Elaine P. & Richard U. Wilson Foundation
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SPONSORS & PARTNERS
ASSOCIATE HIGHER ED PARTNERS
DIGITAL PARTNER
TELEVISION PARTNER
PRINT MEDIA PARTNER
CONSTRUCTION PARTNER
ONE FRINGE PLACE SPONSOR
OFFICIAL BEER
VIDEO STUDIO SPONSOR
VIDEO ADVERTISING PARTNER
ASSOCIATE PRODUCING SPONSORS Fred & Floy Willmott Foundation
The Rubens Family Foundation
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
KIDS DAY SPONSORS
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OUTDOOR MUSIC SPONSOR
OFFICIAL PRINTER
THE LITTLE SPONSOR
PROMOTION SPONSOR
LEGAL SERVICES PARTNER
Rich DiMarco
Phil Muscato
Bob Duffy
Pres. David C. Munson (RIT)
Vinnie Esposito
Matt Pitts
Kevin Gibson
Kelly Reitnour
Grove Street Association
Pres. Gerry Rooney (SJFC)
Ed Hourihan
Dean Jamal Rossi (ESM)
Pres. Sarah Mangelsdorf (UR)
Jeremy Sarachan
Kate McClung VENUE MANAGERS Aerial Arts of Rochester Central Library of Rochester Eastman School of Music Garth Fagan Dance Company Java’s Louis S. Wolk JCC
William D’Ovidio Susan Lusignan Mike Stefiuk Bill Ferguson & Michael Bagne Amy Lula Ralph Meranto
Joseph Avenue Arts and Culture Alliance
David Pacific
La Marketa at The International Plaza
Jessica Del Valle
The Little Theatre Made on State MuCCC RIT City Art Space Rochester Music Hall of Fame Rochester Contemporary Art Gallery Salena’s
The Theater @ InnovationSquare
Lynn Rowoth & Lori Gentile Larry Moss Karen Craft & Kevin Indovino John Aasp Mike Dornberger Bleu Cease Aaron Metras Missy Pfohl Smith
Karl Stabnau & Natalie Fuller
FRINGE FRIENDS
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
Sloan Performing Arts Center at the University of Rochester
SPONSORS & PARTNERS
A SPECIAL THANK YOU TO THE FOLLOWING
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INFORMATION
VISITOR INFORMATION Accessibility
The Fringe has partnered with the Mary Cariola Center to provide current accessibility assessments for all our partner venues. Details, including ASL interpreted shows and progress updates, are available at rochesterfringe.com/ visitor-info/accessibility. In addition, individuals being dropped off may pull up to the front of any venue. For One Fringe Place, please use the corner of Main & Gibbs Streets.
Accommodation
Stay at the center of Fringe at Hyatt Regency Rochester. Fresh off a spectacular remodel, the newly transformed Hyatt is centrally positioned to be your Fringe hub during the festival. It’s not just a Hyatt, it’s Hyatt Rochester. And we’re proud to call them our lead hotel partner at Fringe. For exclusive offers at our hotel partner, go to rochesterfringe.com/visitor-info. Book now and fringe in fine comfort and style minutes away from all of Rochester’s best cultural attractions. Looking for more options? Excellent information on Rochester accommodations can be found at Visit Rochester: visitrochester.com. Enjoy your stay in our favorite city.
Box Office
The Fringe Box Office is located at One Fringe Place (across from Eastman Theatre, corner of Main & Gibbs) and will be open daily, starting September 12. For hours and details, see page 10.
Cash or Credit?
All Fringe venues, bars and food trucks, as well as our Box Office and Fringe Store, accept cash, credit and debit cards. Convenient for fringing.
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
Fringe Store
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Located at One Fringe Place (across from Eastman Theatre, corner of Main & Gibbs) for the duration of the festival (September 14-25) with a pop-up at The Five (formerly Parcel 5, next to One East Ave.) for the Fringe Finale (September 25). Limited edition merchandise and collectibles are forever popular. You love the Fringe. Why not keep it with you year-round?
Lost & Found
Don’t panic. Anything turned into the Fringe will be held at the Fringe office until the end of the festival. Contact the Fringe admin team at info@rochesterfringe.com or stop by the Box Office & Info Booth at One Fringe Place (corner of Main & Gibbs) to check.
Many venues are within walking distance of one another, which allows for one-time parking. However, as we have expanded our footprint this year, some of our new venues are located in different parts of the City as well as the Brighton/Henrietta area. Please check the map on page 70 prior to departure for locations and parking recommendations. Please note that the City of Rochester charges a flat fee of $7/car for all festival parking.
INFORMATION
Parking
Bike Parking
Because the Fringe is a pedestrian friendly event, it’s also an ideal venue for those traveling by bicycle. We’re big fans of pedal pushers. One Fringe Place is easily accessible from East Avenue with many bike racks and loops nearby. Traveling into the city from the ‘burbs? Throw your bike in the car, park in one of the many city side streets off East Avenue, and bike in from there. As always, lock your bike and wear a helmet. Let’s not ruin your Fringe.
Venues
Speaking of venues, we have incredible ones in and around downtown Rochester. Experience them all. GO. For a list, see page 66. For a map, see page 70.
VACCINE INFO If you want to join us at indoor venues, you MUST BE FULLY VACCINATED against COVID-19 if age 12 or over. You will be required to show proof of full vaccination before you enter venues. This can be a NYS Excelsior Pass OR your hard-copy CDC vaccination card (or a photo) plus ID. Unvaccinated children under age 12 may enter indoor venues if masked.
Everyone must wear a mask indoors. This includes children under the age of 12. The unvaccinated, including unvaccinated children, must wear a mask at all times – indoors and outdoors.
Guidelines for both indoor and outdoor events may change. Check website for details.
Additional Questions? Helpful Answers:
www.rochesterfringe.com info@rochesterfringe.com
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
MASKS:
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TICKETS & BOX OFFICE
4 WAYS TO PURCHASE FRINGE TICKETS at 1 Online WWW.ROCHESTERFRINGE.COM (No additional fees)
Buying tickets could not be easier and takes only a couple of minutes! Visit our website to get your tickets right away. You can print your tickets at home or download directly to your smartphone. Paper tickets can also be printed at the Fringe Box Office at One Fringe Place starting Sunday, September 12.
phone 2 By (585) 957-9837
(Additional phone admin. fees apply.) BEFORE SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 12 Phones will operate as a voicemail-only for questions and sales. Leave your name and contact information, and you can expect a call back from the box office within one business day.
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
PHONE HOURS BEGINNING SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 12 Phone lines are open during the Fringe Box Office hours.
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VENUES 3 In(Youperson: will be required to wear a mask
while indoors) Tickets may be purchased at the door, if available, starting one hour before curtain. All venues accept cash, debit, and credit cards. See page 66 for a list of all Fringe venues.
(You will be required to wear a mask while making your purchase) LOCATION One Fringe Place (corner of Main & Gibbs Streets, Rochester, NY 14604 - across from the Eastman Theatre) Open hours listed below. The Fringe Box Office accepts cash, debit, and credit cards.
TICKETS & BOX OFFICE
at 4 InTHEperson FRINGE BOX OFFICE
BEFORE FRINGE Sunday, Sept. 12: Noon-4pm Monday, Sept. 13: 12:30-5:30pm DURING FRINGE Tuesday, Sept. 14: 12:30-10pm Wednesday, Sept. 15: 5-10pm Thursday, Sept. 16: 5-10pm Friday, Sept. 17: 5-11pm Saturday, Sept. 18: Noon-11pm Sunday, Sept. 19: Noon-10pm Monday, Sept. 20 –Thursday, Sept. 23: 5-10pm
Saturday, Sept. 25: Noon-11pm All ticket sales are final. Tickets are non-refundable and non-exchangeable.
PLEASE NOTE:
All shows and times in this guide are subject to change. Please check rochesterfringe.com for up-to-date information.
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
Friday, Sept. 24: 5-11pm
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ITALIAN CIRCUS TENT
RUN AWAY TO…
THE ITALIAN CIRCUS TENT
SEATING OPTIONS • SINGLE TICKETS (General Admission):
Single ticket seats allow you to get “up close and personal” to the action. All seats are first-come, first-served. Arrive early!
• VIP TABLES:
These fabulous tables seat six and include dedicated table service.
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
Please note: The Italian Circus Tent allows for superior air circulation due to its airy design.
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Come before, between, or after shows or just to soak in the festive, inviting, and laid back atmosphere. A gorgeous green haven in the middle of downtown, this temporary garden features fire pits, food trucks, the Fringe Box Office, luxury restrooms (no, really) and the Theatre Bar.
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
The Garden at One Fringe Place
ITALIAN CIRCUS TENT
Rochester will swoon to the soaring beauty of this Big Top from Northern Italy. For 12 days, the Italian Circus Tent will live in the Flower City as an energetic and adventurous center of the Fringe. Admittance is by ticket only. To enter, please purchase a ticket to Cirque du Fringe: AfterParty or Silent Disco.
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ITALIAN CIRCUS TENT
Hilarious. Unforgettable. Astonishing . “The talent was big and dangerous…”
–Frank DeBlase, CITY Newspaper (on Eclectic Attraction)
Created and Directed by Matt Morgan
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
MULTIDISCIPLINARY
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The Italian Circus Tent
Tues., Sept. 14 thru Thurs., Sept. 16: 7:30pm Fri., Sept. 17: 8pm Sat., Sept. 18: 6pm & 9pm Sun., Sept. 19: 7pm Mon., Sept. 20 thru Fri., Sept. 24: 7:30pm (every night) Sat., Sept. 25: 6pm & 9pm Doors: 30 mins before showtime 90 mins, including a 20-minute intermission
TICKETS
16+ :
Sunday-Wednesday Nights: Single Ticket: $29 (rises to $34 after 9/13) VIP Table (seat 6): $165 (rises to $180 after 9/13) Thursday-Saturday Nights: Single Ticket: $34 (rises to $38 after 9/13) VIP Table (seats 6): $189 (rises to $204 after 9/13) VIP Tables have dedicated table service.
16+ Please Note: Those under 16 will not be admitted to the
venue. Proof of COVID-19 vaccination required for entry.
Thurs. Sept. 15 show will be
ASL interpreted
Let’s eat some cake, drink some bubbly, and leave it all out on the dancefloor! DJ A-Ball will be spinning the nostalgic beats while mindblowing variety entertainers delight and amaze!
ITALIAN CIRCUS TENT
All new for 2021! Join us for an evening of thrills from the creators of past years’ Cirque du Fringe sold-out hits D’illusion, SideShow, and Eclectic Attraction.
Polish up your chicken dance and get ready to toast the wedding couple alongside international party starters, the Comedy Trio Happy Hour (Matt Morgan, Mark Gindick, Ambrose Martos), for a reception and afterparty unlike any other!
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival 15
ONE FRINGE PLACE
TOTAL SELL-OUT EVERY YEAR! (You’ve been warned.)
DANCE
One Fringe Place, Corner of Main & Gibbs Streets, across from Eastman Theatre
Friday, Sept. 17 at 11:00pm Saturday, Sept. 18 at 11:00pm Friday, Sept. 24 at 11:00pm Saturday, Sept. 25 at 11:00pm 3 rockin’ hrs 18+ with ID [disco], 21+ with ID [bar]
TICKETS $18
KeyBank KeyBankRochester RochesterFringe FringeFestival Festival
Please Note: Headphone use with ID or credit card only. Returned upon exit.
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FREE! Sing, Sunday, SING. Rev. Dr. Rickey Harvey, Sr. of Mt. Olivet Baptist Church leads an afternoon of sacred song by some of Rochester’s best gospel artists. Be uplifted by the renowned Zion Hill Mass Choir and be moved by Pastor Harvey’s own group: Reverend Rickey Harvey and Truly Committed. Not to be missed.
A FRINGE FAVORITE FOR THE WHOLE FAMILY!
Last call at 1:30am. AVOID THE LINES: Headphones available starting at 10pm! Come early and get your groove on at the THEATRE BAR!
ONE FRINGE PLACE
One Fringe Place is THE place for our signature giant dance party with a Fringe-y twist: you won’t hear a sound until you slip on a set of headphones. Wait, what? Is that YMCA on one channel, Calvin Harris on the second, and Cardi B on the third? A three-channel system and live DJs let you switch up your music (and mood) at the touch of a button. Hugely popular at Bonnaroo and Burning Man, it’s an unforgettable experience you have to see – and not hear – to believe.
VACCINE REQUIRED FOR ENTRY TO SILENT DISCO.
Gospel SUNDAY S
S
S
S
The
most soulful, spiritual,
uplifting
experience at
returns!
MUSIC
One Fringe Place
Corner of Main & Gibbs Streets, OUTDOORS.
Sunday, Sept. 19 at 2:00pm Doors: 30 mins before showtime 90 mins
ALL
No tickets required. Seating is general admission and available on a first-come, first-served basis. Lawn chairs allowed. Arrive early; this event has reached standing-room only capacity every year!
KeyBank KeyBankRochester RochesterFringe FringeFestival Festival
Fringe
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ONE FRINGE PLACE
Little Fringe. BIG fun. Welcome to Kids Day at the Fringe!
Kids Day
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 18
An ENTIRE day devoted to the youngest fringers in downtown Rochester. Ready for a full day of kid-friendly events, shows, and activities the whole family can enjoy?
DISCO KIDS
The sell-out fun hit returns–but this time, outdoors! It’s a big party for pint-size partiers OUTDOORS! Lights, music, and glow sticks! Welcome to Fringe’s not-so-silent disco.
KIDS
One Fringe Place
12:30-1:30pm
ALL AGES
FREE
KIDS CHALK ART
The fun continues with the foreverpopular Kids Chalk Art. Transform One Fringe Place into one giant, colorful canvas. We bring the chalk, you bring the creativity!
KIDS
One Fringe Place ALL AGES FREE
12 NOON-3pm
PUMPKIN PAINTING
Pumpkins go to great lengths to become wildly imaginative creations at our super-creative, OUTDOOR Pumpkin Painting jamboree. Turn One Fringe Place into a giant pumpkin patch, kids! 12 NOON-3pm ALL AGES One Fringe Place $5 per pumpkin. Pay at the door. (AND you get to take it home!)
KIDS
FREE! DANCE
Martin Luther King, Jr. Park
Saturday, Sept. 18 REGISTRATION: 12:00 – 1:00pm PRELIMS: 1:00 – 3:30pm FINALS: 4:00pm – 5:30pm Please Note: In the event of inclement weather, our backup venue is the Italian Circus Tent at One Fringe Place. Please look for announcements and updates at rochesterfringe.com and Fringe Social on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
The epic dance-off is back this year.
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
Now in its sixth year, Fringe Street Beat is all-out dance battle featuring top talent from across the Northeast, along with MC ha-MEEN (Ithaca), DJ SC One (Nyack), and competition judges Bboy Whorah, Sun Kim, and Lauriane Ogay. Teams compete in 3x3 battles for the title of Fringe Street Beat Champions and a cash prize of $1,200. From breakdancing to allstyle, teams bring their A-game – and their adrenaline – to every eye-popping round, starting with preliminary trials and leading to the final dance battle.
Wanna compete? Have a team in mind? Sign-ups start NOW:
rochesterfringe.com/streetbeat
Remaining competing teams’ slots will fill starting at 12:00 noon at MLK Park $5 per team.
3 x 3 All Styles Max of 3 members per crew $1200 cash prize
EVEN MORE FOR KIDS. Peek under KIDS in the SHOW listings. 18
We are very grateful to the Harley School and Wegmans for sponsoring this year’s Kids Day.
FREE!
VISUAL ART & FILM
One Fringe Place
Enjoy movies outdoors at One Fringe Place! Grab a drink, a snack from a food truck, and experience a one-of-a-kind film event: outdoor movies on the big screen with personalized audio via our Silent Disco headphones. Seating is first-come, first-served.
Please Note: headphone use with deposit of your license/ID (to be returned upon exit). The THEATRE BAR will be open every night for the duration of Pedestrian Drive-In for your libations-with-movie pleasure.
ONE FRINGE PLACE
PEDESTRIAN DRIVE-IN
Tuesday, Sept. 14: 8:00pm
Drunk Bus (NR, 2020, John Carlucci, Brandon LaGanke, 100 mins.) Filmed on-site in Rochester! ________________________________________
Wednesday, Sept. 15: 7:45pm
The Italian Job (1969) (PG, 1969, Peter Collinson, 100 mins.) The classic British comedy! ________________________________________
Thursday, Sept. 16: 7:45pm
Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar (PG-13, 2021, Josh Greenbaum, 106 mins.) Hilarious comedy from Rochester-native Kristen Wiig. ________________________________________
Friday, Sept. 17: 7:45pm
Crazy Rich Asians (PG-13, 2018, John M. Chu, 120 mins.) Golden Globe-nominated contemporary rom-com. ________________________________________
Saturday, Sept. 18: 7:45pm
In the Heights (PG-13, 2021, John M. Chu, 142 mins.) In collaboration with the Puerto Rican Festival in celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month. Film version of the 2008 Tony Award Best Musical created by Lin-Manuel Miranda (Hamilton). ________________________________________
Sunday, Sept. 19: 7:30pm
Breakfast at Tiffany’s
Tuesday, Sept. 21: 7:45pm
Harriet (PG-13, 2019, Kasi Lemmons, 125 mins.) Based on the thrilling and inspirational life of iconic American freedom fighter Harriet Tubman. ________________________________________
Thursday, Sept. 23: 7:45pm
Judas and the Black Messiah (R, 2021, Shaka King, 126 mins.) Academy Award Winner for Best Actor. ________________________________________
Friday, Sept 24: 7:45pm
Parasite (R, 2019, Joon-ho Bong, 132 mins.) The incredible Academy Award Best Picture smash hit. (Korean with English subtitles.)
________________________________________ Saturday, Sept 25: 7:45pm
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
(NR, 1961, Blake Edwards, 115 mins.) The classic film starring Audrey Hepburn. ________________________________________
Madea’s Big Happy Family (PG-13, 2011, Tyler Perry, 106 mins.) The feel-good comedy created by and starring Tyler Perry.
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FRINGE FINALE
h nish with fres fi ig b e th r fo Brace yourself and food and t n e m in ta r te headliner en of the festival! t h ig n l a n fi e t: drink on th roud to presen The Fringe is p
KS SMOKESTAC ave w featuring Joy
MUSIC
The Five (Formerly Parcel 5)
Saturday, Sept. 25 4pm – 10:30pm ALL
FREE to watch
In the event of inclement weather, please look for announcements and updates at rochesterfringe. com and Fringe Social on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
Food & Drink
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Grab a bite from our outstanding food trucks, and a drink from one of the Fringe bars. Please, no outside food and drink allowed.
Parking
See map on page 72 for garage locations; also see Visitor Information on page 8.
FREE!
FRINGE FINALE
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
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TABLE OF CONTENTS KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival 22
KEYBANK ROCHESTER FRINGE FESTIVAL SHOW LISTINGS This year, new and returning venues are excited to provide spaces for the hundreds of local, regional, and national artists who submitted applications in June to perform live at the festival. This year’s lineup also includes live and on-demand performances of all genres, streaming on a variety of platforms in Virtual Fringe. SHOWS ARE ARRANGED by genre, then alphabetical by show title. To find a specific show, browse the Show index below, or use the “Find a Show” search at rochesterfringe.com.
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SHOWS Comedy
30
SHOWS Dance
33
SHOWS Kids Fringe
36
SHOWS Multidisciplinary
41
SHOWS Music
50
SHOWS Spoken Word
52
SHOWS Theatre
63
SHOWS Visual Art & Film
68
Venues
70
Maps
MuCCC Sun., Sep. 19 4:30pm • Sat., Sep. 25 5pm À 45 Minutes All Ages $10 Buckle up for this comedic look at the thin line between magic and juggling. Magicians woo audiences by hiding their skills. Jugglers wow audiences with their skills totally on display. Juggling is magic without the deceit! Manipulating multiple objects as well as the audience is all part of the fun in this show for all ages.
COMEDY
Almost Magic Show!
Bushwhacked Backyard BONFIRE
One Fringe Place Tue., Sep. 14 8:30pm • Thu., Sep. 16 8:30pm • Fri., Sep. 17 9pm • Sat., Sep. 18 9pm • Tue., Sep. 21 8:30pm • Wed., Sep. 22 8:30pm • Thu., Sep. 23 8:30pm • Fri., Sep. 24 8:30pm • Sat., Sep. 25 7:30pm À 60 Minutes 13+ $22 Grab your marshmallows and join the Bushwhacked gals to give summer the send off it deserves. During this unique, casual night of improvised campfire revelry under the moonlit sky, you’ll be transported back to the days of sleepaway camp and make friendships that will last a lifetime. Nothing says Fringe like open flames and two irresponsible improvisers.
Bushwhacked Renaissance: Renew, Revive, Re-diculous
One Fringe Place Tue., Sep. 14 6:30pm • Wed., Sep. 15 6pm • Thu., Sep. 16 6:30pm • Fri., Sep. 17 6:30pm • Sat., Sep. 18 4pm • Sun., Sep. 19 1pm • Sun., Sep. 19 4pm • Sun., Sep. 19 6pm • Mon., Sep. 20 6pm • Tue., Sep. 21 6:30pm • Wed., Sep. 22 6:30pm • Thu., Sep. 23 6:30pm • Fri., Sep. 24 6:30pm • Sat., Sep. 25 12pm • Sat., Sep. 25 2pm • Sat., Sep. 25 5pm À 60 Minutes 18+ $28 Hear ye! Hear ye! Hark and hie thee hither! The time for a rebirthing is nigh! From the depths of the plague on all our houses riseth... BUSHWHACKED! Rejoiceth with the celestial bodies of Bushwhack’d in this once-in-a-lifetime, Renaissance-inspired, immersive artisanal bacchanal. Attending patrons will unmasque their slumbering genius to create the most transcendent works of art the world will never know. Thou won’t want to misseth this joyous nonce! (Or, join us for Bushwhacked Boozy Renaissance on Sat., Sept. 18th at 7:30pm. Tickets are $40 and include two drinks. Strictly. 21+.)
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival 23
COMEDY
Calvinball: Live Improv Comedy
Virtual Fringe Wed., Sep. 15 8:30pm À 55 Minutes 18+ $5 Calvinball is a three-person improv comedy troupe based in Syracuse, NY. The trio has been working together since 2019 and performs regularly as a House Team for Salt City Improv. With an original, long-form improv structure they call “Tri à la Mondo,” their show combines true monologues with fictionalized (and hilarious) interpretations of those stories. “Calvinball: Never played the same way twice.”
Chickens are Loose in The Little
The Little Fri., Sep. 17 9:30pm À 30 Minutes 18+ FREE Comedians have been set free in The Little and they want you to laugh! Join Fowl Play for a performance of three original comedy skits.
Diary 2.0 Substitute Teacher – Tools of the Trade
The Theater at Innovation Square Sun., Sep. 19 3pm • Thu., Sep. 23 6:30pm À 60 Minutes 13+ $15 In a follow-up to the sold-out “Diary of a Substitute Teacher,” Jim Harney answers the all-important question: what does a substitute need in a classroom? A complete survival kit certainly doesn’t hurt, but there’s so much more to learn. In this entertaining sequel, the audience will hear about the strange, hilarious, and not-so-real tools of the trade used to maintain order and strive to get through a day in a classroom. Come prepared to take notes and laugh hysterically.
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
Don’t Stand Up!
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Virtual Fringe Tue., Sep. 14 12am À 41 Minutes / On-Demand All Ages FREE “Don’t Stand Up! A Zoom Comedy,” written and directed by Amy Losi, won The Spirit of the 2020 Hartford Fringe Festival, Excellence in Directing, and Best Ensemble. Audiences raved: “laugh-out-loud funny,” “very clever,” “so much fun,” “great performances,” and “like Noises Off Zoom style.” An amateur theatre group and director (with a short fuse and tall drinking problem) have three days to rehearse and perform a new play over Zoom. What could possibly go wrong?
Stalk-Worthy:
#ROCFRINGE21
CenterStage Theatre at the JCC: Hart Theater Fri., Sep. 17 8pm • Sat., Sep. 18 8:30pm À 60 Minutes 18+ $20 We’re vaxed and we’re back! Uncaged and free at last! What do you get when the EstroFest women are finally released after 16 months in quarantine? Cooped-up-inspired comedic insanity! In a year that made many of us cry, we’ll make you laugh at the absurdity, joy, and silliness of life! New material plus some audience favorites. One weekend only! Grab your tickets before they sell out!
COMEDY
ESTROFEST
The Fixer
Virtual Fringe Tue., Sep. 14 12 am À 30 Minutes / On-Demand All Ages FREE “The Fixer” is a mother’s journey with her daughter born with Cerebral Palsy from birth to age 18. Purky travels with her daughter through a maze of conventional and unconventional therapies, schools, and doctors – some standard, some hysterically funny. “The Fixer” also addresses Purky’s struggle with addiction in grappling with the diagnosis of CP and a future with a very different path for her and her daughter. The ending is a triumph, both for Purky and her daughter.
Fringin’ & Flagons
Made on State: The Commons Wed., Sep. 22 9pm • Thu., Sep. 23 6pm • Fri., Sep. 24 4pm • Sat., Sep. 25 7pm À 60 Minutes 13+ $13 Adventure and comedy await as table-top role playing and collaborative improvisational storytelling meet in a Fringe show like none before! Enter the world of the Unbroken Veil, where the creatures and magic of the Dungeons & Dragons universe exist in the shadows of our present-day Earth. Assemble your party, grab your dice, and roll initiative as you become the hands of fate that can aid or doom our adventurers in this fast-paced, comedic quest that changes every night!
The Funnies NYC
The Interloop Blog Comedy Variety hour!
MuCCC Thu., Sep. 16 8:30pm | Fri., Sep. 24 8:30pm À 60 Minutes 18+ $15 The InnerLoop Blog creators Shane Allen and Michael Colon host a comedy show with Rochester’s funniest comics. Experience these rising stars before they move to a bigger city and forget about us entirely! And since it’s an InnerLoop show, you know they’ll be making fun of everything Rochesterians hold near and dear to our hearts.
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
Virtual Fringe Thu., Sep. 23 9pm • Fri., Sep. 24 8pm • Sat., Sep. 25 8:15pm À 60 Minutes 18+ FREE “The Funnies NYC” is a stand-up comedy show, showcasing the diversity of our nation’s comedy circuits. Comedians from coast-to-coast come together to perform in “The Funnies NYC.”
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COMEDY
The Little Merman from The Black Lagoon
CenterStage Theatre at the JCC: Hart Theater Sat., Sep. 18 3:45pm • Sun., Sep. 19 7pm • Tue., Sep. 21 7pm • Wed., Sep. 22 8:45pm | Fri., Sep. 24 8:45pm À 70 Minutes 18+ $20 The 1950s monster movie meets the classic cartoon fairy tale! A group of scientists traveling the Amazon in search of the legendary “gill-man” come face to face with Ethyl the Merman, Ursula, King Triton, and their friends from “under the sea.”
Lockdown Love Story
Virtual Fringe Tue., Sep. 14 12am À 54 Minutes / On-Demand 18+ $2 “Lockdown Love Story” is a UK-based comedy created by Alice Fforde and Charlie Dryden, highlighting the ups and downs of online dating during a pandemic. Classic love story: Coronavirus strikes, boy is single, boy can’t meet girl, therefore boy goes on dodgy dating app… you know? The show has already received recognition from Ricky Gervais, The Wombles, and Yorkshire Tea! Follow us on social media: Twitter, @LockdownLoveUK; Instagram, @lockdownlovestory; Facebook, @lockdownlovestory.
Madame Chabane
Virtual Fringe Tue., Sep. 14 12am À 15 Minutes / On-Demand 13+ FREE Madame Chabane, a middle-aged North African woman, gives humorous tips on match-making.
Match Made for Me
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
Salena’s Event Room Tue., Sep. 14 7pm • Thu., Sep. 23 7pm • Fri., Sep. 24 7pm À 90 Minutes MA $10 In her third installment of dating woes, the newly engaged Erin Julian shares what it took to get a “Match Made for Me.” Dating is hard work and – as it turns out – so are relationships! Join Erin as she opens up about what it takes to open your heart.
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My Show
Virtual Fringe Tue., Sep. 14 12am À 50 Minutes / On-Demand 18+ $10 When the show can’t “go on,” how do seven professional actors survive? They connect, cork, and curse – a lot! Experience the hysterical and surprisingly true stories of a group of friends during the shutdown. They connected virtually for sanity, they corked for coping purposes, and they cursed because it just felt good. Written by Rochester native, MaryJayne Waddell, and starring fellow Rochestarian, Tom Vazzana, this show is a humorous and heartfelt piece about friendship, resiliency, and moving forward.
Virtual Fringe Tue., Sep. 14 12am À 60 Minutes / On-Demand 13+ $10 Peek over the fence and listen through the hedges – it’s time to join the borough of Nebby Neighbors! This social media-inspired comedy answers your biggest local questions. Is your power out? Is this cat a stray or missing? What is a township? It’s a hilarious day in the neighborhood full of improv, sketch, and stand-up presented by a nationwide ensemble cast that proves funny things happen when neighbors come together. Produced by the girls next door: Sarah Morgan & Beth Geatches.
COMEDY
Nebby Neighbors
Polite Ink. Sketch & Improv Presents: InTents
MuCCC Thu., Sep. 16 7pm À 60 Minutes 13+ $10 Witty, yes. Crazy, a little. Funny, the funniest. Polite Ink. has a style that’s unabashed and abashed at the same time. InTents includes a smattering of original sketches, improv based on audience suggestions, and probably a little singing and dancing for good measure. The show features an impressive cast of experienced local comedic talent who will have you laughing “a little too hard at that.” InTents is the most exciting show you will see today! YOU. WILL. LAUGH.
RIT Improv Presents
The Little Sat., Sep. 18 8:30pm À 30 Minutes 13+ FREE RIT Improv brings its performing troupes back to The Little! Watch as performers crack jokes and create hilarious and memorable characters on the spot.
ShMILF Life
Let’s be Facebook official:
ROCHESTERFRINGEFESTIVAL
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
MuCCC Fri., Sep. 17 7pm • Thu., Sep. 23 7pm À 60 Minutes 13+ $15 Dating when you’re old is hard. Dating when you’re transgender is harder. Dating when you’re old AND transgender? Welcome to the “ShMILF Life.” Comedian/Storyteller PENNY STERLING (“Spy in the House of Men,” “Parents & Children/Husbands & Wives”) tells the hilarious and touching story of trying to find an authentic relationship in a world that wants to objectify her. Content warning: discussion of fetishization and sexual assault.
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COMEDY
SkittleFit Presents: The Sammich (An Evening of Improvised Comedy Theatre)
Virtual Fringe Fri., Sep. 17 9:15pm À 55 Minutes 13+ $5 The cast of SkittleFit has been performing its unique brand of improvised comedy since 2013. In addition to their regular shows as a House Team at Salt City Improv Theatre in Syracuse, NY, they’ve performed at festivals and events including the Albany Improv Festival, the Rochester Fringe Festival, and the Del Close Marathon in NYC. SkittleFit will be performing their own original form, known as “The Sammich” (essentially a high-energy, five-act, improvised comedy.) “SkittleFit: Sometimes twisted, often weird, always funny.”
Soviet Boy With Magic Powers
MuCCC Sat., Sep. 18 12pm • Sun., Sep. 19 3pm À 60 Minutes All Ages $18 What was it like, growing up behind the Iron Curtain? Were Soviet kids raised in drawers, force-fed borscht, and forbidden to smile? Yes, almost. But there was one special boy who learned his grandpa’s magic and developed an antidote to communist propaganda. In this show, award-winning storyteller and a former Soviet boy Sufian Zhemukhov will share heart-warming, delightful childhood stories about how he played with his baby buffalo, memorized books, and tried to solve dark mysteries of the Cold War.
Stages of the Game Teen Improv Troupe
CenterStage Theatre at the JCC: Dawn Lipson Canalside Stage Fri., Sep. 17 6:30pm • Sat., Sep. 18 6:30pm À 60 Minutes All Ages $15 Produced by A Magical Journey Thru Stages, “Stages of the Game Teen Improv Troupe” goes for the gut. Enjoy a hilarious outburst of improvisational comedy performed by some of the brightest (and slightly twisted) teen minds in the Rochester area. Bring the whole family for this fast-paced, interactive show. Audience participation is encouraged, so let your zany ideas tag along too. By the end of an explosive hour, you’ll be howling with laughter and only want more! Coach: Hilary Bluestein-Lyons.
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
Stand-Up Through the Ages
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MuCCC Sat., Sep. 18 6:30pm • Fri., Sep. 24 7pm À 60 Minutes 18+ $12 “Stand-Up Through the Ages” is back! Seven comedians, ranging from their twenties to their eighties, share their unique and hilarious observations, proving that whatever your age, life is definitely a laughing matter. The popular performers from previous sold-out shows return, bringing original jokes galore. Enjoy the wit of Charlie Frusci, Lynn Gislason, Tori Hosier, Miriam Zinter, Dan Mulcahy, John Rigney, and host Phyllis Reed.
The Theater at Innovation Square Thu., Sep. 16 8pm • Fri., Sep. 17 6pm • Sat., Sep. 18 8pm • Sun., Sep. 19 5pm À 60 Minutes 18+ $18.00 Stand-up comedy, feel-good songs, and interactive characters are what these three, curvy, funny ladies from NYC are serving up hot! Weight is at the heart of their comedy, but you’ll leave feeling lighter than ever. Our comic sheroes: Mary Dimino (winner Best Female Comedian MAC, winner Best Solo Show FringeNYC, Comedy Central, NBC), Carolann Valentino (winner Best of Show Canadian Fringe, VH-1, ABC), and Tracy Rosenberg (Atlantic City’s Tropicana, Off-Broadway “My Big Gay Italian Wedding”). “What energy!” “Empowering.” “They’re FLABulous!”
COMEDY
Supersized Comedy
Unleashed! Improv Presents: Other People’s Shows
The Theater at Innovation Square Wed., Sep. 15 8pm • Mon., Sep. 20 8pm À 60 Minutes 13+ $8.00 The KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival is chock-full of amazing shows, but you can’t possibly see them all. That’s why Unleashed! Improv will happily perform their interpretations of other people’s shows for you – live and as off-the-leash as ever! The troupe will base improvised pieces off of other Fringe show descriptions. So look them over, suggest the one you want to see (lovingly mangled) the most, and then watch what happens!
The Unsuspecting Sexiest Male
Virtual Fringe Tue., Sep. 14 12am À 30 Minutes / On-Demand 18+ $7.00 This is a story about an everyday person who worked as a bar manager at one of the biggest bars in Boston. One day, he got tired of watching other people live their lives and took a leap of faith in an effort to live a life of no regrets. What followed was the life he’d always dreamt of.
William Shakespeare’s Sharknado
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
Virtual Fringe Thu., Sep. 17 7:15pm • Sat., Sep. 18 8pm À 40 Minutes 13+ $5 “William Shakespeare’s Sharknado” is an original tour-de-farce, short parody of the campy, modern classic of pulp cinema, “Sharknado,” but written in the style of William Shakespeare. Appealing to fans of the Bard and fans of really bad movies (not to mention fans of natural disasters involving airborne sharks), this show – penned by Fringe veteran and humorist Matthew Moore – will be performed live via Zoom for your apocalyptic pleasure. “Tis a Tempest of a show,” raveth the critics.
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COMEDY DANCE
At Home with Garth Fagan Dance
Garth Fagan Dance Studio Theater Wed., Sep. 15 7pm • Thu., Sep. 16 7pm • Fri., Sep. 17 7pm • Sat., Sep. 18 2pm • Wed., Sep. 22 7pm • Thu., Sep. 23 7pm • Fri., Sep. 24 7pm • Sat., Sep. 25 2pm À 60 Minutes All Ages $20 Attendees will get a rare glimpse and insight into Garth Fagan Dance as it reemerges despite the time of Covid. Meet new dancers performing perennial audience favorite, “Prelude.” Enjoy excerpts of “Landscape for 10;” Garth Fagan’s tribute to Frederick Douglass, “The North Star;” and a work-in-progress by Bessie Award winner & Garth Fagan Dance Rehearsal Director Norwood “PJ” Pennewell. Performances will be narrated by Bessie Award winner & Garth Fagan Dance School Director/ Ass’t. Rehearsal Director Natalie Rogers-Cropper. Program subject to change.
Capsule (32020-32520)
Virtual Fringe Tue., Sep. 14 12am À 30 Minutes / On-Demand 5+ FREE “Capsule (32020-32520)” was created during the initial spread of the COVID-19 virus to the U.S. in March 2020. A series of improvisations captured over the course of six days, the work documents the geographical and emotional transition of moving out of school dorms back into a family home. “Capsule” exists now much as it did then, relatively untouched but decontextualized. Enclosed within it is remarkable tragedy, grief, uncertainty, and fear told through movement, body, and place.
Castaways
Theatre at the JCC: Hart Theater Tue., Sep. 14 9:15pm • Sun. Sep. 19 12pm • Sat. Sept. 25 4pm À 60 Minutes 13+ From $7.00 You are invited to a dance film centered around the themes of Black Lives Matter and LGBTQ+ livelihood. There is a lack of representation for individuals who meet at the intersection of Black, Brown, and Queer. This cast of three disadvantaged youth of the Black & LGBTQ+ communities tell their stories through acting, movement, and spoken word. “Castaways” is a film constructed for us by us, as well as a reason to come together and promote community healing.
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
Dancing Out of The Dust
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Rochester Contemporary Art Center: Side Lawn Sat., Sep. 18 8pm • Sat., Sep. 25 8pm À 60 Minutes All Ages FREE A group of dancers will plant themselves twoby-two in the East Ave and Scio Street area. When you come across the artists, follow them! They will gather in unison at their final destination adjacent to Ong Siraphisut’s public art piece “Breathe” located on the outside wall of Rochester Contemporary Art Center. This piece was created to demonstrate our continuous need for connection.
The Bowl at Martin Luther King Jr Park Sat., Sep. 18 1pm À 270 Minutes All Ages FREE Now in its sixth year, Fringe Street Beat is THE all-out dance battle featuring top talent from across the Northeast, along with MC ha-Meen of Ithaca, DJ Victorious, and competition judges. Teams compete in 3x3 battles for the title of Fringe Street Beat Champions and a cash prize of $1,200. From breakdancing to allstyle, teams bring their A-game to every eye-popping round, starting with prelims and leading to the final dance battle.
DANCE
Fringe Street Beat
In Process of Being
CenterStage Theatre at the JCC: Hart Theater Sun., Sep. 19 5:30pm • Tue., Sep. 21 9pm À 60 Minutes All Ages $12 “In Process of Being” is a collaborative performance produced by Frazee Feet Dance that combines the works of six choreographers and live music into one show. With a cast of 17 movement artists, each of these works highlights the different ways we embody ourselves, navigate space, and PROCESS our humanity. This is not just a performance – it is an opportunity to see, experience, reflect, and heal.
Love & Liberation
CenterStage Theatre at the JCC: Hart Theater Fri., Sep. 17 6:30pm • Sat., Sep. 18 5:30pm • Sun., Sep. 19 1:30pm À 60 Minutes All Ages $10 Join the dancers of The Adinkra Project as they take you on a journey filled with stories of love and liberation within the African diaspora. These dance pieces will make you think, smile, laugh, and remember the connectedness of all people around the world!
NO HOME BUT THE HEART: An Assembly of Memories
Piya se Naina: A Semi-Classical Indian Dance Recital
The Little Sat., Sep. 18 12pm À 15 Minutes All Ages FREE This is an Indian semi-classical dance recital choreographed by Namrata Nagar and set on the Sufi song “Main to piya se naina.” The performance will let the audience rejoice in three universal languages: music, dance, and love. Based on the poetry of 13th-century Sufi saint Hazmat Amir Khusro, this song talks about a lady’s dare and joy in meeting her lover. Composed by Ram Sampath, the song is available on Coke Studio @ MTV YouTube channel in Sona Mohapatra’s unique voice.
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
Virtual Fringe Tue., Sep. 14 12am À 60 Minutes / On-Demand All Ages $10 Daystar/Rosalie Jones has written and choreographed a dance-drama based on her mother’s stories dating from the 1837 Northern Plains Smallpox Epidemic. Four generations of women tell of 150 years of government interventions causing the breakdown and resettlement of native peoples of the US and Canada. Despite cultural disruption and loss of land, the people survived. If you missed seeing this production in past years, here is your chance to see it virtually! Local dancer/actors are featured. facebook. com/DaystarIndianAmerica/
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COMEDY DANCE
The Queen’s Suite
The Theater at Innovation Square Sat., Sep. 18 2pm • Sun., Sep. 19 1pm À 60 Minutes All Ages $20 Kilowatt Dance Theater specializes in the roots of jazz dance such as swing, lindy hop, and blues. These early styles of jazz are uniquely woven into more contemporary dance techniques of today. Join us Sept. 18 and 19 for an evening of dance, celebrating the music of such American jazz legends as Ella Fitzgerald and Duke Ellington. The performance will include live jazz musicians guaranteed to make you want to dance in your seats!
Re(action)
The Theater at Innovation Square Sun., Sep. 19 6:30pm • Wed., Sep. 22 6pm À 60 Minutes All Ages $10 Buffalo’s Donegan Dance Exploration makes its official debut at Rochester’s Fringe! In “Re(action),” a contemporary concert dance performance, choreographer Abigail Ruggles explores the idea of Newton’s Third Law of Motion, which – simply stated – says that every action has a reaction. This concept is exemplified in both a literal and metaphorical sense throughout the work’s five pieces. Donegan Dance Exploration is excited to share this journey with you!
Silent Disco
One Fringe Place Fri., Sep. 17 11pm • Sat., Sep. 18 11pm • Fri., Sep. 24 11pm • Sat., Sep. 25 11pm À 180 Minutes 18+ $18 One Fringe Place is THE place for our signature giant dance party with a Fringe-y twist: you won’t hear a sound until you slip on a set of headphones. Wait, what? Is that YMCA on one channel, Calvin Harris on the second and Cardi B on the third? A three-channel system and live DJs let you switch up your music (and mood) at the touch of a button. It’s an unforgettable experience you have to see – and not hear – to believe. (Full proof of vaccination required for entry.)
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
Velocity Showcase
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The Little Sat., Sep. 18 5pm À 15 Minutes 13+ FREE Velocity, RIT’S Urban Dance Crew, is an SG-recognized, student-run organization that aims to foster a positive and supportive environment so that members can freely express themselves. We share our collective love for dance with RIT and the Rochester community to inspire others to live out their passions. We also host urban dance workshops on campus, which are open to the public. Through perseverance and a constant drive toward our personal and team goals, we hope to showcase our passion for expression.
Wild Gestures Dance: A Compilation of Repertory
The Theater at Innovation Square Wed., Sep. 15 6pm • Sat., Sep. 25 3pm À 60 Minutes All Ages $15 This evening-length performance is a compilation of contemporary dance repertory. With highly gestural and energetic movement vocabulary, Zoe Walders showcases choreographic works that she has been creating over the past three years from Brooklyn to Rochester. The show features seven Rochester dancers: Amya Brice, Zachary Frazee, Elizabeth Kaltenbach, Wynton Rice, Solange Rodrigues, Erika Ruegemer, and Zoe Walders.
Central Library: Dorris Carlson Reading Garden Sat., Sep. 18 10:30am À 30 Minutes 5+ FREE Grab your binoculars and your favorite stuffed animal as we go on a musical animal scavenger hunt with the BenAnna Band! This interactive musical concert will take us to the farm, the zoo, and everywhere in between while getting all our sillies out. Ben and Anna have been making music with neuro-diverse and neuro-typical kiddos of all ages and abilities for more than five years and can’t wait to make music with you!
KIDS FRINGE
Animal Scavenger Hunt with BenAnna Band
Connections
Virtual Fringe Tue., Sep. 14 12am À 32 Minutes / On-Demand 5+ FREE Students at The Harley School participate in a collaborative performance/fine art project around identity, exploring what it means to be an individual, and connections to others in a community. Students participated in a series of Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion and SocialEmotional Learning classes. Their exploration includes movement, choreography, developing original scenes, and constructing identity suits, inspired by artist Nick Cave. The central idea comes from thinking: what does “this is me” mean? And exploring: “this is me, with you.
Disco Kids
One Fringe Place Sat., Sep. 18 12:30pm À 60 Minutes All Ages FREE Back by popular demand. Big party for pint-size dance machines takes over the OUTDOORS at One Fringe Place. The next generation of club kids is here, popping and pouting up a storm. Disco Kids is a nonstop, fun-filled, dance extravaganza that is the talk of kid town. Lights, music, and glow sticks. Welcome to the Fringe’s not-so-silent disco.
Feather Moves
Imagination Destination Adventure with BenAnna Band
Central Library: Dorris Carlson Reading Garden Sat., Sep. 18 3:30pm À 30 Minutes 5+ FREE Let’s go on a musical journey together! “Where,” you ask? Well, anywhere your imagination will take you! Maybe to outer space, or under the sea – the possibilities are endless. This interactive music concert will encourage your kiddos to be a part of the fun. BenAnna Band is a musical duo featuring an Early Childhood Musician and Music Therapist that create engaging and child-centered music to get the whole family moving and grooving!
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
Virtual Fringe Tue., Sep. 14 12am À 27 Minutes / On-Demand All Ages FREE Exercise. Imagine. Create. PUSH Physical Theatre’s “Feather Moves” is a movement class led by Artistic Director Heather Stevenson (“Feather”), a teaching artist for 25 years. Grab some comfy clothes and join her in your classroom or living room. Gain physical skills, stimulate imagination, and realize the joy in movement.
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KIDSCOMEDY FRINGE
Juggling Workshop
Lincoln Library: Outdoor Vestibule Sat., Sep. 18 2pm • Sat., Sep. 25 2pm À 60 Minutes All Ages FREE Learn how to make your own DIY Juggling Bean Bags and how to juggle them in this fun, hands-on workshop by Rochester’s own Ted Baumhauer, Ed. D.! Juggling is a life skill that builds coordination and focus – plus it’s just plain fun! We’ll get you started and let you know about the Rochester juggling clubs and how to get connected.
Kiddo Summer Jams with BenAnna Band
CenterStage Theatre at the JCC: Dawn Lipson Canalside Stage Sun., Sep. 19 11am À 60 Minutes All Ages FREE Kids will go bananas for BenAnna Band! BenAnna Band is a high-energy musical duo that will have kids and adults singing, dancing, and playing along on live instruments during this concert-style performance. Bring your dancing shoes, some instruments (homemade creativity gets extra points!) and big smiles to make this Kiddo Summer Jams Concert a time to remember.
Mama G’s Story Time Roadshow
Virtual Fringe Sat., Sep. 18 4:45pm • Sun., Sep. 19 4:45pm • Sat., Sep. 25 4:45pm À 55 Minutes 5+ $10 “Everyone’s favourite pantomime dame,” (Metro) is Zooming her fabulously funny family show from the UK to Rochester. Mama G will share original stories about being who you want and loving who you are! You’ll get to meet fantastic unicorns, fashionista dinosaurs, and couple of feuding fairies! Get ready for an uplifting and interactive hour of fun with puppets and song. “The show is perfectly suited for all audiences and we as a family adored it.” -- Spy in the Stalls.
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
Pumpkin Painting
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One Fringe Place Sat., Sep. 18 12pm À 180 Minutes All Ages $5 Pumpkins go to great lengths to become wildly imaginative creations at our super-creative, OUTDOOR Pumpkin Painting jamboree. Turn One Fringe Place into a giant pumpkin patch, kids! Cost: $5 per pumpkin. Pay at the door. (AND you get to take it home!)
Made on State: Fuse and Anchor Fri., Sep. 17 11am • Fri., Sep. 17 1pm • Fri., Sep. 17 3pm • Sat., Sep. 18 11am • Sat., Sep. 18 1pm • Sat., Sep. 18 3pm • Sun., Sep. 19 11am • Sun., Sep. 19 1pm • Sun., Sep. 19 3pm À 60 Minutes All Ages $5 Sit for a spell and we’ll tell you a tale, perhaps about piggies, or maybe a whale? Could be you’ll hear of a far-away place, or a dashing inventor traveling through space. Stories will take you from here off to where. They’ll make you feel silly, or stand up your hair! Our “Stories for Little Ones” will truly engage. Come see the whole series on the Airigami Stage. Nearly forgot! We should also say: ALLERGY ALERT – latex balloons on display.
KIDS FRINGE
Stories for Little Ones
Tenderness Along the Way (Ternura En El Camino)
CenterStage Theatre at the JCC: Dawn Lipson Canalside Stage Sun., Sep. 19 4pm • Sat., Sep. 25 4pm À 60 Minutes 13+ $11 “Tenderness Along the Way (Ternura En El Camino),” a whimsical new play by Candide Carrasco, follows the pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela of two little girls, their cowardly dog Pitufo, and the coquette: Agata the cat. They meet fabulous characters like the Sandman who sells dreams, and the beautiful Moon. From the people who brought you “Chocolate Casi Amargo” and so many other hysterical comedies, this is a family show, suitable for audiences 13 and up. In English and Spanish.
ROCHESTERFRINGE.COM
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
Ready to go? Purchase tickets 24/7 at
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MULTIDISCIPLINARY COMEDY
8 Chamber Hunger Orchestra
The Spirit Room’s Conjure Box Sat., Sep. 18 9:30pm • Sat., Sep. 25 9pm À 60 Minutes MA $18 Acclaimed poet Rachel McKibbens explores the complex landscape of grief, gender, mental illness, and motherhood as told through a daring menagerie of drag performances, a carnival sideshow act, and spoken word.
BIODANCE/Elemental Forces
The Theater at Innovation Square Tue., Sep. 14 8pm • Sat., Sep. 18 6pm À 60 Minutes All Ages $14 | Students (w/ ID): $10.00 BIODANCE/Missy Pfohl Smith, Dave Rivello Ensemble, and W. Michelle Harris collaboratively create a multi-sensory performance, premiering an interwoven tapestry of dance, sound, and media influenced by natural elements and forces now catapulting beyond human control. This all-new follow-up to sold-out shows from Fringes past will dynamically consider climate catastrophe as it parallels rising human-to-human conflicts in our world, looking to humanity for a future of hope.
Captain Ambivalent Is In Denial
Virtual Fringe Tue., Sep. 14 12am À 44 Minutes / On-Demand 13+ $9 Do you find that sometimes real life’s too hard to face? Escape to the fantasy world of Captain Ambivalent as he shares his comedy songs, his imaginary friends’ comedy songs, his toys, and his denial. Says Plays with John & Wendy: “...amazingly funny songs, wild costumes, and wonderfully cheesy props.” This show was created under “stay at home orders” for the 2020 Elgin Fringe Festival as a live, solo performance experience with some very special effects.
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
Cirque du Fringe: AfterParty
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The Italian Circus Tent Tue., Sep. 14 7:30pm • Wed., Sep. 15 7:30pm • Thu., Sep. 16 7:30pm • Fri., Sep. 17 8pm • Sat., Sep. 18 6pm • Sat., Sep. 18 9pm • Sun., Sep. 19 7pm • Mon., Sep. 20 7:30pm • Tue., Sep. 21 7:30pm • Wed., Sep. 22 7:30pm • Thu., Sep. 23 7:30pm • Fri., Sep. 24 7:30pm • Sat., Sep. 25 6pm • Sat., Sep. 25 9pm À 90 Minutes 16+ Prices starting at: single seats $29 / VIP tables $165 All new for 2021! Let’s eat some cake, drink some bubbly, and leave it all out on the dancefloor! DJ A-Ball will be spinning the nostalgic beats while women-led variety entertainers delight and amaze! Polish up your chicken dance and get ready to toast the wedding couple alongside international party starters, the comedy trio Happy Hour (Matt Morgan, Mark Gindick, Ambrose Martos), for a reception and afterparty unlike any other! Created by Matt Morgan. 16+ only. See page 14 for more info.
MuCCC Sat., Sep. 25 2pm • Sat., Sep. 25 6:30pm À 60 Minutes 18+ $10 Commotion Dance Theater returns to Fringe with two new works. “Fairy Tales of Our Own Devising” is a triptych of surreal dances directed by Laurie MacFarlane and created in collaboration with three composers and three visual artists. The piece opens a window into a fantastic and mysterious universe. Ruben T. Ornelas presents an inter-disciplinary work using dance and film that portrays the U.S./Mexico borderlands as a place of shared, lived experience.
Experiential Seated Dinners
Made on State: Fuse and Anchor Tue., Sep. 21 6pm • Thu., Sep. 23 6pm À 150 Minutes MA FROM $150 Fuse and Anchor and Erin McDonald Co present an interactive, styled, tasting dinner for two nights during the Fringe. The first evening will be with Mortalis Brewery and Julia K Caters. The second evening will be with Embark Cidery and Julia K Caters. Each evening will feature a delicious menu paired beautifully with each brewery’s tasty compositions. The evening will feature an immersive design from internationally recognized Airigami and Erin McDonald. ALLERGY ALERT: latex balloons on display.
MULTIDISCIPLINARY
Commotion Dance Theater
Flairs from Brazil at The International Plaza
The International Plaza Sun., Sep. 19 1pm À 240 Minutes All Ages FREE “Flairs from Brazil” is part of the Fiesta en la Plaza Celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month, featuring Chorro, Forró, Capoeria, and Brazilian drums! Rosa Boemia specializes in performing Brazilian choro music, a popular instrumental music genre that’s upbeat, joyous, and syncopated. Joining the party are Estrelas do Norte, Capoeira Angola Quintal, and the Brazilian Drums Ensemble by Julio Pabón, most of whom are faculty musicians from Eastman School of Music. @theinternaitonalplazaroc.
Growing Up Ringside: A One Woman Show by Mina Liccione
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
The Theater at Innovation Square Fri., Sep. 24 9pm • Sat., Sep. 25 7pm À 90 Minutes 13+ $15 Mina Liccione’s new show, “Growing Up Ringside,” weaves together hilarious and heartfelt stories from her New York upbringing as the daughter of an Italian-American boxing promoter. From wise guys to Muhammad Ali, and from Broadway dreams to present day in Dubai – where she pioneered a comedy scene – Mina combines comedy, rhythm, spoken word, and multimedia to reveal her talents as a performing artist and writer.
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MULTIDISCIPLINARY COMEDY
Lobby Ad-Libs!
Sloan Performing Arts Center Lobby Tue., Sep. 21 7pm À 60 Minutes All Ages FREE Add your creative spirit to celebrate and preview the Fall 2021 opening of the new Sloan Performing Arts Center at the University of Rochester’s River Campus in “Lobby Ad-Libs.” This hour-long, guided improvisation and open-mic style event is a gathering of music, dance, spoken word, and you name it! Audience/performers will collaborate, communicate, and celebrate as they mark the newest of Fringe venues with extemporaneous mirth, imaginative play, and communal fun.
Metamorphosis
CenterStage Theatre at the JCC: Hart Theater Sat., Sep. 25 12pm À 60 Minutes All Ages FREE Join the Arc of Monroe’s Community Arts Connection in presenting “Metamorphosis,” an original musical about the process of growth and change. .
Mobius Squared (Work in Progress)
The Little Fri., Sep. 17 6pm À 45 Minutes 18+ FREE “Mobius Squared” is the story about four young people who travel to a new dimension to face their own personal struggles and issues. Hypnotized by a counselor, they are sent on a mission to save the Earth and find the solution to scientific and personal problems, but each has to go through their own journey to find the answer. This performance includes movement, sign-mime, dance, gestures, ASL poetry, songs, and storytelling. Presented in ASL and spoken language.
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
Moby Dick Bemshi!
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Virtual Fringe Sat., Sep. 25 8pm À 60 Minutes All Ages FREE “Moby Dick Bemshi!” combines story, libretto, and song with the 1926 film, “Moby Dick,” to tell the tale of Herman Melville’s creation of his saga. It’s an imagining of how it happened: fleeing one country for another, falling in love with an Irish revolutionary, and – finally – wresting with an angel who challenges him to express humanity’s fate by writing a masterpiece. Sail along with us for this giddy, full-circle fantasia as its waves sweep the shores!
Virtual Fringe Tue., Sep. 14 12am À 20 Minutes / On-Demand All Ages FREE A fantasy circus-arts film conceived and performed by Bird’s Eye View Circus staff, “The Night Shift” follows the family-friendly adventures of a custodian who loses his way and finds himself lost in another dimension. Enjoy physical theatre, aerial acrobatics, juggling, combat, and much more as he searches for a way back home.
Oh Boy: Poverty, Polyamory, and All My Poor Decisions in Between
Virtual Fringe Tue., Sep. 14 12am À 46 Minutes / On-Demand 13+ $5 Based on a true story of queerness, social politics, poverty, gender identity shifts, and acceptance in the face of adversity, “Oh Boy” is a work of lo-fi, high-concept video storytelling. Follow Alex Hill on his journey through genre-bending monologues and dance performances, all in a quick 45 minutes.
MULTIDISCIPLINARY
The Night Shift
RagTag: A Circus in Stitches
The Theater at Innovation Square Thu., Sep. 23 8pm • Fri., Sep. 24 5:30pm • Sat., Sep. 25 1pm À 60 Minutes All Ages $15 Follow our threadbare, yarn-spinning characters as they explore a new patchwork world. You’ll be entwined with mismatched artists as they stitch together a tapestry of talents. This show features high-flying, knot-tying, gravity-defying aerialists, loopy jugglers, musicians that pull at your heart strings, and comedy that will leave you in stitches. Join us as we tell tales of support, fear, friendship, and the connections which inevitably interweave themselves in our lives.
Remnants
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
Fort Schuyler at Ellison Park Fri., Sep. 17 5:30pm • Sun., Sep. 19 1:30pm À 90 Minutes All Ages FREE Weaving dance, photography, visual art, and storytelling, creators Rose Pasquarello Beauchamp, Trish Corcoran, Andrea A. Gluckman, and Stella Wang unveil the human and ecological memories of Ellison Park from its indigenous beginning through current times. Whispers of false possession echo in the performing bodies seeking to be aware. An immersive art installation with contribution from composer Greg Woodsbie, this piece will activate the site while connecting people in shared discovery of the many places they might inhabit and can interrogate.
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MULTIDISCIPLINARY COMEDY
ROCeltic: A Poet’s Song and Dance
Virtual Fringe Tue., Sep. 14 12am À 45 Minutes / On-Demand All Ages $10 A collection of original compositions and choreographic works based on Irish poetry, “ROCeltic: A Poet’s Song and Dance” celebrates Irish heritage past, present, and future through music and dance. Striving to break down barriers between genres, these collaborative creations are progressive but have a traditional foundation. This multidisciplinary show will surely excite, intrigue, and captivate artists and audiences of all ages.
Trivia CITY: An Arts & Culture Quiz
One Fringe Place Thu., Sep. 23 7:30pm À 60 Minutes All Ages FREE Join host CITY News for an arts, culture, and all-things-Rochester trivia night!
Waiting...
Virtual Fringe Tue., Sep. 14 12am À 8 Minutes / On-Demand 18+ FREE This performance is part of a personal project focusing on mental health and articulating one’s state of mind. The experience of waiting differs in an infinite number of ways, from the smallest act to the indefinite ones. “I am waiting” is a statement related to many personal narratives, goals, relationships, and mundane everyday events, as well as abstract thoughts about internal and external waiting, and waiting consciously or subconsciously for long periods of time.
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
Womba Africa Drumming and Dance
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MuCCC Wed., Sep. 15 7pm • Sat., Sep. 18 4:30pm À 60 Minutes All Ages $20 Womba Africa is a cultural drum and dance group formed in the town of Nungua. The members are part of the Ga Adangbe People in greater Accra, Ghana, a tribe with a very rich history and culture quite distinct from other major ethnic groups. The Womba Africa band typically performs in the Ga language.
The World of Teaching Artists ROC
Made on State: The Commons Wed., Sep. 22 4pm • Wed., Sep. 22 5pm • Wed., Sep. 22 6pm • Wed., Sep. 22 7pm À 60 Minutes All Ages $5 Join us for a variety show featuring sample performances and workshops with teaching artists that make up the collaborative known as Teaching Artists ROC. With your ticket, show up for any of the scheduled time slots and stay for as long as you’d like. You’ll see a variety of teaching artists doing everything from stage shows to small workshop presentations that are suitable for schools, festivals, and learners of all ages.
Aerial Arts of Rochester Fri., Sep. 17 7:30pm • Sat., Sep. 18 4:30pm • Sat., Sep. 18 7:30pm À 50 Minutes 13+ $18 Get ready to turn it up in this “Amplified” acrobatic and music show that will blow you away! Rock on and rock out to some of the most rockin’ hits of all time. Experience a mixture of uplifting aerial acts, luminous hula-hoopers, and singers that slay. This dynamic, gravity-defying show will leave you feeling great.
MUSIC
Amplified
And One More For The Road
Java’s Cafe Wed., Sep. 15 7pm • Tue., Sep. 21 7pm • Wed., Sep. 22 7pm À 60 Minutes All Ages FREE On April 20, 1993 at the Rochester War Memorial, a legend made one more stand: Frank Sinatra. Daniel Henry recreates the sounds of this “moving and magical evening” as he presents the 16 songs that Sinatra sang that night. Sinatra’s choices for this concert ranged across his career and demonstrated respect for his fans. Daniel Henry will bring a shimmer, with grace and humility, to the great legend whose career spanned more than five decades.
Andrew Flory - Classical Guitar Made of State: The Commons
Sat., Sep. 18 12pm • Sun., Sep. 19 2pm • Fri., Sep. 24 8pm
À 60 Minutes All Ages $5
Andrew Flory is a classical guitarist currently working on his Doctor of Musical Arts degree at the Eastman School of Music, where he studies with Nicholas Goluses. Andrew received his Master’s degree in 2020 from the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland and, while living abroad, had the opportunity to perform in Scotland, Spain, and Ireland. You can find videos, recordings, and learn more about Andrew at https://www. andrewfloryguitar.com/
Bill Dresnack, Original Songs by and for Bill and Other Strange Minds
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
The Little Sat., Sep. 18 7pm À 45 Minutes 18+ FREE Bill Dresnack – Accountant, Lawyer, Professor, Raconteur, Patient, Dancer, Comedian, Storyteller, Adult in Training and Practicing Human – performs original songs inspired by whatever crossed his mind over the past five years (or maybe six). Musical heroes include Neil Young, Dylan, the Beatles, the Stones, Petty, The Dead, Jack White, and the Chipmunks.
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COMEDY MUSIC
Bill Schmitt & The Bluesmasters
The Theater at Innovation Square Thu., Sep. 16 6pm À 60 Minutes 13+ $5 Welcome to Bill Schmitt & The Bluesmasters, a high-energy band that’s been successfully playing a wide variety of venues in Western NY for more than a dozen years. Their music is an exciting mix of blues, rock, jazz, and swing guaranteed to get your foot tappin’ from the first note to the last!
Brazilian Forró with Estrelas do Norte
Java’s Cafe Thu., Sep. 23 7pm À 60 Minutes All Ages FREE The North Stars Forró Band brings the upbeat, down-home music of northeastern Brazil to this year’s Fringe. You might describe “forró” as Brazilian cowboy music, but with the irresistible rhythms you’d expect from a Latin-American folk tradition. Enjoy fancy fiddling, tight vocal harmonies, and ample opportunity for audience participation from Darien Lamen on vocals and cavaquinho, Anaar Desai-Stephens on violin, Jennifer Kyker on vocals and percussion, Ken Luk on bass, and Dominic Marini on zabumba.
A Cappella Showcase: Eight Beat Measure & Encore
The Little Sat., Sep. 18 5:45pm À 30 Minutes All Ages FREE Two of RIT’s a cappella groups join forces for a half-hour of great vocal music! Eight Beat Measure is a TTBB a cappella group that raises the heat with exciting performances and powerful tunes. Encore is an SSAA a cappella group that entertains audiences with its lively energy and fun-loving presence.
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
A Cappella Showcase: RIT Brick City Singers & Kaminari
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The Little Sat., Sep. 25 12:30pm À 30 Minutes All Ages FREE Two of RIT’s a cappella groups join forces for a half-hour of great vocal music! The Brick City Singers are a TTBB a cappella group specializing in bringing tropical vibes to entertaining shows. Kaminari is an all-gender a cappella group that puts on electrifying performances of songs that originate in Japan.
Charming Disaster’s Musical Tarot Show
The Spirit Room’s Conjure Box Thu., Sep. 23 10pm • Fri., Sep. 24 7pm • Fri., Sep. 24 10pm • Sat., Sep. 25 5pm À 60 Minutes 13+ $15 Delightfully dark musical duo Charming Disaster performs an interactive, musical Tarot reading, with audience members selecting cards that not only determine the set list but also predict the future! Featuring playfully macabre original songs inspired by death, crime, myth, magic, folklore, and the occult, performed with ukulele, guitar, virtuosic foot percussion, and theatrical flair.
Virtual Fringe Sat., Sep. 25 7:15pm À 60 Minutes All Ages FREE Chasing Thunder is a Fairport, NY-based band founded in September 2019 by Robert Kolb (lead singer, songwriter, guitar, harmonica) and featuring Suzanne Roscoe (lead/harmony singer), Matt Sulyma (lead guitar), Bob Ligenza (drums), Scott Seyfried (lead guitar, vocals), and Marc McCrossen (bass, vocals, 12-string guitar). They play a wide variety of rock-n-roll.
MUSIC
Chasing Thunder Band
Cobbs Hill Consort
The Spirit Room’s Conjure Box Sun., Sep. 19 5pm • Mon., Sep. 20 6pm • Mon., Sep. 20 6pm À 60 Minutes All Ages FREE The Cobbs Hill Consort is a unique Rochester acoustic ensemble featuring the Native American flute, supported by the living sounds of guitar, harp, drums, and percussion. The music is soothing, emotive, and transporting, engaging listeners in a journey of the heart. Jefferson Svengsouk (Native American flute) and Sandy Gianniny (harp) are also members of UR Medicine’s Palliative Care team. This Fringe favorite returns live and in-person to share the gift of healing energies and creative collaboration.
An evening with Sam Nitsch
Rochester Music Hall of Fame Tue., Sep. 14 7:30pm À 60 Minutes All Ages FREE Sam Nitsch is a performer specializing in the fusion of diverse musical styles and techniques. After beginning his career as a violinist, Nitsch developed a distinct voice through the exploration and inclusion of multiple instruments and technology into his music. Emerging from the Rochester music scene in 2015, Nitsch has played more than 100 venues throughout the Northeast. In concert, Nitsch loops violin, bass, drums, vocals, and electric and acoustic ukuleles to cover an eclectic library from decades past.
Fiesta en la Plaza!
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
The International Plaza Thu., Sep. 16 5pm À 180 Minutes All Ages FREE The Hispanic Heritage Month opening celebration at The International Plaza will feature Upstate NY’s foremost Latin jazz ensemble: Mambo Kings! The virtuosic quintet is recognized for its explosive blend of Afro-Cuban rhythms and jazz improvisation. Join us for Market Day and learn about the Latino community development in the area, while celebrating with live entertainment and the fantastic vibe on the Plaza. Vending opportunities available. Follow us on social media: @theinternationalplazaroc.
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COMEDY MUSIC
Global Beats at The International Plaza
The International Plaza Thu., Sep. 23 5pm À 180 Minutes All Ages FREE The International Plaza features Womba Africa Drumming and Dance on Market Day! Join well-known local performers for a public drumming event as part of the Hispanic Heritage Month Celebration. Drumming to the beat of our community’s heart with Bomba, Salsa, Hip Hop, Plena, and more by Borinquen Dance Academy. Vending, food, music, special guests, and more! @theinternaitonalplazaroc. #lamarketaroc
Gospel Sunday
One Fringe Place Sun., Sep. 19 2pm À 90 Minutes All Ages FREE Sing, Sunday, SING. Reverend Rickey Harvey of Mt. Olivet Baptist Church leads an afternoon of sacred song by some of Rochester’s best gospel artists. Be uplifted by the renowned Zion Hill Mass Choir and be moved by Pastor Harvey’s own group: Reverend Rickey Harvey and Truly Committed. Not to be missed.
HOWIE LESTER & BENNY BLEU: THE STOLEN SONG, Music and Story From Around the World The Little
FESTIVAL.
Fri., Sep. 24 9pm À 45 Minutes All Ages FREE Savor the Sublime! Celebrate the Absurd! Music and story of wild imagining from around the world. Join in with the Intergalactic Kazoo Orchestra! Root Music! Himalayan-Appalachian Fusion! Transcend the Mundane with HOWIE, BENNY, and BARBARA JOHNSTON on percussion – two-time award-winners at the INTERNATIONAL FOLK MUSIC FILM
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
In Bloom: A Short by Marigold
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The Little Sat., Sep. 18 4pm À 30 Minutes 13+ FREE If you like indie rock, supporting local artists, or just want to see ‘those guys with the shopping cart’ – look no further! We’re Marigold, a student-run, student-led rock band on the RIT campus. We pride ourselves on our funky, unique sound and dedication to using music to bring people together. We’ve come a long way from our ‘shopping cart full of drums’ days, and – one livestream, one Brickstock, and two singles later – we’re ready to show Fringe what we’ve got!
J.Clancy Live!
CenterStage Theatre at the JCC: Dawn Lipson Canalside Stage Fri., Sep. 24 9pm À 60 Minutes 18+ $15 Upstate New York’s golden child formerly known as J.Clancy is a breath of fresh air! He delivers an original yet witty and charismatic flow to the rap game. Emerging from the inner city of Rochester, NY, he connects directly with his brand as the “Inner-City Kid.” His versatility and blend of raw, heartfelt lyrics provide value to any music lover’s ears. This is a performance you don’t want to miss, promise!
The Theater at Innovation Square Fri., Sep. 17 8pm • Sat., Sep. 18 4pm À 60 Minutes All Ages $10 Jeff Mamett is a storyteller influenced by writers like Guy Clark and John Prine. After years as a sideman, recording and touring with various artists, he began writing and singing his own songs. His album, “Carry Me Back,” is critically acclaimed, and Jeff ’s music has been described as “a cattle drive down the plains with a cowboy poet” and “...he paints vivid worlds...”. With his warm, baritone voice and laid-back manner, his shows are intimate and entertaining.
MUSIC
Jeff Mamett - Unplugged
Jerry Falzone & Liar’s Moon
CenterStage Theatre at the JCC: Dawn Lipson Canalside Stage Fri., Sep. 17 8pm À 60 Minutes 13+ $15 If you love the stylings of Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, The Byrds, or Buffalo Springfield, Jerry Falzone & Liar’s Moon is one show to catch. Years of experience on the road, five records, and a growing fanbase honed from dynamic shows guarantee that Liar’s Moon brings a high level of excitement to the concert stage. This is truly homegrown Rock & Roll the way it should be played.
A Journey to the Music of the East
Virtual Fringe Tue., Sep. 14 12am À 35 Minutes / On-Demand All Ages FREE Dibyarka Chatterjee (Tabla) and Satyaki Dutta (Sarod) will bring forth the flavor of India through its music. The pounding heart of traditional Indian classical music is ornamented by the melodic framework called Raga. In this show, we will present you the majestic evening Raga: Rageshree. Sit back, relax, and travel back in time to the ancient past, to a world of moods and perception.
Karaoke, PopStyle!
The Mid-Century Modern Jazz Quartet
The Little Fri., Sep. 17 8pm À 45 Minutes All Ages FREE The Mid-Century Modern Jazz Quartet plays straight-up jazz from the period known in design circles as Mid-Century Modern. The MCMJQ features RIT Professor Emeritus Al Biles on trumpet & flugelhorn, Steve Gates on drums & jaw bone, Chuck Dye on 7-string guitar, and Bruce Goldman on upright bass. Their repertoire includes Miles, Monk, Gershwin, Golson, Porter, Shorter, Silver, Rollins, Jobim, Ellington, and many others. They have played together in various overlapping groups for years, but this quartet is special!
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
The Theater at Innovation Square Fri., Sep. 17 9:30pm • Sat., Sep. 18 9:30pm À 60 Minutes All Ages FREE What do Michael Jackson, Whitney Houston, Stevie Wonder, Aretha Franklin, Bruno Mars, Spice Girls, and the Backstreet Boys all have in common? YOU...singing their greatest hits, backed by Rochester’s hottest new band: PopStyle! Be a SUPERSTAR for a night while PopStyle backs you up, and if you don’t know ALL of the lyrics, that’s ok! You can follow along with the lyrics on-screen. Check out their social media @popstyleband.
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COMEDY MUSIC
Motown, PopStyle!
The Theater at Innovation Square Tue., Sep. 21 8pm À 60 Minutes All Ages $10 Do you remember? The 21st night of September… it’s the night that Rochester’s hottest new band, PopStyle, will take the stage for an evening of Motown, classic Soul, and R&B. Whether you grew up with Aretha, Stevie, Marvin, and the rest of Motown’s best or just love to groove to the rhythm section and sound of the horns, PopStyle plays the hits that leave you feeling good! Check them out on social media @popstyleband.
Naked
The Spirit Room: Bar Room (Elephant) Wed., Sep. 15 9pm • Thu., Sep. 16 10pm À 60 Minutes 18+ $15 How do we heal? What does it mean to be human? Siena starts to answer these questions in a vulnerable, groovy show of original soul-pop music. Each song offers a distinct, vibrant (often poignant) perspective on being alive. With pocket beats, powerhouse vocals, gorgeous piano melodies, and intimate lyrics, singer-songwriter Siena and drummer Chris Palace create an immersive experience for their audiences. This is a show for healing. Follow Siena on Instagram @siena_musicofficial, and Facebook @sienamusicofficial. Photo: Lilac Milk.
Not The Queen You Know
Made on State: The Commons Fri., Sep. 17 8pm • Sat., Sep. 18 2pm • Sat., Sep. 18 8pm • Sat., Sep. 25 4pm • Sat., Sep. 25 9pm À 60 Minutes 18+ $15 Take an intimate journey into the hidden gems of legendary rock band, Queen. Classically trained singer (and accomplished kazoo player!) Maya Ben-Meir, together with pianist Dan Pardo, interprets some of the group’s lesser-known works, which parallel Maya’s own struggle to recognize her power. Through her unique and beautiful renditions of Queen’s deep cuts, Maya connects to Freddie Mercury’s vulnerability, passion, and courage in order to face her fears, trust in her strength, and take center stage.
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
Opera is MAD!
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Virtual Fringe Tue., Sep. 14 12am À 70 Minutes / On-Demand All Ages $10 It’s been a hell of a year for artists and audiences alike. Let’s sing about it! Your local opera collective, ROCopera, presents: “Opera is MAD,” featuring the best opera has to offer: arias filled with rage, torment, and ecstasy. We’ll perform moving interpretations of popular favorites and hidden gems by Mozart, Handel, Verdi, and more. “Opera is MAD” will take you on an emotional journey, and hopefully – by the end – we’ll all feel a bit better!
...AND ON AND ON IT GOES..
til September 25th
Eastman School of Music: Hatch Recital Hall Sat., Sep. 18 5:30pm À 60 Minutes All Ages FREE We’ve been on a journey...there are signs of hope, but still so many challenges to face. What has helped you carry on? Explore the idea and act of perseverance with music, poetry, art, and interactive performance with fivebyfive. This creative quintet returns with its first live, in-person show since March 2020 with the world premiere of “Persevering” by Joe Jaxson. Plus, personal experiences shared by the audience will be woven into the performance in real time.
MUSIC
Persevering
RIT Steel Band Ensemble
The Little Sat., Sep. 25 4:30pm À 30 Minutes All Ages FREE Calypso, Socas, and more from the RIT Steel Band Ensemble!
RIT Surround Sound
The Little Sat., Sep. 18 3:15pm À 15 Minutes All Ages FREE RIT’s premier barbershop harmony group, Surround Sound, is here! Enoy the group as they sing barbershop classics along with modern hits with barber-twists.
ROC City Ringers
CenterStage Theatre at the JCC: Hart Theater Sat., Sep. 18 12pm À 60 Minutes All Ages $10 We’ve all been streaming lots of films this past year of social distancing, so the Roc City Ringers’ 2021 Fringe program includes great music from the movies...and more!
CenterStage Theatre at the JCC: Dawn Lipson Canalside Stage Wed., Sep. 22 7:30pm À 60 Minutes All Ages $10 For two decades, the musicians of East Rochester High School’s Róisín Dubh have brought their unique style of high-energy Irish music to audiences in western New York and beyond. Heard on NPR’s famous “Thistle & Shamrock,” Róisín Dubh has performed more than 400 times, released four albums, and shared the stage with some of the top Irish musicians from our region and the world. They are excited to celebrate their 20th anniversary at the 2021 Rochester Fringe Festival.
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
Róisín Dubh
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COMEDY MUSIC
Sequoia Reed Quintet
CenterStage Theatre at the JCC: Dawn Lipson Canalside Stage Sun., Sep. 19 8pm • Thu., Sep. 23 7:30pm À 60 Minutes All Ages $15 | Students (w/ ID): $12.00 | Kids 12 And Under: $12.00 Join the award-winning Sequoia Reed Quintet for a concert of exciting classical and pop-inspired music. Featuring an eclectic combination of woodwind instruments, Sequoia achieves a sound that highlights both the power and beauty of classical music. From the ocean cliffs of Scotland to the Big Top, and from the baroque French Court to the Redwood forests, Sequoia will take you on a journey to the fringes of the genre. Check out their Instagram @SequoiaReeds or on YouTube and Facebook!
Sinatra at the Sands Reprise
CenterStage Theatre at the JCC: Dawn Lipson Canalside Stage Sat., Sep. 18 4pm • Fri., Sep. 24 7pm • Sat., Sep. 25 7pm À 90 Minutes All Ages $25 While “Sinatra at the Sands” is the definitive portrait of Frank Sinatra in the ’60s, “Sinatra at the Sands Reprise” recreates the a 1966 show, featuring Frank Torchio’s rendering of the Chairman and The Russell Scarborough Orchestra. It includes many of the songs that are most closely identified with Frank Sinatra, such as “Come Fly With Me,” “The Lady is a Tramp,” “I’ve Got You Under My Skin,” and “Luck be a Lady,” as well as comedy and impressions.
Singing Serling: An Evening of Songs Inspired by Specific Episodes of The Twilight Zone
Rochester Music Hall of Fame Wed., Sep. 22 7:30pm À 60 Minutes 13+ $10 Travel with us through another dimension, one of sight, sound and mind, whose boundaries are those of Rod Serling’s imagination. That’s the signpost up ahead. Your next stop: an evening of songs, each inspired by a different episode of “The Twilight Zone,” and each written and performed by the seven members of the Rochester-based band, Watkins and the Rapiers. Journey with us to this land of the different, the bizarre, the unexplainable. Photo: Rod Serling, creator of “The Twilight Zone.”
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
Some Ska Band
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Theatre at the JCC: Dawn Lipson Canalside Stage Tue., Sep. 14 7:30pm À 60 Minutes 13+ $10 | Students (w/ ID ) : $12 Some Ska Band brings the irresistible beat of ska and reggae to the JCC stage, heating up the dance floor with an hour-long set of originals as well as a few classic covers and musical surprises.
Rochester Music Hall of Fame Sat., Sep. 25 7:30pm À 60 Minutes 13+ $15 Ann Mitchell is back at Fringe, performing classics by Grammy Award-winner Burt Bacharach. You’ll hear top hits including: “The Look of Love,” “I Say A Little Prayer,” and more. Ann is joined by John Palocy on piano, David Pinto on bass, Isaac Schwartz on drums, and Ralph DeBergalis on guitar.
MUSIC
The Songs of Burt Bacharach
Taiko: Japanese Drumming Performance
The Little Sat., Sep. 25 3:15pm À 15 Minutes All Ages FREE Taiko is the art of traditional Japanese drumming, incorporating dance with drumming to make an engaging performance. WADAIKO, Rochester’s only taiko group, will present the unique art of taiko!
Thomas Warfield & Friends: Technology and The Creative Journey
The Little Sun., Sep. 19 3:45pm À 90 Minutes All Ages FREE Thomas Warfield is Director of Dance at RIT and a professional dancer, singer, and community artivist. This performance blends music, dance, spoken word, and technology into a creative mosaic to explore our human connections to and expressions of creativity. Accessibility and inclusivity are the themes of this collective experience that welcomes all ages and backgrounds.
To The Sky
Vocal Point with The Yellow Jackets
CenterStage Theatre at the JCC: Dawn Lipson Canalside Stage Sat., Sep. 18 8pm • Sun., Sep. 19 6:30pm À 60 Minutes All Ages $15 Vocal Point is the University of Rochester’s only all-female a cappella group, transforming over the last 50 years into the contemporary group it is today. Vocal Point has traveled across the country performing, and has advanced to the semifinals of the ICCA competition in 2017 and 2019. The Yellow Jackets are the University of Rochester’s first a cappella group and, in addition to pursuing a variety of musical styles, were competitors on the third season of “The Sing Off.”
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
Java’s Cafe Thu., Sep. 16 7pm À 60 Minutes All Ages FREE To The Sky is a genre-defying ensemble of Rochester musicians. Combining diverse musical backgrounds in jazz, blues, classical performance, psychedelic rock, and everything in between, this eclectic group cuts a broad, shimmering swath through the field of sound. As unpredictable and dazzling as a summer sunset, To The Sky is sure to fill all the nooks and crannies of any deep groove, and sparkle the eyes of any spectator.
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SPOKEN COMEDY WORD
Complimentary Heckling
The Five (Formerly Parcel 5) Sat., Sep. 25 6pm À 120 Minutes All Ages FREE Watch out! If she catches you strutting your stuff around the Fringe, you’re likely to get heckled… with compliments! Complimentary Heckling by Crackerjack is back. Will she get you? We sure hope so!
Complimentary Heckling
One Fringe Place Tue., Sep. 14 5:30pm • Fri., Sep. 17 6pm • Sat., Sep. 18 6pm • Fri., Sep. 24 6pm À 120 Minutes All Ages FREE Watch out! If she catches you strutting your stuff around the Fringe, you’re likely to get heckled... with compliments! Complimentary Heckling by Crackerjack is back. Will she get you? We sure hope so!
Geographies of Power
Java’s Cafe Mon., Sep. 20 7pm À 60 Minutes All Ages FREE Spoken-word poetry from a National GLBT Slam Poem Winner, NEFA fellow, and author of two books that were Lambda finalists. Poems read will be from her new book, “Geographies of Power,” as well as from earlier works. In this exploration of the here, now, and then intersections of race, sex, class, and sexuality in the 21st century, it’s about being Black, Queer, Female, and Awake. This is a journey about survival, transgression, and liberation.
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
Heroes of Old
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Virtual Fringe Fri., Sep. 17 6:30pm • Sat., Sep. 18 7pm • Sun., Sep. 19 7:30pm À 65 Minutes 5+ $12 Storyteller Alan Irvine brings to life legendary heroes in three tales filled with high energy, rich description, and irreverent humor. Hercules battles fierce monsters, Robin Hood outwits the crafty Sheriff of Nottingham, and Saint George battles the mightiest of dragons.
The Little Sat., Sep. 25 1:45pm À 45 Minutes 13+ FREE Mental Graffiti is RIT’s student poetry collective, dedicated to exploring poetry as an avenue for introspection, progress, catharsis, and affecting change in ourselves and the world. Signatures is RIT’s literary and arts magazine, which strives to highlight creativity and expression and to encourage the liberal, performing, and creative arts in our community. Both groups have come together to showcase original works written and performed by students.
SPOKEN WORKD
Mental Graffiti and Signatures Showcase
Spooky Stories in the (virtual) Stacks
Virtual Fringe Tue., Sep. 14 12am À 15 Minutes / On-Demand 13+ FREE True ghost stories told in the (virtual) secret stacks of the Rundel Memorial Building.
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
Browse: ROCHESTERFRINGE.COM
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THEATRE COMEDY
1st Impressions
MuCCC Fri., Sep. 17 8:30pm • Sun., Sep. 19 6pm À 45 Minutes 13+ $10 Written and directed by Samantha Marchant. It stars Drea Bim and Sam Evans. Two strangers meet at a pet adoption home visit, entering the house on a reality TV show, or as two strangers on a train. What happens next is up to you. The actors will poll the audience at key moments, Choose-Your-Own-Adventure style. Will these first impressions go down in history as the ultimate meet-up or as a run-in with the stranger from hell? You decide.
20 Neo-Futurist Plays from Too Much Light Makes the Baby Go Blind (20 Plays in 40 Minutes)
The Little Sat., Sep. 25 6pm À 45 Minutes 18+ FREE Presented by RIT Players, this collection of two-minute plays performed in random order with an interactive audience will have viewers laughing, yelling, and reflecting on the more abstract concepts of life. All in 40 minutes or less!
AMY’S HOUSE
Virtual Fringe Sat., Sep. 18 6:30pm À 90 Minutes 13+ FREE “AMY’S HOUSE, The Musical” is based on a horrific true story. Amy Archer, a Connecticut woman who establishes one of the first nursing homes in the U.S. in the early 1900s, turns to killing her patients by poisoning them with arsenic in their lemonade. Featuring strong leading roles for women, “AMY’S HOUSE” is thematically simpatico with anti-hero favorites like “Breaking Bad,” “Dexter,” and “Sweeney Todd.”
Anna and Adrian
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
The Little Sat., Sep. 18 2:15pm À 25 Minutes 5+ FREE Anna and Adrian will be performing various songs from different musicals, sometimes as duets, sometimes as solos.
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The Ark
Virtual Fringe Tue., Sep. 14 12am À 45 Minutes / On-Demand All Ages $10 Imagine: you have been isolated in a huge, dark, space full of all kinds of animals – the sounds, the smells, the desire to escape. You open the hatch and emerge from darkness into the light of day. As you look around, you see nothing but an endless expanse of water. How would you feel? What would you do? Noah and his family enter this long journey into the unknown. Experience 50 minutes of family entertainment. A musical triumph!
Virtual Fringe Tue., Sep. 14 12am À 52 Minutes / On-Demand 13+ $10 Amy Williams thought taking a class in making online videos would be fun – that she would get to review some of her beloved romantic comedy movies. Then, she’s assigned lab partner Oscar Ludlow, who seems to think he’s going to be another Spielberg. Suddenly, the things she doesn’t like discussing, such as being a trans woman, are being revealed to the world. It’s a solo Rom-Com!
THEATRE
Becoming Adorable
Bedtime Stories
Made on State: Fuse and Anchor Fri., Sep. 17 7pm • Fri., Sep. 17 9pm • Sat., Sep. 18 7pm • Sat., Sep. 18 9pm • Sun., Sep. 19 7pm À 60 Minutes MA FROM $15 When’s the last time someone tucked you in and read you a story? Join us for an evening of stories your mother never would have read. (At least not read to you. What she does on her own time is none of your business, thank you very much.) Some spooky, some steamy, all performed with voices that are dreamy. ALLERGY ALERT: latex balloons on display.
Being B.A.D.
Virtual Fringe Tue., Sep. 14 12am À 18 Minutes / On-Demand 13+ FREE Performed at the National Women’s Theatre Festival and BorderLight International Virtual Fringe Festival, “Being B.A.D.” is about personal acceptance and redemption from the cycle of abuse. Embodying creative resistance against oppressive gender stereotypes and domestic violence, this solo piece explores the lengths to which one will go in order to take back power back after years of physical and emotional abuse at the hands of family and a romantic partner. #1in4nomore #IPVawareness
Belonging(s)
Beyond the Legal Limit
Virtual Fringe Tue., Sep. 14 12am À 55 Minutes / On-Demand 18+ $10 Pat Henman is a 40-year veteran of Canadian theatre as an actor/director/singer. “Beyond the Legal Limit” is adapted from her published memoir of the same name. In 2013, Pat and her daughter, Maia, were hit head-on by a drunk driver; both survived. Pat tells her story of trauma and joy on stage accompanied by powerful music and lyrics by Canadian composer, Konrad Pluta. She is joined by singer extraordinaire, Rachel DeShon, and accomplished pianist, Robyn Lamb.
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
MuCCC Sat., Sep. 18 8pm • Wed., Sep. 22 7pm À 60 Minutes 13+ $12 Locked in a mysterious storeroom, a woman and her spouse are forced to confront a troubling question: what is actually hers? Her possessions? Her family? Her body? Her memories? Her thoughts? Her prejudices? Her very soul? By turns hilarious, terrifying, and deeply moving, E. Elias’s new play penetrates with Beckett-like precision to the heart of contemporary life, exploring the profound state of indebtedness that is the foundation of human nature. A U.S. premiere!
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THEATRE COMEDY
The Comedy of (Zoom) Errors
Virtual Fringe Tue., Sep. 14 12am À 63 Minutes / On-Demand 13+ $13 Brawling Bard Theater tackles Shakespeare’s beloved tale of long-lost twins and comic confusion. On Zoom, of course. Can the play possibly survive screen freezes, muted monologues, intrusive family members, bizarro backgrounds, and the thousand other shocks that Zoom is heir to?
Confessions of a Prairie Bitch
The Theater at Innovation Square Fri., Sep. 24 7pm • Sat., Sep. 25 5pm À 75 Minutes 13+ $24 Former child star Alison Arngrim returns to Rochester with “Confessions of a Prairie Bitch: Nellie Oleson Live!” Best known as acid-tongued, pre-Midol meanie Nellie Oleson from “Little House on the Prairie,” Alison Arngrim presents an uproarious evening of storytelling, stand-up, and multi-media about life as everyone’s favorite toxic pre-teen brat, complete with petticoats and ringlets. Never afraid to dish the dirt, she lets all the secrets loose of “Little House,” Hollywood, and much more.
The Consciousness
Virtual Fringe Tue., Sep. 14 12am À 60 Minutes / On-Demand 18+ $9 Reece, a struggling music student, decides to ‘borrow’ some ideas from the archived consciousness of a dead composer, but Theodore Price is irascible, forgetful, and hiding a critical secret.
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
Dashboard Dramas VII
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One Fringe Place Tue., Sep. 14 5:30pm • Tue., Sep. 14 6:30pm • Wed., Sep. 15 5:30pm • Wed., Sep. 15 6:30pm • Thu., Sep. 16 5:30pm • Thu., Sep. 16 6:30pm • Fri., Sep. 17 5:30pm • Fri., Sep. 17 6:30pm • Sat., Sep. 18 3pm • Sat., Sep. 18 4pm • Sun., Sep. 19 1pm • Sun., Sep. 19 4pm • Tue., Sep. 21 5:30pm • Tue., Sep. 21 6:30pm • Thu., Sep. 23 5:30pm • Thu., Sep. 23 6:30pm • Fri., Sep. 24 5:30pm • Fri., Sep. 24 6:30pm • Sat., Sep. 25 1pm • Sat., Sep. 25 2pm • Sat., Sep. 25 4pm À 45 Minutes 18+ $26 A total sell-out six years running, this intimate theatre experience puts you so close to the action, you can smell the actors’ shampoo...if you’re lucky. You’ll find yourself immersed in four, all-new, ten-minute plays as you rotate from one car to the next. Don’t miss this hilarious, heartwarming, weird, and – most of all – one-of-a-kind show.
Virtual Fringe Tue., Sep. 14 12am À 55 Minutes / On-Demand 18+ $10 In this raucous comedy, historically gay King James I questions the role of the Church and its scripture in order to translate a new bible, much to the chagrin of two high priests who are nothing if not traditional.
THEATRE
The FABULOUS King James Bible
flOUR CITY interactive ROCgarden
Rochester Contemporary Art Center: Side Lawn Sat., Sep. 18 6pm • Sun., Sep. 19 6pm • Sat., Sep. 25 6pm À 60 Minutes All Ages FREE Take a stroll through our interactive ROCgarden, where you can experience statues of legendary Rochesterians come to life, as they tell their own tales and bits of folklore about our region.
Fly Fly Fly
Virtual Fringe Tue., Sep. 14 12am À 40 Minutes / On-Demand 13+ FREE A wistful empty-nester “accidentally on purpose” conjures her adult children back home and finds that she must choose between perpetually reliving her past or stepping off the edge into her unknown future. Book, music, and lyrics of this heart-warming musical are by award-winner Katie Brady.
Foot Foul
MuCCC Sat., Sep. 18 1:30pm • Sat., Sep. 25 3:30pm À 45 Minutes 18+ $12 It’s “The Big Lebowski” meets “The Big Sleep” in this original play. The detective agency of Mitt and Chas (or Chas and Mitt) has just landed its first big case. There’s a caper, a dame, mistaken identity (a lot of mistaken identity), and maybe even a chase scene in this modern noir romp.
The Little Sun., Sep. 19 12pm À 45 Minutes 13+ FREE Fred Michael Beam is a professional actor, dancer, choreographer, producer, and director who happens to be deaf. For numerous years, he has provided artistic direction and an outlet for Deaf artists of all colors, ages, and professional backgrounds. He believes in establishing partnerships with various performing arts, visual arts, and media companies in both deaf and hearing communities. The goal of the performance is to bridge the deaf and hearing through arts, providing accessibility to deaf culture and ASL language.
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
Fred Beam and Friends
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THEATRE COMEDY
FUCKING MEN
Virtual Fringe Tue., Sep. 14 12am À 90 Minutes / On-Demand 18+ $10 “Fucking Men” focuses on the lives of 10 men, with wildly differing ages, professions, and priorities. Meet the married couple, the soldier, the actor, the porn star, the student, and so on. All are in different emotional places, especially in terms of their sexuality – some are just experimenting while others wholeheartedly embrace their identity. All face problems or dissatisfactions of one kind or another.
The Geriactors Present: Journal of a Modern Plague Year
Virtual Fringe Tue., Sep. 14 12am À 50 Minutes / On-Demand 13+ $6 2020 was an unusual year here on the home front. The Geriactors, with the help of some local playwrights, reflect on the impact of COVID-19 on our daily lives, appropriately through the medium of Zoom. What was life-altering, what was just absurdly inconvenient, and what new talents did we discover? How did we keep up when things could change so quickly? Come along with us and smile as we look back on a year of coping with the “new normal.”
Ghost Story
MuCCC Tue., Sep. 14 7pm • Mon., Sep. 20 7pm À 60 Minutes 18+ $10 A breast cancer patient, Lisa, visits with her positive-thinking therapist, Meryl. As their meeting goes on, the two women – along with Meryl’s girlfriend, Hannah – discover what it means to be diseased, both in health and in life. Aspie Works presents this rarely-staged play from British playwright Mark Ravenhill, directed by Justin Rielly.
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
I COULD NOT SPEAK IT
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Virtual Fringe Thu., Sep. 16 8:45pm • Fri., Sep. 17 8:45pm • Sat., Sep. 18 8:15pm • Thu., Sep. 23 7:15pm • Fri., Sep. 24 9pm • Sat., Sep. 25 9:45pm À 30 Minutes MA $12 What happens when a father’s love goes too far? In this autobiographical journey, written and performed by Christina Kiepper, one woman fights to recover her voice and her strength after her father’s Ultimate Betrayal. In the Spring of ’93 just before her 21st birthday, Christina drove to her father’s house for a weekend of rest and recovery…but that’s not what she got. A story of healing, courage, dark family secrets, and finally coming of out hiding.
In Due Time, PANTOMIME
The Spirit Room’s Conjure Box Fri., Sep. 17 7pm • Sat., Sep. 18 6:30pm • Sun., Sep. 19 6:30pm À 60 Minutes 13+ $15 Dressed as a mime, a young man explores the inner workings of his mind as he tries to accept his sister’s death. “In Due Time, PANTOMIME” is an audience-interactive show that explores mental health and one man’s response to trauma. Audiences and critics rave about Charles Jackson Jr.’s compelling performance in this heartfelt story that will make you both laugh and cry.
The Litttle Fri., Sep. 24 5:45pm À 30 Minutes 13+ FREE This is a celebration of coming out of the darkness of COVID quarantine and back in to the light of live performance. Made of up song, dance, poetry, humor, and monologues that will explore how actors came back into the light in Shakespeare’s era; humor about the shock of being back in 3D after getting used to a 2D world; and uplifting music – signed and sung – celebrating live performance, togetherness, and community
THEATRE
Into the Light
Josephine
CenterStage Theatre at the JCC: Hart Theater Sat., Sep. 25 9pm À 75 Minutes 18+ $20 The hit off-Broadway, burlesque cabaret dream-play returns to Rochester, but with new music and a live band for the first time ever! This ten-time BEST OF FEST-winning show tells the story of one of the most fascinating figures of the 20th Century: the first African-American international superstar, Josephine Baker. “...slick, eloquent, and executed with erotic class.” --CITY Newspaper. “You’ve heard of a triple threat? Add another dozen skills and you have Tymisha Harris.” ★★★★★ --Broadway Baby
Josie & Grace
La Nela De Socartes
Virtual Fringe Tue., Sep. 14 12am À 125 Minutes / On-Demand 13+ FREE “La Nela De Socartes” is an uplifting musical tragedy about love, opportunity, and change. Adapted from classic Spanish literature and conceived virtually during the COVID-19 pandemic for a modern theatre-going audience, the book, music, lyrics, and orchestrations are by Greggory Nekrasovas and Massimiliano Cicio in their theatrical debut. This musical is an adaptation of Marianela (1878) by Benito Pérez Galdós with English translation by Clara Bell.
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
CenterStage Theatre at the JCC: Hart Theater Wed., Sep. 22 7pm • Thu., Sep. 23 8:30pm • Fri., Sep. 24 7pm • Sat., Sep. 25 2pm À 80 Minutes 13+ $20 From the creators of the hit off-Broadway show “Josephine,” this new musical explores the extraordinary and mostly untold story of the friendship between two of the most remarkable women of the 20th Century: legendary singer/ dancer/activist/spy Josephine Baker and Academy Award-winner and European princess, Grace Kelly/Princess Grace of Monaco. WINNER, Critic’s Choice Award, 2021 Orlando Fringe. “BEST OF FEST” --Orlando Sentinel. “...the love and loss that bonded this unlikely pair is palpable in Harris’ and Comeau’s winning performances” --Orlando Weekly.
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THEATRE COMEDY
La voix humaine
MuCCC Sun., Sep. 19 7:30pm À 50 Minutes 18+ $15 Alone in her apartment, Elle desperately clings to life with the telephone as the only connection to her former lover. Between dropped calls and wrong numbers, she speaks with him and reveals her anxiety-ridden anguish over his abandonment. She admits her attempted suicide the previous evening and we witness her last words. Soprano Kerri Lynn Slominski and pianist Alex Kuczynski bring Francis Poulenc’s operatic monodrama, “La voix humaine,” to life. Sung in French with English translation provided.
The Lightning Thief
The Theater at Innovation Square Sat., Sep. 18 11am • Sat., Sep. 25 10:30am À 120 Minutes All Ages $12 Based on the popular novel, “Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief,” this dynamic musical captures all of your favorite moments and characters from the book. Performed by students of MT Ed, who have previously performed “American Idiot” and “21 Chump Street,” it is directed by the team that brought you “Carrie” and “Heathers.” MT Ed is an educational theatre company, providing learning and performance opportunities for students of all ages in an inclusive and nurturing environment.
Listen...Can You Hear Me Now?
Virtual Fringe Sun., Sep. 19 7:45pm • Mon., Sep. 20 7:30pm • Fri., Sep. 24 7:45pm • Sat., Sep. 25 8:45pm À 60 Minutes 13+ $15 “Listen... Can you Hear Me Now?” is an autobiographical solo show centering on a hearing child growing up with deaf parents who will not allow her to sign. Forbidden the use of their language yet still the voice of her family, she lives between the worlds of Deaf and hearing. Not fully belonging to either, she follows her singular path to uncover and to find her own voice.
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
Love Letters, by A.R. Gurney
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CenterStage Theatre at the JCC: Hart Theater Tue., Sep. 14 7pm • Sun., Sep. 19 3pm À 105 Minutes 13+ $20 The lives of two childhood friends are revealed through a lifelong correspondence in this evocative, touching, and frequently funny romantic play. J. Simmons and Jennifer Galvez Caton present a fresh interpretation of this beloved classic by seeing it through the eyes of a multi-racial cast and production team. Directed by Esther Winter.
MARY SPEAKS: The Virtual Experience
Virtual Fringe Tue., Sep. 14 12am : On-Demand ONLY Sept 20 - 26 À 52 Minutes 13+ $20 In this play – inspired by Black Lives Matter – the life of Mary, the mother of Jesus, is used as a parallel to explore the history of Black mothers and their sons from slavery to present day. Mother Mary becomes a prototype for the struggle Black mothers have to keep their sons alive in a society where their existence is seen as a threat. Mary’s mission: to keep her son from becoming a crucified Black body.
Virtual Fringe Tue., Sep. 14 12am À 45 Minutes / On-Demand 13+ $6 “Maternal” is an existential horror play by Montreal-based Les Choreutes’. Themes include motherhood, the mother-daughter relationship, and the fear of inadequacy. It is a raw, emotional, intense, and intimate work with tour-de-force performances.
THEATRE
Maternal
MONSTROUS
Virtual Fringe Tue., Sep. 14 8:15pm • Fri., Sep. 17 8:00pm • Sun., Sep. 19 8:15pm • Tue., Sep. 21 7:30pm • Fri., Sep. 24 7:15pm À 45 Minutes 13+ $5 Can you save Professor Frankenstein from his own creation? “MONSTROUS” puts the audience in control and makes each performance entirely unique. Login to your Twitch account, join the chat, and see if you can work together (or not…*) to prevent history from repeating itself – all while watching a live performance that reacts to your choices! A re-imagining of the classic Frankenstein novel, “MONSTROUS” puts a digital twist into one of history’s greatest monster stories. (*Interaction encouraged, but not required.)
PUSH Physical Theatre: Generic Male
CenterStage Theatre at the JCC: Hart Theater Sat., Sep. 18 7pm • Thu., Sep. 23 7pm • Sat., Sep. 25 7pm À 60 Minutes 13+ $20 Explosive, athletic, visceral physical theatre ruined by a tragic lack of understanding, “Generic Male” is a World Premiere by award-winning PUSH Physical Theatre. Called “a perfect metaphor-in-motion” by CITY and “a rare treat” by NY Theatre Guide, PUSH has created a satire about clinging to the status-quo. Are we watching a couple of petty idiots or is this the most insightful piece of theatre of the 21st century? No. “Just what we need – another show about men,” raves no one.
Que Será, Será: A Life’s Journey of Sexual Orientation & Gender Expression
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
Virtual Fringe Tue., Sep. 14 12am À 70 Minutes / On-Demand 18+ FREE Kate Herbert of Theatre Reviews says: “The title of this gently confronting and evocative storytelling performance says it all...told by the charming and engaging Zelda (AKA Judith Z. Miller) who opens her heart and her life to the audience...Her stories are quirky and funny, distressing and sad, excitable and volatile and intermittently suicidal and tragic...’Que Será Será’ is truly an epic tale of a coming of age in one’s sexuality and gender identity.”
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THEATRE COMEDY
Rosegold
Virtual Fringe Tue., Sep. 14 12am À 40 Minutes / On-Demand 13+ $12 Meet Jamie. She is an alcoholic. She is a survivor. And she is haunted by an unfathomable darkness. In tonight’s meeting, it’s Jamie’s turn to speak. We all have reasons we drink, but some reasons are more terrifying than others. A tale of horror by Donna Kay Yarborough. Best Solo Drama (Orlando Fringe), Best Dramatic Performer (Pittsburgh Fringe). “..fans of Stephen King, David Lynch and H.P. Lovecraft will find plenty to sink their canines into.” --Seth Kubersky, Orlando Weekly.
Runaway Princess: a Hopeful Tale of Heroin, Hooking, and Happiness
The Spirit Room’s Conjure Box Thu., Sep. 16 8:30pm • Fri., Sep. 17 8:30pm • Sat., Sep. 18 5pm • Mon., Sep. 20 8:30pm • Tue., Sep. 21 8:30pm • Wed., Sep. 22 7pm À 70 Minutes MA $16 “Once upon a time, there was a Princess born to a King and Queen, who were banished from their island and forced to flee in a coffin ship.” Thus begins the tale of the Runaway Princess, a true story laced with dark humor and pathos recounting Mary Goggin’s escape from her Irish Catholic upbringing into the arms of a pimp, prostitution, and years of substance abuse. Her ultimate redemption is a triumph.
Shards: The Passover Edition
Virtual Fringe Tue., Sep. 14 12am À 75 Minutes / On-Demand 5+ $7 Evan Kent’s “Shards: The Passover Edition” is a show that is all about the Festival of Freedom and it all takes place at the Passover table. You’ll be taken on a ride from the past to present and all across the world as you experience Evan’s stirring storytelling, beautiful singing, and imaginative puppetry. It’s a show that’s certainly about Passover, but it’s really all about family, tradition, and hope. And his grandmother’s gefilte fish.
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
Sherlock Holmes: The Loss at Whitechapel
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The Theater at Innovation Square Mon., Sep. 20 6pm • Tue., Sep. 21 6pm • Wed., Sep. 22 8pm À 80 Minutes 13+ $15 The game is afoot! “Sherlock Holmes: The Loss at Whitechapel” combines quick-witted dialogue with contemporary dance to create a new and original mystery for our duo to solve. The East End Toymaker is dead, and Sherlock and Watson chase clues and shadows as the case spirals out of control. Set in Doyle’s Victorian London, and told through Sherlock’s own recollection, “Sherlock Holmes: The Loss at Whitechapel” will leave audience members on the edge of their seats.
Virtual Fringe Sun., Sep. 19 9pm • Wed., Sep. 22 7:30pm • Thu., Sep. 23 9:45pm À 45 Minutes 18+ $5 For the cold eye of the security camera in his prison cell, sixteen-year-old Kevin re-enacts the events that landed him there in this makeshift, puppet-filled, tragicomic romp. After stealing Covid-19 vaccines from politicians to inject into ICE detainees, Kevin is sent to Camp Smile Power, a teen anger-management camp. He escapes! On the road, he befriends Ajax, another camp runaway. They plot to destroy capitalism but it goes awry, thrusting them into a reckoning with criminal justice in America.
THEATRE
Smile All The Time
Something Wicked
CenterStage Theatre at the JCC: Hart Theater Fri., Sep. 17 9:30pm • Sun., Sep. 19 8:30pm À 60 Minutes 13+ $15 It’s a witch hunt! Before the Salem Witch Trials, Connecticut suffered an outbreak of flimsy accusations condemning several women to be hanged as witches. This comic one-act recreates the last witch trial in Hartford as court judges determine the fate of Katherine Harrison. Will bias hang the poor woman, or will truth win in the end? “Something Wicked” is an original play by Brad Craddock, author of “Learning Targets,” “The Fighting Girl’s Guide to Politics,” and “Pink Ribbons.”
Stories for the End of the World
MuCCC Sat., Sep. 18 3pm • Tue., Sep. 21 7pm À 60 Minutes 18+ $10 What does the end of the world mean to you? Is it mass destruction or the smallest personal tragedy? Visit two “out-of-time” lovers, the Vice President, gods deciding our fate, the triangle people, grandpa, and others to figure out the answer. We might ask you as well. Produced by Theater Apparatus and written and directed by Jeremy Sarachan, “Stories” stars Joseph Barcia, Doug Curry, Kiyomi Oliver, Larry Ploscowe, Ira Srole, Tracey Ulterino, Almeta Whitis, and Tegan Young.
The Velvet Noose
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
MuCCC Fri., Sep. 17 10pm • Sat., Sep. 25 8pm À 50 Minutes 13+ $10 Shadow work and dramaturgical studies come together in an immersive, experiential performance of live-action, Tarot card enactments. Audience members receive limited-edition, hand-inked cards on arrival. As screams from darkness announce drawn cards, the inanimate animates, initiating transfixing improvisations and sequenced theatrics. Gongs create the evolving score, informed by mindful, sound-bath resonance healing. “The Velvet Noose” builds upon last year’s sold-out performance in direct narrative continuation with two ambitious performances.
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THEATRE COMEDY
VFF
Virtual Fringe Tue., Sep. 14 4:30pm • Wed., Sep. 15 4:30pm • Fri., Sep. 17 4:30pm • Sat., Sep. 18 4:30pm • Sun., Sep. 19 4:30pm • Mon., Sep. 20 4:30pm • Tue., Sep. 21 4:30pm • Wed., Sep. 22 4:30pm • Thu., Sep. 23 4:30pm • Fri., Sep. 24 4:30pm • Sat., Sep. 25 4:30pm À 60 Minutes 18+ $15 New York State Premiere! “VFF” explores friendship through one-hour video chats. Only 11 people can take part in these one-on-one experiences (one per day), hanging out over Zoom with Brian Feldman (“#txtshow [on the internet],” 2020 KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival). What is a friendship worth? How do we make friends? What does being friends actually mean? Brian explores these questions and more by offering you an opportunity to define friendship. In times like these, it’s good to have a VFF.
Which Way to the Ivy Covered Well
The Spirit Room’s Conjure Box Thu., Sep. 16 7pm • Fri., Sep. 17 10pm • Sat., Sep. 18 8pm • Sun., Sep. 19 8pm • Mon., Sep. 20 7pm À 60 Minutes 13+ $12 In a forlorn and misty upland, a light rain falls all hours of the day and strange voices are sometimes heard singing in the dead of night. The Evening Crane Theatre and The Spirit Room present the world premiere of “Which Way to the Ivy Covered Well,” an atmospheric ghost story set at the edge of the intelligible world. Written and directed by Michael Seebold. Recommended ages 13+
You Will Live Under the Sea
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
Virtual Fringe Tue., Sep. 14 12am À 46 Minutes / On-Demand 13+ $11 “Finding Nemo” meets “Predator” in this Award-Winning, Retrofuturistic, Hellscape Comedy. WINNER: BEST OF FEST, 2021 Cincinnati Fringe Festival; CRITICS PICK, “Wildly imaginative. Surprisingly profound.” --Cincinnati CityBeat.
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Ready to Fringe?
TICKETS 24/7 ROCHESTERFRINGE.COM
Made on State: Fuse and Anchor Tue., Sep. 14 11am • Tue., Sep. 14 3pm • Wed., Sep. 15 11am • Wed., Sep. 15 3pm • Thu., Sep. 16 11am • Thu., Sep. 16 3pm À 120 Minutes 13+ $50 Are you crafty person who enjoys hands-on building? Don’t miss the opportunity to work side-by-side (6’ apart) with Rochester’s own world-renowned Airigami to create a one-ofa-kind, immersive balloon installation. You’ll literally set the stage for live performances by constructing set pieces and other decorative elements to transform areas at MADE ON STATE into an inflated wonderland. ALLERGY ALERT: latex balloons will be used in the creation of the display.
Airigami Viewing and Photo Op
Made on State: Fuse and Anchor Fri., Sep. 17 12pm • Fri., Sep. 17 2pm • Fri., Sep. 17 4pm • Sat., Sep. 18 12pm • Sat., Sep. 18 2pm • Sat., Sep. 18 4pm • Sun., Sep. 19 12pm • Sun., Sep. 19 2pm • Sun., Sep. 19 4pm À 60 Minutes All Ages FREE Fringe is all about fun flair, and so is Airigami! Check out the unique balloon display created for the Airigami stage, which is sure to provide for selfie-friendly and fantastically fringy photos!
VISUAL ART & FILM
Airigami Experience: Build with Balloons
Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar
One Fringe Place Thu., Sep. 16 7:45pm À 106 Minutes 13+ FREE (PG-13, 2021, Josh Greenbaum, 106 mins.) Hilarious comedy from Rochester-native Kristen Wiig and Annie Mumolo, who also created “Bridesmaids.” Barb and Star are lifelong friends that leave their small Midwestern town for the first time ever. On their adventure, they encounter romance, friendship, and an evil villain! Also stars Jamie Dornan, Reba McIntire, Vanessa Bayer, and Damon Wayans, Jr.
Be on a film set
Breakfast at Tiffany’s
One Fringe Place Sun., Sep. 19 7:30pm À 115 Minutes 13+ FREE (NR, 1961, Blake Edwards, 115 mins.) Based on the novel by Truman Capote. Academy Award-winner Audrey Hepburn stars as Holly Golightly, a young Manhattan escort who accepts gifts and money, but not the affections of men. Also stars: George Peppard, Patricia Neal, Buddy Ebsen, and Martin Balsam.
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
Martin Luther King Jr Park Sat., Sep. 18 1pm À 106 Minutes 13+ FREE Ever wanted to be on a film set? Maybe as one of the extras, or watching the production unfold? Do you wish to see the magic behind the silver screen? Join us as an extra or observer and ask the cast and crew questions – even chat with the director. Film logline: If you could ask one last question of someone, what would it be?
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VISUAL ARTCOMEDY & FILM
Breathe
Rochester Contemporary Art Center: Side Lawn Tue., Sep. 14 12pm À 10 Minutes 13+ FREE Rochester Contemporary Art Center (RoCo) invites the public to experience BREATHE by Ong Siraphisut. This monumental artwork functions as large-scale, text based mural and also reflects the image of the surrounding environment; grass, trees, the church, the street, pedestrians, traffic, and skies. These dual functions blend the background and the viewer into a field of mirrored geometry while also chanting the hidden mantra : “breathe”.
Crazy Rich Asians
One Fringe Place Fri., Sep. 17 7:45pm À 120 Minutes 13+ FREE (PG-13, 2018, John M. Chu, 120 mins.) Golden Globe nominee for Best Performance by an Actress and for Best Motion Picture. Based on a global bestseller, this contemporary romantic comedy follows native New Yorker Rachul Chu (Constance Wu) to Singapore to meet her boyfriend Nick Young’s (Henry Golding) family. She is unprepared for the details that Nick has neglected to mention about his life, realizing that money and love can complicate things. Also stars Michelle Yeoh and Ken Jeong.
Documentary Shorts: RIT Photojournalism
The Little Theatre Fri., Sep. 24 7pm À 45 Minutes 18+ FREE A selection of cinematic documentary short stories created by Photojournalism students from RIT’s School of Photographic Arts and Sciences.
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
Drunk Bus
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One Fringe Place Tue., Sep. 14 8pm À 100 Minutes 18+ FREE (NR) Filmed on-site in Rochester! Michael (Charlie Tahan) is a recent college graduate whose post-college plan derails when his girlfriend leaves him for a job in NYC. He meets Pineapple, a punk-rock Samoan security guard, and together, they break out of their endless loop and into a world of uncertainty, excitement, and incredibly poor decisionmaking. Also stars Pineapple Tangaroa, Kara Hayward, Will Forte, and Dave Hill.
RIT City Art Space Thu., Sep. 16 1pm • Fri., Sep. 17 1pm • Sat., Sep. 18 1pm • Sun., Sep. 19 1pm • Thu., Sep. 23 1pm • Fri., Sep. 24 1pm • Sat., Sep. 25 1pm À 240 Minutes All Ages FREE With so much disturbing and strange news across social media, how is there so much joy? “FEELS” gathers and visualizes emotional data from a Twitter API and manifests as a viewerinteractive and digital/sculptural installation. Created by Valholo/Jake Adams.
Harriet
One Fringe Place Tue., Sep. 21 7:45pm À 125 Minutes 13+ FREE (PG-13, 2019, Kasi Lemmons, 125 mins.) Based on the thrilling and inspirational life of iconic American freedom fighter Harriet Tubman (Academy Award Nominee Cynthia Erivo), “Harriet” tells the extraordinary true story of Tubman’s escape from slavery and transformation into one of America’s greatest heroes. Her courage, ingenuity, and tenacity freed hundreds of enslaved people and changed the course of history. Also starring Leslie Odom Jr., Janelle Monáe, and Joe Alwyn.
VISUAL ART & FILM
FEELS: A Global Emotions Visualizer
In the Heights
One Fringe Place Sat., Sep. 18 7:45pm À 142 Minutes 13+ FREE (PG-13, 2021, John M. Chu, 142 mins.) Film version of the 2008 Tony Award Best Musical created by Lin-Manuel Miranda (“Hamilton”) and set in the Dominican area of Washington Heights in Manhattan. Usnavi (Anthony Ramos), a sympathetic New York bodega owner, saves every penny as he hopes, imagines, and sings about a better life. Also stars Corey Hawkins, Leslie Grace, Melissa Barrera, Olga Merediz, and Jimmy Smits.
The Italian Job (1969)
Tag, you’re it. #ROCFRINGE21
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
One Fringe Place Wed., Sep. 15 7:45pm À 100 Minutes All Ages FREE (PG, 1969, Peter Collinson, 100 mins.) The classic British comedy! Charlie (Sir Michael Caine) is out of jail and on the make, with a plan for the heist of the century. Aided by top criminal mastermind Mr. Bridger (Noel Coward), Charlie attempts to lift $4 million from under the noses of the Turin Polizei. Stars Michael Caine, Benny Hill, Tony Beckley, and Margaret Blye.
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VISUAL ARTCOMEDY & FILM
Judas and the Black Messiah
One Fringe Place Thu., Sep. 23 7:45pm À 126 Minutes 18+ FREE (R, 2021, Shaka King, 126 mins) Offered a plea deal by the FBI, William O’Neal (LaKeith Stanfield) infiltrates the Illinois chapter of the Black Panther Party and is tasked with keeping tabs on their charismatic leader, Chairman Fred Hampton (Academy Award Winner Daniel Kaluuya). To destroy a revolution, authorities need a man on the inside. Will O’Neal align with the forces of good? Or will he subdue Hampton and the Panthers? Also stars Jesse Plemons and Dominique Fishback.
A Love Letter to Brian Lesley and Michelle
Rochester Contemporary Art Center: Gallery Tue., Sep. 21 6pm • Wed. Sep. 22 6pm À 60 Minutes 13+ $15.00 | Students (w/ ID): from $12.00 This is a film, a play, an experience, a concert dance, a work of art, a self-reflection, a protest. “A Love Letter to BLM” is the result of human beings coming together – diverse in age, sexuality, race, and gender – and talking with their bodies, minds, and souls about Black lives. An interactive and experimental commentary that leaves viewers looking inward, seeking justice from within.
Madea’s Big Happy Family
One Fringe Place Sat., Sep. 25 7:45pm À 106 Minutes 13+ FREE (PG-13, 2011, Tyler Perry, 106 mins) The feel-good comedy! Tough-as-nails grandmother Madea (Tyler Perry) rallies her family – as only she knows how – when a niece faces a health crisis. How will Madea make things right? Stars: Tyler Perry, Loretta Devine, Cassi Davis, Shannon Kane, and Isaiah Mustafa.
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
MEETING
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Virtual Fringe Tue., Sep. 14 12am À 15 Minutes / On-Demand 18+ FREE “MEETING” is a short film about the most extraordinary meeting imaginable – even for our own extraordinary times. Like millions of people during the pandemic, two women meet over Zoom. But theirs is an extremely unusual Zoom meeting – and not just because they’re meeting for the first time.
Out of Sync: Colorform
The Little Theatre Sat., Sep. 18 1pm À 35 Minutes All Ages FREE “Out of Sync: Colorform” is an audio/video project designed and performed by multidisciplinary artist and RIT College of Art & Design alumnus Chuck Miller. It features film and video loops mixed to a soundtrack of electronic and environmental sounds. As these elements fall in and out of sync with one another, the result can be both dreamlike and hypnotic, while at other times jarring
One Fringe Place Fri., Sep. 24 7:45pm À 132 Minutes 18+ FREE (R, 2019, Joon-ho Bong, 132 mins.) The incredible Academy Award Best Picture smash hit. Greed and class discrimination threaten the relationship between the wealthy Park family and the destitute Kim clan in Joon-ho Bong. Ho’s darkly hilarious modern fairytale stars: Khang-ho Song, Sun-kyn Lee, Yeo-Jeong-Jo, Woo-sik Choi, and So-dam Park. (Korean with English subtitles.)
Sarah Kinard and Joshua Enck
RIT City Art Space Thu., Sep. 16 1pm • Fri., Sep. 17 1pm • Sat., Sep. 18 1pm • Sun., Sep. 19 1pm • Thu., Sep. 23 1pm • Fri., Sep. 24 1pm • Sat., Sep. 25 1pm À 240 Minutes All Ages FREE These two solo exhibitions feature contemporary printmaking and sculpture by Sarah Kinard and Joshua Enck.
VISUAL ART & FILM
Parasite
Testament
Virtual Fringe Tue., Sep. 14 12am À 65 Minutes / On-Demand 18+ $11 A sacrificial son. Sisters with a shocking secret. A man on Death Row. “Testament” invites you to bear witness to the dark underbelly of The Good Book. Set in modern-day America, “Testament” explores the compelling re-imagining of four oft-forgotten Bible characters against a haunting score of gospel and blues, as we behold how their lives have unfolded in today’s society.
Three Tiny Traumas
Unintentional Significance: A Puppet Show About Everything and Nothing
Virtual Fringe Tue., Sep. 14 12am À 56 Minutes / On-Demand 13+ $7 Puppets on fire, puppets under water, an orangutan playing chess, resurrected roadkill, a singing tennis ball, one rather disturbing rabbit, a blue lightbulb, and so much more! Featuring the unique puppets and puppetry of Sean P. Mette, “Unintentional Significance: A Puppet Show About Everything and Nothing” invites the viewer to find meaning in the meaningless and truths among the absurd. In a show where everything is significant and, concurrently, nothing is significant: what will you discover?
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
Virtual Fringe Tue., Sep. 14 12am À 15 Minutes / On-Demand All Ages FREE Expanding on her 2020 Rochester Fringe Festival videos, visual artist Martha Schermerhorn further explores the human psyche with small stories of loss and longing. “Lady in White” is a personal take on the local legend of the woman said to haunt Durand Eastman Park. What you wanted and denied yourself is the theme of the journey undertaken in “Heartsick.” Finally, the stream-of-consciousness in words and images of “Lockdown Breakdown” offers a quarantine soliloquy with which almost anyone can identify.
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COMEDY VENUES
FRINGE VENUES Fringe venues are located in and around the Rochester area, with a hub in the East End. Twitter @RochesterFringe Facebook Rochester Fringe Festival Instagram @Rochester_Fringe #rocfringe21 Search our hashtag to find info from shows, venues, and fans! Tag your own posts to join the conversation!
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AERIAL ARTS OF ROCHESTER
1046 University Ave. Rochester, NY 14607 585-201-8202 www.aerialartsrochester.com
CENTERSTAGE THEATRE AT JCC: HART THEATER & DAWN LIPSON CANALSIDE STAGE 1200 Edgewood Avenue Rochester, NY 14618 (585) 461-2000 www.jccrochester.org/centerstage
CENTRAL LIBRARY: DORRIS CARLSON READING GARDEN 115 South Avenue Rochester, NY 14604 (585) 428-8323 www.ffrpl.org
EASTMAN SCHOOL OF MUSIC: HATCH HALL
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26 Gibbs Street, Rochester, NY 14604 (585) 274-3000 www.EastmanTheatre.org
ELLISON PARK
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KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
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1879 Blossom Road Rochester, NY 14625 (585) 753-7275 www.monroecounty.gov/parks-ellison
GARTH FAGAN DANCE STUDIO
50 Chestnut Street Rochester, NY 14604 (585) 454-3260 www.garthfagandance.org
LA MARKETA AT THE INTERNATIONAL PLAZA 828 North Clinton Avenue Rochester, NY 14605 www.cityofrochester.gov/lamarketa/
THE ITALIAN CIRCUS TENT
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Corner of Main & Gibbs Streets Rochester, NY 14604 GPS Address: 71 Gibbs Street Rochester, NY 14604
JAVA’S CAFE
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16 Gibbs Street Rochester, NY 14604 (585) 232-4820 www.javascafe.com
JOSEPH AVENUE ARTS AND CULTURE ALLIANCE @ LINCOLN LIBRARY 851 Joseph Avenue Rochester, NY 14621 (585) 454-2787 www.josephavearts.org
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240 East Avenue Rochester, NY 14604 (585) 258-0400 www.thelittle.org
MADE ON STATE: FUSE AND ANCHOR & THE COMMONS 510 State Street Rochester, NY 14608 (585) 287-9391 www.madeonstate.com
VENUES
THE LITTLE THEATRE: THEATRE 1
MARTIN LUTHER KING JR PARK
353 Court Street Rochester, NY 14607 (585) 428-7541 www.cityofrochester.gov/mlkparkicerink/
MuCCC
142 Atlantic Avenue Rochester, NY 14607 www.muccc.org
ONE FRINGE PLACE: THE GARDEN
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Corner of Main & Gibbs Streets Rochester, NY 14604 GPS Address: 71 Gibbs Street Rochester, NY 14604
THE FIVE (FORMERLY PARCEL 5) Next to One East Avenue Rochester, NY 14604
RIT CITY ART SPACE
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280 E. Main Street Sibley Tower, First Floor Rochester, NY 14604 www.cityartspace.rit.edu
ROCHESTER CONTEMPORARY ART CENTER
137 East Ave Rochester, NY 14604 www.rochestercontemporary.org
ROCHESTER MUSIC HALL OF FAME
25 Gibbs Street Rochester, New York 14604 rochestermusic.org
SALENA’S: EVENT ROOM
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SLOAN PERFORMING ARTS CENTER UNIVERSITY OF ROCHESTER 407 Alumni Road Rochester, NY 14627
THE SPIRIT ROOM: THE CONJURE BOX AND BAR ROOM 139 State Street Rochester, NY 14614 (585) 397 7595 www.spiritroomroc.com
THE THEATER@INNOVATION SQUARE
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131 Chestnut Street Rochester, NY 14604 (585) 281-4893 www.theaterais.com
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
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302 N Goodman Street At the Village Gate Rochester, NY 14607 salenas.com
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Shining a spotlight on creativity. The arts enrich all our lives and are an integral part of our culture and heritage. It’s why we support arts organizations within our community. They inspire, entertain, move, and inform us in so many ways. Without the arts our community would not be the vibrant and diverse place we enjoy today.
KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival
KeyBank thanks the Rochester Fringe Festival for making a difference.
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