Orlando Fringe Festival celebrates 25 years at party
Orlando Fringe Festival opens its silver season
by Matthew J. Palm
The Artistic Type
March 1, 2016, 11:48 am
When you hit the quarter-century mark, you deserve a party. And that's what the Orlando Fringe threw for itself Monday night at Orlando's Hard Rock Live. The organization's annual Fab Fringe fundraiser this year celebrated the upcoming 25th festival.
The oldest such festival in the United States, the Fringe is a 13-day extravaganza of short plays, concerts, magic acts, dance shows and other performances. It will return to Orlando's Loch Haven Park in mid-May.
Monday's Hard Rock event called to mind the previous night's Academy Awards — from the speechifying that went on too long to a touching "In Memoriam" video.
But mostly, the event was celebratory — and more entertaining than the bloated Oscars. Orlando playwright-actor-director and Fringe stalwart Michael Wanzie was saluted in a roast-like video featuring a who's who of Fringe Festival performers.
"It's a spectacular opportunity — one that I've embraced and I cherish," he said of the festival after the tribute.
Wanzie is known for presenting "The Lion Queen," a parody of Disney's "The Lion King" that sold more tickets than any other show in the history of the Fringe. He pointed out that the musical "Disenchanted" was just a few tickets shy of his record.
Hosting the show was the creative duo behind "Disenchanted," which post-Fringe played off-Broadway and now is licensed for worldwide productions. Composer Dennis Giacino and director Fiely Matias got involved with the Fringe during its early years. One of their shows parodied TV's "Golden Girls" with a gay twist.
Later, they gained notoriety when rumors of a police raid dogged their "Naked Guy," which featured brief male nudity. The original cast of that show appeared during the anniversary event — with Naked Guy Doc Post showing that his abs are as defined as they were 16 years ago. (Kudos to him.) This time, though, he kept the rest of his physique to himself.
Michelle Knight, Andrea Canny and Lisa Sleeper sang from "Disenchanted," a girl-power musical that spoofs Disney's portrayals of fairy-tale princesses. And Blue Star performed a number from "Carnivale," the first Fringe show from her VarieTease troupe. The popular dance spectacle will return at this year's festival, she announced.
Out-of-town Fringe performers Martin Dockery, Vanessa Quesnelle, Tim Mooney and the Wonderheads appeared in video sketches.
Pepe, actor Rob Ward's outrageous comic persona and festival mainstay, saluted Fringe performers along with longtime festival producer Beth Marshall.
"Martin Dockery got me pregnant — twice," Pepe joked about the creator of Fringe hits "Wanderlust," "The Holy Land Experience" and "The Surprise." Quipped Pepe: "It's the subject of 'Wanderlust II.'"
Key upcoming Fringe dates
• Local preview: April 18
• International preview: May 17
• 2016 Orlando International Fringe Theatre Festival: May 18-30
• More information: OrlandoFringe.org
Orlando Fringe Festival opens its silver season
by Matthew J. Palm
The Artistic Type
March 1, 2016, 11:48 am
When you hit the quarter-century mark, you deserve a party. And that's what the Orlando Fringe threw for itself Monday night at Orlando's Hard Rock Live. The organization's annual Fab Fringe fundraiser this year celebrated the upcoming 25th festival.
The oldest such festival in the United States, the Fringe is a 13-day extravaganza of short plays, concerts, magic acts, dance shows and other performances. It will return to Orlando's Loch Haven Park in mid-May.
Monday's Hard Rock event called to mind the previous night's Academy Awards — from the speechifying that went on too long to a touching "In Memoriam" video.
But mostly, the event was celebratory — and more entertaining than the bloated Oscars. Orlando playwright-actor-director and Fringe stalwart Michael Wanzie was saluted in a roast-like video featuring a who's who of Fringe Festival performers.
"It's a spectacular opportunity — one that I've embraced and I cherish," he said of the festival after the tribute.
Wanzie is known for presenting "The Lion Queen," a parody of Disney's "The Lion King" that sold more tickets than any other show in the history of the Fringe. He pointed out that the musical "Disenchanted" was just a few tickets shy of his record.
Hosting the show was the creative duo behind "Disenchanted," which post-Fringe played off-Broadway and now is licensed for worldwide productions. Composer Dennis Giacino and director Fiely Matias got involved with the Fringe during its early years. One of their shows parodied TV's "Golden Girls" with a gay twist.
Later, they gained notoriety when rumors of a police raid dogged their "Naked Guy," which featured brief male nudity. The original cast of that show appeared during the anniversary event — with Naked Guy Doc Post showing that his abs are as defined as they were 16 years ago. (Kudos to him.) This time, though, he kept the rest of his physique to himself.
Michelle Knight, Andrea Canny and Lisa Sleeper sang from "Disenchanted," a girl-power musical that spoofs Disney's portrayals of fairy-tale princesses. And Blue Star performed a number from "Carnivale," the first Fringe show from her VarieTease troupe. The popular dance spectacle will return at this year's festival, she announced.
Out-of-town Fringe performers Martin Dockery, Vanessa Quesnelle, Tim Mooney and the Wonderheads appeared in video sketches.
Pepe, actor Rob Ward's outrageous comic persona and festival mainstay, saluted Fringe performers along with longtime festival producer Beth Marshall.
"Martin Dockery got me pregnant — twice," Pepe joked about the creator of Fringe hits "Wanderlust," "The Holy Land Experience" and "The Surprise." Quipped Pepe: "It's the subject of 'Wanderlust II.'"
Key upcoming Fringe dates
• Local preview: April 18
• International preview: May 17
• 2016 Orlando International Fringe Theatre Festival: May 18-30
• More information: OrlandoFringe.org
Copyright © 2016, Orlando Sentinel (original article)