Fringe Benefits

What happens when a festival throws out the gatekeepers and unleashes a torrent of pure creative expression on a city? For the tenth year in a row, the Boulder International Fringe Festival is experimenting with the answer to this question. The fest “brings artists from all over the country and...

By Kyle Harris

September 11, 2014

Audio By Carbonatix

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What happens when a festival throws out the gatekeepers and unleashes a torrent of pure creative expression on a city? For the tenth year in a row, the Boulder International Fringe Festival is experimenting with the answer to this question. The fest “brings artists from all over the country and all over the world,” says co-founder Alana Eve Burman, this year presenting more than 300 events over twelve days at ten venues.

The fringe-festival concept was born in Scotland in 1947 and spread to North America in 1982. The idea was simple yet rare: no juries, no censorship, and all proceeds from tickets go directly to the artists. The Boulder version of the event features film screenings, dance, theater, talk shows, workshops and parties. “You get to pop into a whole bunch of different creative experiences and either love the heck out of it or have a lot of different reactions to it and then move on and see what else is out there,” Burman says.

Festivities kick off tonight at the Dairy Center for the Performing Arts, 2590 Walnut Street in Boulder, with a $5 “All-You-Can-Artist Buffet,” during which participants will perform rapid-fire previews of their shows. The festival runs through September 28; for more information and tickets, go to boulderfringe.com.
Sept. 17-28, 2014

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