Create
Curtain to rise on Tampa Fringe’s permanent home
Right there in the historic heart of Ybor City, on busy 7th Avenue near 17th Street, the four-story Kress Building has become a central figure in the area’s artistic renaissance. Erected in 1929 brick by the famous Kress “five and dime” chain – the name is still proudly displayed in big white letters on the façade – it’s now home to more than a dozen nonprofits, artist studios and spaces, galleries and more.
The Kress Building has Tampa City Ballet headquarters, and the 800-square-foot movie screening room Screen Door Microcinema.
Moving in any minute is the Tampa International Fringe Festival, the annual celebration of independent performing arts and alternative theater. Although Tampa Fringe – a member of several international Fringe organizations – has been around since 2016, it’s never has a permanent home.
Until now.
Erika MacDonald’s “The Barn Identity” (May 12, 13, 14) won Best Show and Best Female Performer at Orlando Fringe, and Critic’s Pick at Cincinnati Fringe.
The seventh Tampa Fringe, May 10-14, is a collection of theatrical presentations, with small (sometimes singular) casts, ranging from standup comedy to burlesque to bizarre personal monologues. Often, there are puppets.
“The experimental indie things transform the actual shape and landscape of theater for the future,” believes Tampa Fringe co-founder and producer Trish Parry.
“Besides changing theater into things that perhaps modern audiences will find more palatable, and keep it alive and not just for the bluehairs, Fringe is an enabler for performers to make their own stuff, go on tour and actually find work for themselves.”
There is a Fringe Festival circuit, and it extends throughout the United States and into the bigger, more cosmopolitan cities in the U.K. and Europe.
“There’s a lot of people I know who exclusively tour their own Fringe shows and make a living at it,” says Parry. “It’s one of the few platforms where if you just believe in yourself, and you give it a shot and the audiences are receptive, you can actually create your own career. And not have to wait for some theater company to decide if you’re good enough for them.”
This year, Fringe becomes its own theater company. Shows for 2023 take place at the Hillsborough Community College Ybor City campus, and at three venues inside the Kress Building – the microbrewery (borrowed for the occasion), a 15-seat mini-venue called The Cage (“It’s mostly standup in there, with a few ambitious theater people who have decided to do one-person shows. So we’ll see how that goes”) and a 40-seat black box, newly painted and newly dubbed The Fringe Theatre.
According to Fringe policy, 50 percent of the performances are by local creatives; 25 percent are national, and another 25 percent international.
Once the circus leaves town (after the 14th), Fringe will stay put. And put out the welcome mat. “Think of it,” Parry enthuses, “more as a space where things are continuously happening. It’s kind of modeled on theaters I used to perform at in New York, in the East Village. Where if somebody wants to do a show, cool, but we’re not going to have a giant set built that’s permanent, because we’ll still have weekly, monthly and quarterly events. Think of it as a flex space.”
The Fringe Theatre will be an alternative, she says, increasing the organization’s footprint (the yearly festival will, of course, continue). “And increase the impact we’re able to have with local artists, because there’s really not a lot of affordable, small theater spaces.”
The grand opening celebration takes place at 6 p.m. May 10 and includes a reception and show previews, with Tampa Mayor Jane Castor cutting the ribbon at 6:50.
The 2023 Tampa International Fringe Festival
The Historic Kress Building (Ybor)
Includes Fringe Central, The Cage, The Fringe Theatre and Screen Door Microcinema.
1624 E 7th Ave, Tampa 33605
HCC Ybor Performing Arts Building
Includes The Coop, Rehearsal Hall, & HCC Outside.
1411 E 11th Ave, Tampa, FL 33605
