Fringe Manila 2017 is back with bolder acts

In keeping with National Arts Month, the country’s leading multi-arts festival for independent artists Fringe Manila is set to open a series of never-before-experienced events from February 8 to March 3 at various venues across Manila.

Born from the world’s largest community of independent, inter-cultural festivals World Fringe Network (WFN), Fringe Manila is an uncensored, open access, non-curated, artist-run festival that features raw, risky and groundbreaking works by both emerging and established artists from the Philippines and around the globe in all art genres and a combination of them—from visual arts, film, theater, to literature, music, circus, dance, cabaret, improv, and everything else in between.

Since its inauguration in 2015, Fringe Manila has been carving a free platform for artists in the margins to share their art, however strange and provocative they may be, by providing venue, mentorship and community.

The festival has helped kick-start the careers of up-and-coming artists who are now known worldwide, such as Daloy Dance Company, Black Canvas theater and Egg Theater Company.

“Fringe is a platform for the new wave of movers and shakers in our industry to create opportunities for themselves, and not just wait for opportunities. We want to empower them and use Fringe as a springboard. There’s no Fringe without these brave art innovators to show the world,” said festival director and founder Andrei Pamintuan.

Presented by arts and performance hub Pineapple Lab, Fringe Manila 2017 is unleashing fresh, riveting, and heartstopping shows from both international and local performers for the third time to reveal true stories of the youth and what’s relevant to them in unabashed freedom.

“There’s no place like Fringe. I’ve been with them ever since. They’re very supportive and they let artists express themselves outside known and accepted art forms. The community is amazing. It’s a safe space to grow,” shared Jomelle Era, artistic director of a newly launched non-profit organization in San Juan Performing Arts and Recreation Center (PARC) foundation, which will be hosting various shows in Fringe this year.

This year’s theme ‘Bahala Na’ highlights titillating acts: The Virtual Womb by Filipino-Canadian artist Maylee Todd; Inferna by bondage artist Joyen; and Ang Pagdidiwata ni Maria Clara by Toronto-based performance collective HATAW and Burlesque PH.

But there are more exciting shows and events to watch out for, such as the Art Battle at Fully Booked; the launch of Joee & I’s first album, To The End of The World; re-staging of Sa Wakas: A Pinoy Rock Musical; Werk in Progress by Black Canvas Theatre; Si Edgar, Si Allan, at Si Art by Andipara Collaborative; Airdance’s This is Not a Circus; FLOW Collective’s Resonanz: A Modern Circus Art Show; and Viva Manila’s Manila Transitio 1945, among others.

“Our advocacy is to celebrate and showcase the diversity of art today. It looks chaotic but that’s where the fun is. This year’s theme is ‘Bahala Na.’ It’s about the reckless abandon to creating art no matter what,” Pamintuan shared.

Despite gathering an audience of 30,000 to 45 venues, and featuring more than 500 performances and exhibits of over 1,000 artists, Fringe still needs funding and is reaching out to more people to support the cause to keep it alive and improve for the future.

The 22-day festival will happen on the vibrant streets and cultural hubs of Metro Manila—the Cultural Center of the Philippines, Pineapple Lab, the PARC Foundation, the Power Mac Center Spotlight Theater, Fully Booked BGC, and the Fringe Club Rooftop at Simcas. — AT, GMA News

For a detailed schedule of events, visit their official website or follow Fringe Manila on Facebook. Tickets for all the exhibitis and performances are available at TicketWorld.