Fringe 2011:Today's the Day

We are gearing up for the Fringe. We are stocked up on sandwich supplies so we can get out of the house for 5:30 shows. I have a pocketful of coins for meters in case we don't snag on-street parking and some singles for the pesky parking ticket machine at Mixed Blood. That's about it for preparation-my guys are teenagers now; so the days of stage managing a family day at the Fringe are over.

Warning: shameless plug ahead! Yarrrh! The Lusty Busty Pirate Musical, created by Dan Pinkerton and Chris Gennaula (my husband) doesn't open until Sunday at 1:00 at the Gremlin (which, by the way, has luxurious amounts of free parking across the street at the US Bank.) Chris is the composer and music director. They are in rehearsal so we won't see much of him for the next few days. Yarrrh! is raunchy, bawdy, and saucy. It is definitely not for children (it's rated ARRRH!). We haven't decided whether or not we are bringing Tommy. We probably won't make up our minds until Sunday morning. It's one thing to watch a naughty musical; it's another to sit next to your Mom in the audience knowing your Dad wrote it.

The Fringe website www.fringefestival.org has added more bells and whistles for 2011. Many artists have contributed video trailers this year. Just click on videos and go. My favorite new feature is the user-friendly wish list. Many of the 3 minute Fringe-For-All performances are embedded on individual show pages.

Tommy and I will be fringing solo for the first three days. We haven't set our schedule in stone, but Tommy likes improv, sci-fi, and sword fighting. I gravitate towards musicals, opera, and spoken-word.

Here are some shows on our schedule:

Brain Fighters from Joking Envelope A family friendly show written by Joseph Scrimshaw, who wrote the brilliantly squirrely "An Inconvenient Squirrel" a few years ago.

Entwined written and performed by Rockstar Storyteller Amy Salloway. A work in progress at the 2010 Fringe, I am looking forward to seeing this show expand.

Callahan and Lingo: The Last Ditch More Rockstars-I think I'm officially a groupie. I had never heard grown-up storytelling until I started attending the Fringe. Days after finding out they received a last minute slot in the Fringe, Callahan and Lingo were fantastic at Fringe-for-All #1.

Rambler Family Ramblers Final Christmas Reunion Spectacular Best play description "They play, they sing, they hate each other's guts...They're family." Lion in Winter meets the Partridge Family?

Hamluke presented by the Nerdyard Shakespeare+Star Wars. Need I say more?

Balls Out! presented by Late Night Menu Starring the a cappella group Six Appeal. Out of the 60 shows represented at the 2 Fringe for All showcases this year these young men had the tightest....harmonies.