Riders' O'Day believes positive steps taken in 2024
Nov 21, 2024
Work has now begun on evaluating the roster ahead of the 2025 season.
The Saskatoon Fringe kicks off in W.E. Graham Park on Thursday, and the festival will feature more than 200 outdoor performances and 126 indoor theatre shows.
Anita Smith, the festival’s artistic and executive director, said visitors will have a whole new experience each day of the festival, which runs until Aug. 12.
She said there are more than just dramatic performances at the fringe. The festival will also include kid-focused carnival games, food trucks, and artisans.
“It’s going to be a very lively site,” she said, adding the festival sees more than 40,000 visitors each year.
The 2023 festival will also have an art walk in honour of Saskatchewan photographer Thelma Pepper, and a five-kilometre fun run on Sunday.
Smith said performers from as far away as Sweden and South Africa have ventured to the Bridge City for the event, and there will also be Canadian touring and local artists as well.
One of Saskatoon’s own performances – Mistress Revenge/Lady Virtue – kicks off on Friday. The show was written and produced by local actor Erin Brophy, who plays the character Tamora.
The show is her take on one of her favourite Shakespearean tragedies, Titus Andronicus. Brophy said it’s meant for people who are looking to see an old play in a new light.
The play examines the perspectives of two female characters with a fractious relationship on Earth who run into each other in the afterlife.
“After everything they’ve gone through, in the events that Shakespeare wrote it, now they have to deal with each other in death as well,” she explained.
The playwright said the show is intended for an adult audience, and could be enjoyed equally by viewers who love and hate Shakespeare.
“I’m really looking forward to sharing this with Saskatoon and audiences that are local,” she said.
According to the City of Saskatoon, Broadway Avenue will be closed between 10th Street and 12th Street starting Saturday at 6 a.m., and detours will be in place for those travelling in the area.