THEATRE NEWS:
Interview: Arthurs the face behind Fringe Festival; a Fest guide

JOHN COULBOURN,
QMI Agency
4 JUL/11

If Festivals wore faces, the Toronto Fringe Theatre Festival would be well-served by the face sported by Gideon Arthurs -- a bright, friendly, open face that lights up like an electric welcome mat whenever he sits down long enough to chat about whatever happens to be on his mind.

And these days, with his fourth Fringe Festival just about to launch, Arthurs is likely to be chatting about the many faces of the fest for which he serves so passionately as executive director. And as the conversation progresses, it becomes obvious that in many ways, the face the Toronto Fringe has been wearing over the past few years -- bold, innovative and, yes, welcoming -- has indeed been Arthurs'.

It has been under his watch, for instance, that audiences for the annual summer festival have continued to grow -- 79,000 last year, a number out of all proportion to a meager marketing budget that seems to get tighter and tighter every year. But it's also thanks to Arthurs' efforts that the Fringe these days is far more than merely a summer festival -- as successful in its Next Stage (a 10-day winterfest that, as its title implies, concentrates on Fringe shows deemed worthy of a more serious run) as it is in its July version, which kicks off a 12-day run July 6.

"The question was: Is there a life for Fringe shows outside of the Festival -- and the answer was, 'yes', " Arthurs says proudly, pointing with pride to the fact that, of 32 shows presented in the Next Stage Festival over three years, 12 have had subsequent remounts. He's also pretty proud of the newly undertaken Fringe Creation Lab, which, in addition to housing the Fringe offices year round, also offers an affordable, sometimes even subsidized working home for "anyone with a need to express themselves creatively."

Then there's 10x10x10 -- the youth initiative he helped put together a few years back which will once again see 1,000 young people attend Fringe shows absolutely free -- and the much-anticipated first-ever Visual Fringe, slated to run every night of the Fringe in Honest Ed's Alleyway. And the complex deal with the Mirvishes and the Randolph Academy that saw the relocation of the Fringe Club to the parking lot of Honest Ed's.

But while Arthurs may have transformed the face of the Fringe, what's important to him is its heart. And that heart is clearly the artists that make up the Fringe and the audience that comes to see it. "It's an explosion of creativity by the most diverse group of artists I've ever seen gathered in one place," he says, his wonder undiminished by years of hard work. "I think the Fringe talks to so many people who love the form of the kind of theatre we make and they can't find it any place else."

And while Arthurs continues to put the best possible face on the Fringe, he knows that his job, as much as he loves it, can't go on forever. "When I took over, I had a five-year plan and I had that done in two years," he says in a voice devoid of both pride and false modesty, adding while he has no immediate plans to move on, he doesn't see himself staying on long enough to celebrate a 10th anniversary.

But wherever the future takes him, he thinks it will look pretty bright -- not just for him but for the Fringe he loves and theatre in general. "I think we're doing a lot better than we think we're doing," he laughs. "There are so many people who want to be a part of theatre -- so what's the problem?" And that is the face of optimism.

A guide to finding the best of the fest:

When it comes to striking Fringe gold, there really is no treasure map — despite the avalanche of advice (expert and otherwise) that appears every year and everywhere. In the end, trying to predict which of the 145 Fringe shows featured in this year’s edition (kicking off Wednesday) is going to hit big is like trying to predict where lightning is going to strike. Still, most seasoned Fringers will tell you that if all you want to do is have a good time — which believe it or not is possible without knocking yourself out in pursuit of the next Drowsy Chaperone (a task not dissimilar to trying to identify the Sunday’s lottery winner on Friday night) — there are two ways to do it.

The first is to follow the people — for in the end, the magic of theatre flows from the people involved. And that starts with the audience. So while you’re lining up to buy your Fringe tickets, talk to the people around you. Ask them what they’ve seen that has impressed, and then listen to their answers. That is where you’ll learn whether, in a shared search for an impressive cup of theatrical tea, you’re all drinking from the same pot.

Then look at the people involved in the show. For instance, when a playwright such as Linda Griffiths shows up at the Fringe (Brother Andre’s Heart in the Tarragon Extra Space), attention should be paid. Or when a hotter-than-spit actor such as Ins Choi writes a play that wins the Fringe New Play Contest (Kim’s Convenience at the Bathurst Street Theatre), it might be worth a look-see. Here are a few others that you might want to keep an eye on, because of the people involved:

The Love Octagon, at Theatre Passe Muraille, written by Ron Pederson and Chris Craddock, who was, you might recall, a major part of BASH’d.

Mary’s Wedding, at the Factory Theatre, written by Stephen Massicotte, who also wrote The Clockmaker.

War of the Clowns, at the Miles Nadal JCC, directed by Sue Miner and featuring an extensive cast that includes Hume Baugh.

And finally, Awake at the Walmer Baptist Church, a work that in addition to having people talking also has Andrew Craig serving as choral director.

But in all this, you’ve got to learn to trust your instincts as well, for in years of Fringing, most of the shows I remember best struck out of the blue — such as a memorable little number called Dale Beaner and the Turtle Boy we stumbled across last summer, written and performed by Devon Hyland and Connor Thompson, two hugely talented then-unknowns with a gift for spinning fantasy into gold. Which leads us to the second way to have fun at the Fringe — and that’s the easy part.

In the same way you can’t win the lottery without a ticket, you simply can’t strike gold at the Fringe without going to the Fringe. So go already. And once you’re there, take in a show. If you’re lucky, it will be wonderful. If you’re not so lucky, well, it only cost you $10 and you’ll have some good advice to dispense in the line-up for tickets to the next show you want to see.

For complete Fringe listings, visit fringetoronto.com or pick up a free catalogue.