When the list of shows at the Minnesota Fringe Festival goes public, festival executive director Dawn Bentley finds out what’ll be on stage at the same time as everyone else. True, Bentley is in charge of overseeing the 11-day performance and theater festival, which this year runs Aug. 1 to 11.
It’s one of a couple hundred such events around the world. But the entire process of selecting and scheduling shows for each year’s Fringe is an anonymous lottery. This harkens back to Fringe festivals’ origins as accessible and alternative spaces, Bentley said.
“Fringe is a worldwide movement,” she said. “That movement was in direct opposition to being ‘othered,’ being deemed not good enough to perform in a festival, or not experienced enough, or not mainstream enough.” This year, Minnesota Fringe is set to bring 105 shows to 14 venues across Minneapolis.
Some performers tour on an international Fringe circuit; for others, this is their first time onstage. Each show runs no more than an hour, giving artists a chance to explore new genres, subject matter and even performance format. Before the Fringe kicks off this week, we caught up with Bentley to learn more.
(This conversation has been edited and condensed.) Q: With the festival starting in less than a week, what’s on your to-do list right now? A: All the logistics are on the list right now. We’re scheduling access services, photography, videography, training the 100 volunteers and 80 staff members that we hi.