Theatre creators have been challenged through the pandemic to create art that feels like theatre, without the theatre. Attending Fringe this year is an opportunity to celebrate the artistic accomplishments of these divisors, actors, designers and crew members, support and connect with the theatre community, and be wowed by their innovation amidst incredibly tough circumstances.

This year, Fringe will be running digitally from July 21st – 31st and will feature a plethora of on-demand Fringe including live-digital events, watch parties, digital lobby gatherings, virtual patios and more! 

Purchasing a Toronto Fringe pass will offer you full access to pre-recorded audio and video shows created by a wide variety of talented artists, and the best part is, people from all over the world will be watching with you! 

“Fringe will always be an organization looking to bend, to reshape, to reform—an organization that wants everyone to come out and play and have their stories told.” says Jason Murray, chair of the Toronto Fringe Board of Directors. Fringe made a commitment in 2020 to ensure that 50% of their shows are created by Black, Indigenous and other people of colour in this year’s transformative festival. 

So purchase a ticket and immerse yourself in the wonderful world of theatre, with over 150 shows to watch, listen and enjoy! Tickets are on sale for $13 dollars a pop, but if you’re like me and really want to dive deep into the festival, support artists, and get that Fringe feeling then maybe you’ll find interest in a Primetime subscription or a Fringe-In-A-Box. For $100 you could purchase one of 50 exclusive boxes that include a limited-edition print version of Fringe’s Digital Program Guide, a membership pass for the upcoming Digital Toronto Fringe Festival, a  Fringe T.O. mask, a Postscript “Patio Vibes” hand-poured candle, a Postscript water bottle and a selection of promotional codes from Fringe’s sponsors. Well that’s amazing.

Some shows we will definitely be hitting up:

Just Pervs by Perverted Assemblages,

This show centres around a group of girls who form a union of “pervs” within their high school. They navigate what it truly means to be autonomous young women starting a femme revolution. As they come of age, they drift apart until the death of a friend forces them back together to tell this story. Based on the short story “Just Pervs” by Jess Taylor.

Dance of Torn Papers by Nowadays Theatre

Nowadays Theatre brings you an immersive 360˚ film experience of two short pieces from acclaimed Iranian playwright Mohammad Yaghoubi.

Reimagining his award-winning “Dance of Torn Papers,” Yaghoubi has written two new works, “Mother” and “Birthday Present,” for this double-bill world premiere. Watch in either English or Farsi, and be transported to a digital world where you will have complete control over where you look, just like you would in a live performance!

دو نمایش‌نامه‌ی جدید نوشته‌ی محمد یعقوبی نمایش‌نامه‌نویس و کارگردان سرشناس ایرانی-کانادایی که با استفاده از دوربین فیلم‌برداری ۳۶۰ درجه ضبط و منتشر شده‌اند.

Play Mas’ With Shakespeare: A Carnival Rebellion by Brown Cotton Outreach

A Comedy Satire featuring Trinidad and Tobago’s Traditional Carnival Characters quoting Shakespeare from Brown Cotton Theatre.

Jamette Carnival is a ragtag band of the dispossessed, the dastardly – the stickfighters, the prostitutes and…the nobody. Carnival mocks the privilege and excesses of the colonial elites through archetypal costumes or masques. This is protest through culture and fun, a heaving melange of interwoven European and African cultures become one.

Swallow This Skin by Unhushed Theatre Collective 

It’s 7pm in downtown Toronto where a run-down strip club gets ready to open up for an unusual night. The workers at the club get ready for the night. As the hours go on, the dancers’ regular schedule becomes interrupted as an old dancer comes back to visit, a lingering customer stays around, a love obsession distracts the room, and more. By the time we reach the closing hour of 4am, the dancers discover themes of identity, sex, religion, sexuality, desire, fetishization, girlhood, what femininity means as a woman of colour, and more.

dougiEworld Real Food Puppet Theatre for Kids! 

“dougiEworld Real Food Puppet Theatre” is a little bit “Sesame Street”, a little bit “Veggie Tales”, and a whole batch of real food playing characters in this tale of two vegetable heroes on a quest to save their communities from going missing. This family fun experience brings theatre fresh from the garden for a summer picnic that will keep you coming back for seconds. Suitable for ages 4 – 11 years and anyone looking for an awesome excuse to play with their food.

In a time that has been so difficult for live theatre, we’re grateful that Fringe can provide such an incredible lineup of programming. 

Tickets are now on sale. Check out Toronto Fringe’s website for more information on this year’s festival and programming.