Fringe Fest 2010 – August 21, 2010

The weird, the lights, the fire, the exotic, the drama. It’s all found at Indy Fringe Fest, which hosts 280 shows in 10 days all along the Mass Ave corridor in downtown Indianapolis. This was my first time attending Fringe Fest, even though the idea to bring the Fringe Fest to Indianapolis was proposed in 2001.

Actually, the whole idea of the Fringe Fest idea was started in Edinburgh, Scotland in 1947. There was a cultural and theatre festival that was intended on uniting Europe through cultural arts after the war ended. There were way more applicants than expected, so not being deferred by such trivial things as space, they set up camp outside of the main festival and performed anyway. They all performed tirelessly and drew almost more of a crowd than the main festival itself, and thus created a new following. It spread to Canada in the 1980s, and then spread to the U.S., where there are now more than 20 Fringe Fests happening annually.

I took my family down to Mass Ave on Saturday night, and we literally set up chairs right on the sidewalk next to the Dean Johnson Art Studio. Some friends of mine are part of Phoenix Fire Productions and were performing with Indy Hoopers and Carenza’s Caravan, and of course we went to show our support for all of them.

Phoenix Fire Productions is a group of fire-spinners (sometimes called fire dancing) that performs with a variety of props, usually staffs, juggling, poi (wicking material in the shape of a ball on arm-length chains), whips and fans. Fire-spinning has its roots in Polynesian arts, mostly originating in New Zealand’s Maori culture and Samoan traditions, but it’s crossed over to include traditions related to pagan fire ceremonies and Middle Eastern belly dancing. I was really impressed with the fact that they took safety precautions very seriously – they weren’t just a bunch of pyros messing around, leaving me to fear for my life. While they’ve only been performing together for a matter of months, they each have many years of experience, and it shows. There are a variety of fuels, but they tend to use white gas (also known as petroleum ether) because it is highly volatile and burns clean, doesn’t really smoke or leave much of a residue on the wick. (However, word on the street is that thanks to jerkwad meth-heads, it’s becoming harder to find.)

But they weren’t the only ones there to entertain us: Indy Hoopers showed us that hula hoops weren’t just the fad of the ‘50s. It was graceful, and reminded me of Cirque du Soleil. Hoop dancing is actually part of a broader artform called “flow arts.” And this is nothing new: hooping goes back to 1000 BC in ancient Egypt, and also referenced in 14^th century England when physician’s notes included treating people who threw out their backs due to hooping. It was later when British sailors visited the Hawaiian Islands and merged the hula dance with hoop dancing. Native Americans in the southwest U.S. also have hoop dancing traditions as well. Definitely, the coolest part of their performance was when they used hoops equipped with flashing LED lights after it became dark. It made for some really cool pictures.

And last but not least, Carenza’s Caravan, a group of four belly dancers enlightened us with their sensuous movements. Belly dance, a literal translation from the French “danse du ventre,” refers to a type of Middle Eastern dance known as “raqs sharqi.” There are many styles ranging from all over the Middle East to northern Africa and into parts of Europe. Some historians believe that the origins of belly dancing lie in ancient fertility rituals in pre-Islamic Arabia. There are many different traditions in types of dancing and costuming depending on which country you’re in. They do use a variety of props, such as finger cymbals, canes, veils, fans, and even swords. I was personally amazed at the sword dance. I can only imagine the incredible amount of control it takes to master this. I can also see definite consequences to screwing this up. I’m not sure if I could do that. Well, maybe I could. Maybe.

The whole evening was a blast. Definitely something I’m glad that my kids got to come out for. My daughter got the chance to try belly dancing, and she also got a lesson in juggling. Granted, we didn’t get to see any of the numerous theatre groups that were set to perform, but there were many of the actors walking streets in costume promoting their plays by handing out advertisement cards. It was one night where I felt like I was in my element, surrounded by fellow artists, musicians, and people truly loving what they do.

[Resource credit goes to various articles on Wikipedia]