Summer Festivals Sizzle - Wed Jul 10, 4:40 PM ET - Reuters/Variety

NY Fringe Fest, Midtown Theatre Fest, and Living Room Get Comfy
In an average season, fewer than 40 productions open on Broadway.
Off-Broadway that figure roughly doubles, and Off-Off-Broadway-depending on
how you define it-as many as 300 or more shows might celebrate opening
nights. During July and August, however, three festivals offer about 300
shows combined in what is one of the largest and, in terms of aesthetics
and sensibility, one of the most freewheeling theatrical convocations in
the world. The festivals are the sixth annual New York International Fringe
Festival (Aug. 9-25), the HERE Arts Center's 13th annual American Living
Room (July 13-Sept. 1), and the third annual Midtown International Theatre
Festival (July 8-Aug. 4). With 195 productions and countless ancillary
events, the Fringe is the pink elephant of summer theatre-something
impossible to avoid noticing. And more than that, why would you want to?
After all, the list of productions which have graduated from the Fringe and
gone on to productive, profitable lives is headed, naturally, by
"Urinetown," now playing on Broadway. The American Living Room, meanwhile,
sports over 100 new works, over 1,000 participating artists, and
unapologetically calls itself "New York City's oldest downtown summer
performance festival." (One of the Living Room's conceits-transforming HERE
into "a cozy, relaxing living room, complete with comfy couches, relaxing
lazy-boys, funky table lamps, and kitschy coffee tables" is still the
coolest idea since air conditioning.) Finally, the Midtown Festival plays
its upstart role well, with over 25 productions. In total, it's an entire
New York theatrical season in eight frenetic weeks.

The Fringe on the Balance Beam
The challenge in programming this year's Fringe Festival-coming weeks after
"Urinetown" took three Tonys-is in finding a balance between cutting-edge
works by complete unknowns and cutting-edge works by well-known artists.
And, in essence, that's what the production list for the 2002 Fringe
Festival looks like. Here are five examples: "Him and Her," a new musical
by Paul Scott Goodman ("Bright Lights, Big City") starring Liz Larsen;
"Five Frozen Embryos," a one-act by actor/playwright David Greenspan;
"Sleepers," a short play "about two guys who meet while masturbating" by
Christopher Shinn (author of last season's "Four"); "The Death of Frank,"
by Stephen Belber (author of last season's "Tape"); and "Beat," a world
premiere drama tracing the life of poet Allen Ginsberg-in particular his
obscenity trial for "Howl." Described as "part poetry slam, part rant, part
musical jam session," the piece stars Danny Pintauro, famous for his
seasons on the TV sitcom "Who's the Boss?" and various gay-themed
theatrical showcases in New York in recent years.

Complete story at:
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/backstage/20020710/en_bpibs/summe\
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