February 11, 2009

THE BASEMENT AT FOREFRONT OF FRINGE   

Auckland’s inaugural Fringe Festival looks to sprawl and heave all across the city come February 27 – with a range of shows taking place in locations as diverse as paddocks, churches, streets and parks.

The Basement, however, will become the epicenter of the festival – with twenty nine performances crammed into the venue. Fringe at The Basement offers drama, improv, cabaret, comedy, music, mime, burlesque, spoken word, dance, film, freaks, geeks and conspiracy theories – from the outrageous to the sublime.

Exclusively selected by The Edge® through Sally Barnett and Charles Unwin, The Basement’s ethos ‘…to provide a platform where Auckland’s less established creative talent can develop their craft and have the opportunity to produce their own work‘ befits the array of shows that the venue will house – with the added bonus of newly installed air conditioning for the summer period.

The Dirty Brothers are three internationally successful circus, sideshow and music performers who, taking their inspiration from art-house cinema and the ethos of punk-rock, have created a new form of extreme visceral theatre. For the Auckland Fringe, The Dirty Brothers Sideshow presents The Dark Party, a fusion of physical comedy and hardcore stunts. From the surreal to downright funny this is a theatrical event like no other, and with only 6 nights at The Basement, punters are advised to book early to avoid missing out.

The Fringe opens at The Basement on Friday 27th February with the musical madmen Dr. Colossus, laying aside their trademark ‘train-load of flaming camels crashing into a circus tent filled with knife throwers and surf guitars’ to perform a selection of works by mad genius and film composer extraordinaire Danny Elfman; including music from the Tim Burton classics Edward Scissorhands, Beetlejuice and The Nightmare Before Christmas.

Throughout the Fringe, The Basement will be housing an exclusive sneak peak at what NZ International Comedy Festival 2009 audiences can expect as Comedy Unplugged provides those performers a chance to test their material and see if it sinks or swim.

The Official Festival Late Show Late Night Campfire features snippets from the best Fringe shows, celebrity guests and unconventional interviews with Fringe performers. With a flexible format and fresh guest line up each time, no two shows will be the same. Late Night Campfire is a free event, 11pm till midnight on Friday nights during the Fringe (except Friday 27th) before the George FM DJ’s kick off the after-parties.

Jonny Brugh and Danielle Cormack bring their poetic musical project Bob Geldof to the Fringe as Bob Geldof – LIVE which promises to be nothing like long winded plays or a great exhibition of genius, but may cause offense and contain nudity. With rock, you never know.

These are merely a handful of what Auckland’s first Fringe have not only programmed at The Basement, but what they will umbrella from Friday 27th February to Sunday 22nd March.

For more information visit http://www.aucklandfringe.org.nz/ or http://www.basementspace.co.nz/