If the annual Philadelphia Fringe Festival is not enough, the adjacent Cannonball Festival is also bringing some of the most intriguing art and performers together this month.
Cannonball will take center stage as the largest hub of the Philadelphia Fringe Festival, offering independent performances from artists of every discipline at every stage of their careers.
“My favorite thing about Cannonball is there are all kinds of different genres of performance we present,” said Mentoring Producer Colby Calhoun as the performers practiced their shows. “We run about 125 shows this year. We have almost 25 workshops and mess-hall events, which are panels and secret little treasures that will pop up throughout our venues.”
As Cannonball prepares for its fourth year, it maintains its focus on innovation and accessibility, and unveils new programs that celebrate under-resourced artists and make space for community and conversation. From rebellious circus, delicious dance, fearless theater and activist art to workshops, parties and more, Cannonball pushes the boundaries of live performance at four different venues this Fringe.
Tickets and more information can be found at the hub’s website, www.cannonballfestival.org. Tickets and more information about the Philadelphia Fringe Festival can be found at www.phillyfringe.org, by phone at 215-413-1318, or in person at the Fringe Festival Box Office at FringeArts, 140 N. Columbus Blvd., Philadelphia.
Cannonball has quickly become one of Philadelphia’s busiest presenters of live performance. With shows presented back-to-back, audiences can see multiple offerings every night at each of Cannonball’s four venues, enjoying a drink at the Garden Bar between performances.
In 2024, Cannonball moves into Old City with the addition of Christ Church Neighborhood House as a venue, and returns to the Maas Building, Icebox Project Space and Liberty Lands, which will feature outdoor weekend performances for families. Additionally, Sundays will see the hub take over Pig Iron Studios for Camp Cannonball, days full of workshops, panels, community discussions and the Overboard series.
“We believe that the difference between the incredible artists of the Independent Fringe and those produced at larger venues is a question of resource investment,” said co-founder and Program Manager Ben Grinberg. “As we continually seek new resources and opportunities for our artist communities to craft and hone their work, we hope audiences will appreciate the incredible opportunity to see world-class artists in the hyper-intimate settings our venues offer.”
Focused on expanding who Philly Fringe is for and how it happens, Cannonball offers accessible sliding-scale ticketing to every production, and builds programs in collaboration with artists and community members that expand performance works outside of the theater through Cannonball Mess Hall events and Cannonball Workshops.
“The goal of Cannonball remains the same: to cultivate a space of warmth, sharing, and belonging by and for artists who have often, by their own admission, been overlooked by many of the city’s other presenting organizations,” Calhoun said.
The Cannonball kicks off Sept. 1 with at the Icebox Project Space Gallery — 1400 N. American St., Philadelphia — with a free opening party of performances, toasts and dancing. There will be a curated lineup of artists performing throughout Cannonball. Afterward, kick it up a notch with music, drinks and a chance to connect with friends and fans.
The festival shows begin in earnest Sept. 2 at 8:30 p.m. with “Is This a Wedding?” at September Christ Church Neighborhood House Theater. The show — conceived, created, and performed by real-life engaged couple Crys Clemente and Alison Hyde Pascale — traipses through 5,000 years of matrimonial history to break down contemporary weddings into their constituent parts and reassemble them in a deeply weird 50-minute bricolage of silly costumes, sillier puppets, and uncomfortably heartfelt audience participation.
On Sept. 3, you can catch “MK + A Rewatch Podcast” at the Maas Building Studio, 1320 N. Fifth St. Sharing one role on a popular ’90s sitcom, lovable twins MK + A rose to stardom before they could even talk.
Now, 30 years on, it’s their first public appearance in a decade.
In front of a live studio audience, MK + A navigate a crash course down memory lane of their famous fictional childhoods.
Part illustrated audio concert, part psychological thriller, MK + A Rewatch Podcast asks: What dark realities lurk beneath our tendencies towards fandom and our hunger for nostalgia?
That’s just the tip of the iceberg. Go to www.cannonballfestival.org for a full schedule.
Source: Berkshire mont
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