It’s hard to believe but Philly’s Fringe Festival has returned for another epic, 17-day celebration of contemporary art and performances.
The festival, hosted by Fringe Arts, runs from September 9 to 24. Although its main headquarters is at La Peg on the Delaware River Waterfront, there will be more than 1,000 performances and art installations taking place throughout the city, in both public and private spaces.
Fringe Arts and participating artists have been offering sneak peeks of the installations over the past few days via Instagram. Here are at least five performances and installations that will get you excited about all 1,000 of them, from Ann Hamilton’s ethereal "Habitus" to Catch’s takeover of the Bok building.
1. Habitus by Ann Hamilton (Ongoing from Tuesdays-Sundays, 12 p.m. to 6 p.m.)
Artist Ann Hamilton has transformed Pier 9 on the Delaware River into Habitus, a beautiful fabric installation of spinning curtains that visitors are welcome to touch and play with.
2. Room 21 by Jace Clayton (September 9 at 8 p.m.)
This one-night only performance kicks off the Fringe Festival at the Barnes Foundation. Jace Clayton puts his musical spin on the artworks of Room 21 at the museum, which includes a mix of African masks, religious works, and paintings. More than a dozen musicians will join Clayton for the immersive musical performance.
3. Grounded Autonomy by Garrett Olthuis and Sean Green (September 9-11 at 7:30 p.m.)
Grounded Autonomy takes place in the Glassy Factory at 1517 North Bailey Street. The 120-minute performance features dancers from SkyDance Philly, who through acrobatic and organic dance moves tell the story of "explaining the inexplicable pull of another person, and redefining what that means to you."
4. Catch at Bok (September 17 at 8 p.m.)
Catch, an award-winning series of high-powered performances based in Brooklyn, is taking over the Bok building in South Philly for a one-night performance during the festival. The event is being called a "night of performance mayhem" that will showcase both Philly- and NYC-based artists, musicians, and "luminaries."
5. Paper Trail by Shadow Company (September 9-17, various times)
Paper Trail is a compilation of six one-act plays that follow how some of the "most iconic stories in recent memory" came to be. What’s more, the whole 60-minute play is performed by local teens who produced the original works.
6. Shadow House by Philadelphia Opera Collective, PhilaLandmarks (September 9-22 at 8 p.m.)
Shadow House is an opera about 11 characters over the course of 200 years, written by Brenna Geffers. The 70-minute performance takes place this year in the historic Powel House in Society Hill, as a way to draw more people to explore and experience the art of opera in a more immersive space than a traditional theater.