‘Expect the unexpected’: Fringe North promises to captivate

A diverse lineup of artistry and musical entertainment will be on full display at the Sault Ste. Marie Museum this month as the Fringe North Festival celebrates its seventh year in town. 

Reaching viewers as far away as Australia, Europe, and India, Fringe North will be a hybrid festival once again, which means attendees will be able to enjoy both digital and live performances.

Taking place at the museum for a fifth time, Fringe North president Tova Arbus says she can’t think of a better venue to oversee their festivities.

“We’ve grown together; the team there is so incredible,” she says. “They have lots of really unique spaces that can house our venues, and it’s just a really inviting space.”

“I’m also just so amazed and impressed at how the festival has grown and developed over the years. When we started, we really didn’t know what we were doing – there were some growing pains for sure. But I’m so proud of the festival that’s re-emerged post-COVID.”

The museum will host a trio of venues throughout Fringe North’s five-day run and will also feature a series of mini-popup galleries.

Special event coordinator Avery McMillan has been part of the show since 2021, and says the festival has expanded significantly since its inception.

“It was originally based in theatre, but now it’s expanded to include multi-arts,” she says. “This year, we have a variety of musical acts, as well as digital content which includes things that are more film-based. We’ll have some theatre, drag, and burlesque performances among other things. It’s really expanded to include all forms of performance.”

Fringe takes place in more than 350 cities all over the world. The Sault and North Bay are currently the only northern Ontario communities that host the festival.

Originally from North Bay himself, artist relations coordinator Garrett Ryan is excited about some of the behind-the-scenes work taking place at Fringe North, particularly with the Emerging Artists in Residency Program which helps young and aspiring artists tell their stories.

“We work with these artists and help them put something up – digitally and in-person,” he says. “It’s been a wonderful opportunity this year to work with these artists and give them that extra level of support, and it’s a program we want to keep developing further.”

“We put in what we can with these artists, and then they keep coming back and making our festival even better.”

Having benefitted from that program personally, McMillan says she doesn’t know where Fringe North in Sault Ste. Marie would be without their outstanding crew.

“We all wear many hats and take on a lot of different roles,” she says. “We have a really welcoming space as a team which allows everyone to do their best work and be honest about what they can bring to the team and take on.”

Promising to captivate and inspire attendees of all ages, the festival president says this year’s lineup is unlike anything they’ve had before.

“Expect the unexpected,” Arbus says. “Because of our application model of ‘first come first serve’ and not censoring or overtly vetting works that are coming in, every festival is different and a surprise. I really think this festival spans artistic disciplines and genres in probably more variety than we’ve ever had.”

“There’s going to be some familiar-sounding performances this year, and then some things that might make folks go, ‘Hmm, what is that?’ We’re ready to show the community what we’re here for.”

The ‘pay what you can’ celebration of the arts takes place Aug. 16-20.

For full details, including the program, schedule, artist lineup, and to purchase tickets, visit here.