Fringe Benefits

You hear the word "theater" and visions of toothless Neil Simon plays and rehashed Broadway musicals start to dance in your head. Not so with the Phoenix Fringe Festival, which is here to kill that noise.

The people behind the second annual affair know that to actually strike a nerve, you first have to get under the skin. In the tradition of that original theater rogues’ gathering, the Edinburgh Fringe, this year's Phoenix Fringe goes hypodermic with shows from local artists and performers from across the nation and the globe. A grab bag for the adventurous, the edgy and provocative works range from the homegrown talents of Paisley Yankolovich and the multimedia performances of Theatre in My Basement to the movement- and dance-based explorations of Los Torreznos from Spain.

Whereas last year's performances were all housed in one performance venue, this year's expanded schedule features multiple programs in many spaces across downtown, from 3rd Street Theatre, Modified Arts, Drop In Gallery, and Space 55 on Roosevelt Row to The Chocolate Factory, Soul Invictus Gallery & Cabaret, and PHiX on Grand Avenue.