Ridiculous Nicholas Family Comedy Variety Show at Midtown Cinema, a past performance
Two weeks after being handed the keys to their first-ever brick-and-mortar location, a volunteer-powered arts group has transformed the space into a visual art gallery for the Harrisburg Fringe Festival.
In one 3-D piece, an old baby doll pokes out of a picture frame, lunging toward the viewer. Other works in the 16-artist display include a high-contrast painting of a mouth with hands, a crocheted plastic-bag tapestry that reads “Architects of Our Own Disaster,” and wood-framed photos of a plastic fork in a puddle.
“It is all so different,” said Brianna Dow, producer of the Harrisburg Fringe Festival and president of 717 Arts, on Thursday morning. “That’s kind of the point of Fringe—having it represent as many different facets as possible.”
In a few more hours, more fun will start.
Performances begin Thursday night at 6 p.m. and continue through Sunday night. Now in its fourth year, the four-day festival brings together all kinds of artists—visual artists, dancers, actors, circus performers, musicians—for pop-up performances at venues across the city.
The Fringe has 47 shows this year, Dow said. More than 200 artists are involved.
“The energy it brings to the city is really what I always love,” said Dow. “During the festival, I watch all these people walk from venue to venue talking about what they just saw and sharing their experiences.”
Alexis Campbell, Brianna Dow, and Robert Campbell
Last year, they sold about 3,000 tickets to performances. All the ticket sales are less than $10, explained Dow, and all the sales go back to the artists.
“The festival is all about supporting the artists and making it as low-cost and accessible for them as possible,” Dow said.
It also will offer a space for children to interact with art with a free Family Fringe on Friday and Saturday at Strawberry Square with crafts, workshops and performances.
Aside from contracted technicians and photographers, the Fringe is completely run by volunteers, Dow said, herself included. It’s put on by 717 Arts’ 16-member board and roughly a dozen active members and a slate of 50 volunteers who help with the festival’s organization.
717 Arts Inc.’s new downtown space in the SoMa district at 25 S. 3rd St. will serve as a home base for the Fringe this year. Volunteers will check-in there before going to their shifts at one of the Fringe’s eight venues. It’s also where Fringe attendees can come in to pick up tickets, merch, buttons for the festival—and look at the visual Fringe.
“To have it open during Fringe is really great timing, and it’s a really exciting way to introduce the community to the space,” said Alexis Campbell, volunteer coordinator for the Fringe and 717 Arts board member.
Her husband, Robert Campbell, founder and vice president of 717 Arts, added that the new location will give the group room to grow year-round programming moving forward.
Fringes are designed to give artists a platform and to empower them and to give them space—having a spot where the group can offer that to artists year-round will be a game changer, said Robert.
“When the festival ends,” he said, “we get to start thinking about how we can provide opportunities for our local artists in our community … in as many ways as we can year round.”
A Harrisburg Fringe visual arts tapestry
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