NANAIMO FRINGE FESTIVAL
Where: Various Nanaimo venues, including The Port Theatre
When: Aug. 8-18
Tickets: $16 (per show) or $63 (five show pass) from porttheatre.com
Why: The Nanaimo Fringe Festival opens its season with a free preview tonight, before moving into ticketed offerings for the remainder of the 10-day event. The festival will host up to eight performances a night, featuring offerings from Toronto, Regina, and Vancouver alongside alternative theatre showcases from across Vancouver Island. The Port Theatre stage and lobby are two of the four venues that will be in action as what is known as NanFringe takes over downtown Nanaimo with a big, flashy footprint.
SOOKE MUSIC AND ART FESTIVAL
Where: Royal Canadian Legion (6726 Eustace Rd.) and Fred Milne Park (2249 Sooke River Rd.), Sooke
When: Aug. 9-11
Admission: Free
Why: An opening-night party at the Sooke Legion on Friday kicks off this free fest, which shifts into high gear during the weekend at Fred Milne Park. The festival mixes rock, folk, and hip-hop, with no shortage of must-see acts. Leeory Stagger, Apex Breaks, Hillsboro, Sirreal, and Zenon lead the way, with a rare performance by Vancouver favourite Roots Roundup guaranteeing a good time on Sunday. Two stages are in play at Fred Milne Park (the festival outgrew its previous home at John Phillips Park), with free admission adding to the appeal. A key event of the summer of the Sooke area. Don’t miss it.
UNDER THE BAY STREET BRIDGE ART GATHERING
Where: Point Ellice Bridge near Tyee Road, Victoria
When: Saturday, Aug. 10, 12-4 p.m.
Admission: Free
Why: Much about the eighth instalment of this free art series under the Point Ellice Bridge (also known as the Bay Street Bridge) will be revealed during the day of the event, as organizers have stated their open-door policy: “No registration, no entrance fee, no proposals, no judges.” Given the tagline, patrons will find artists relishing the freedom. The avant-garde art gathering features painting, photography, collage, sculpture, sound performance, drawing, and poetry, amid myriad other forms. Outsider art is an apt description of what defines the gathering, but it only scratches the surface.
