It’s easy to understand why Uno Fest organizers chose a certain yellow, potassium-rich tropical fruit as the mascot for Intrepid Theatre’s 19th annual solo performance festival.
Audiences and artists alike have gone bananas over the 10-day festival that began Wednesday, and originated in the basement of the Bedford Hotel in 1997.
While the opening-night VIP reception at the Hotel Rialto’s Veneto Tapa Lounge was more subdued than Monday’s kickoff party at Phillips Brewery, which featured a roller-skating banana, the enthusiasm was palpable.
“We have so many artists wanting to be a part of this. It has become internationally recognized,” said Heather Lindsay, executive director of Intrepid Theatre.
Indeed, times have changed. In the digital era, most artists keen to fly solo during what is billed as North America’s longest-running solo performance festival submit their works online, via Vimeo links.
With the Internet’s global reach, it’s easier than ever to spread the word about the curated festival, which organizers also program by travelling to see potential shows.
“It’s a great Canadian springboard to launch these artists for touring, or to be part of larger festivals or longer-running productions,” Lindsay said.
“It’s very intrepid, very brave new work we’re seeing. It’s the voice of now. It’s what people are thinking and throwing out there bravely.”
The event attracted sponsors, donors, artists and Intrepid staffers, including award-winning playwright Janet Munsil, its longtime artistic director, who is stepping down this fall to focus more on writing.
Artists in attendance included Impulse Theatre director Andrew Barrett and Emily Piggford, back in town from her new home base in Toronto to star in ana, a production that combines movement, text, clowning and music to tell the story of its title character. She’s described as “a multi-faceted being who has reached a breaking point and has brought an audience together in a final call for action.”
Amelia Van Brunt, the San Francisco-based actor, clown and creator of In the Blue of the Evening, and her co-director Ross Travis expressed excitement over making their Uno Festival debut. Van Brunt described her solo show, inspired by a personal family experience, as “a hilarious and heart-breaking dark comedy” that uses clowning, Commedia dell’Arte and surrealism to tell the story of a feisty grandmother’s battle with dementia.
“Who are we without our memories?” asks Van Brunt, echoing a question asked in the show, originally produced by her theatre company Bad, Bad Bunny.
Intrepid board member Anna-Lise ter Mors said she loves the Uno Festival because “it’s a curated festival, unlike the Fringe Festival, which is this crazy lottery. It’s about being brave onstage by yourself.”
Ter Mors, senior development officer with the B.C. Cancer Foundation who organizes special events including the annual Jingle Mingle fundraiser, says being on the Intrepid board fulfils a different desire.
“There are very serious problems that we deal with, so it’s good to have a balance, with something frivolous and crazy that gives you opportunities to laugh as well as cry,” she said.
Kylie Sandham, capital assets and cost-analysis officer for the Greater Victoria Housing Society non-profit that creates affordable housing, had similar reasons for getting involved.
“When I came to Victoria five years ago, I started going to the Fringe and it’s become a staple of my theatregoing in Victoria,” said Sandham, who joined Intrepid’s board after being told “how amazing it is.”
She said she was attracted in part by the fun factor involved in applying her skill set to something completely different.
“It’s about providing governance and oversight, doing strategic planning and being ambassadors in the community and helping to keep bold theatre alive in Victoria.”
For more information on Uno Fest, go to intrepidtheatre.com.
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