Melanie Gall from The Sparrow and the Mouse - Photo courtesy of Fringe Fest

Theatre lovers have plenty to be excited about as the 27th annual Vancouver International Fringe Festival kicks off September 8.

“It’s a celebration of theatre,” says David Jordan, executive director of the Fringe Fest.

“Theatre does happen all year round, but what we try to do isn’t just to put the theatre on, but to celebrate it at the same time. It’s a social event.”

Although ticket sales have increased substantially in recent years, festival organizers maintain that the festival’s core goal of promoting as many types of theatre as possible remains the same.

Jordan says that this year’s output is the festival’s largest, with 86 shows in 11 days. He says the festival has taken a leap to a new critical mass, with new venues and programs designed specifically to deal with the extra traffic they’ve seen in recent years.  Another big priority for the festival this year is fundraising.

“Next year we’ll be losing some of our funding,” says Jordan, “and we have been increasing our fundraising efforts to account for that. We encourage people to top up their ticket purchase, so if the ticket is $17, we encourage them to add another $3 and make it $20.”

One thing the festival has been known for over the years is its commitment to highlighting diverse cultures. Jordan says that this is an organic result of the festival’s random selection process rather than an official mandate of the festival.

“[Multiculturalism] flows organically from our inclusivity,” says Jordan. “Because our artists are selected through lottery, it means we have a wider variety of cultures and ethnicities that participate in the festival…the cultures themselves vary from year to year, but they’re always there.”

Joy Ong, a first generation Chinese-Canadian, and producer of the upcoming Fringe show The Illumination Of The Grumpy Guitarist is one of many Vancouver artists that favour the festival’s selection process.

“The Fringe Festival has been amazing,” says Ong. “It’s a great non-profit organization that gives performers a way to share their art, and the fact that it’s unjuried makes it so accessible for artists to offer exactly what they want.”

Ong says her production’s themes of love, inclusiveness, and fun are a perfect fit for the festival.

“What’s very unique about the performance is that everyone in the show has the aim of building community, and sharing fun that’s accessible to everyone, through art, play, and music,” she says.

Another artist who is benefiting from the festival’s commitment to theatre is Melanie Gall, star and producer of the upcoming Fringe show The Sparrow and The Mouse. Vancouver will be her last stop on an extensive tour of Fringe festivals that took her all the way from Orlando, Florida, to her hometown of Edmonton, Alberta.

Her production is a musical about the early life and music of acclaimed French singer Edith Piaf, and as such is the only bilingual show at this year’s Vancouver festival. Although the tour has been taxing, Gall has no complaints.

“It’s my vacation,” she says. “It’s been a fantastic four months going to all these fringe festivals. As a performer, if you’ve never had the opportunity to do a fringe tour, you should definitely do it.”

It’s obvious that audiences are sharing the performer’s Fringe passion. Jordan says that last year’s attendance increased by 39% over the previous year. He attributes the increase to the sense of community encouraged by the Fringe festival.

Jordan says a new influx of volunteer interns will ensure everything goes off without a hitch.

But says with a laugh, “And then we will all be very very tired.”

For dates and times, check out www.vancouverfringe.com