PORTLAND — More than 45 acts will be presented as part of PortFringe 2013, the five-day, cutting-edge theater festival taking place in Portland’s Arts District from June 26-30.

The line-up features original musicals, one-man (and -woman) shows, puppets, vaudeville and burlesque. In addition to fostering new and experimental work, PortFringe also encourages creative cross-pollination. This year’s festival includes collaborations between actors, dancers, filmmakers and musicians. A full schedule is available at portfringe.com.

PortFringe is New England’s only fringe theater festival. With generous support from our community, an army of volunteers, and a pool of talented actors, directors, designers and producers, PortFringe 2012 showcased impressive depth and breadth of local talent. The festival was able to bring in more than $13,000 in ticket sales, the majority of which was funneled directly back to the artists. PortFringe 2013 promises to be even bigger and better.

The four PortFringe venues are SPACE Gallery, Geno’s Rock Club, Portland Stage Company Studio Theater and Portland Stage Company Storefront. Tickets are available online at www.portfringe.com or at the door.

The following is just a sampling of the amazing shows PortFringe 2013 has to offer. Contact information for each producer is included. For information about the festival in general, contact Michael Dix Thomas at 207-749-5141.

Wednesday, June 26 at 11 p.m. at Geno’s Rock Club. “I Can Also Be Very Cruel” is a dramatic reinterpretation of  “The Labyrinth” through music, stream of conscious narratives and interpretive dance presented by Nicolas Robichaud, contact invisibo86@gmail.com or 603-455-9254.

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Synopsis: An improvisation-based solo performance interweaving monologue with improvised song and dance. The only jumping-off points are the themes and plot of the film “The Labyrinth.” While “The Labyrinth” is used as a form of inspiration, no material from the film is used.

Thursday, June 27 at 6 p.m. at SPACE Gallery. “The Seed of Sickness and Greed” presented by Tooth and Nail Puppetry Front presented by Lyndsay Love, contact LyndsayLoveLove@gmail.com or 802-323-4802.

Synopsis: Once the seed of our own destruction was planted, we pilfered and ravaged our land and peoples with a wink and a smile. Moving through shadow, rod and flat cardboard puppetry, this mostly wordless piece explores the explorations of mankind and where our greed and constant want for more really comes from.

Thursday, June 27 at 7 p.m. at Portland Stage Company Studio Theater. “Aisle Six” presented by Nicola McEldowney, contact thesnarkascending@gmail.com or 207-985-9042.

Synopsis: “Aisle Six” is a musical comedy about a cursed supermarket. When a plague threatens the Super Duper Store, it’s up to a bright-eyed new customer service trainee named Melody Elbow to save the day … if she can.

Thursday, June 27 at 10 p.m. at SPACE Gallery. “The Mechanical: An Original Musical” presented by Marcus Bagala, contact mbagalacomposer@gmail.com or 207-650-3961.

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Synopsis: A mechanical humanoid robot is living on the planet Earth after all life has been extinguished by an unknown calamity. The mechanical looks and speaks just like a human but doesn’t know a thing about who it is, why it is and what happened to its makers. “The Mechanical” is about a journey through a post-apocalyptic world. As it travels, it starts to experience “malfunctions” — echoes of its human predecessors. As it interacts with these malfunctions it begins discover and experience what it is to be human.

Friday, June 28 at 10 p.m. at Geno’s Rock Club. “The Adventures of Thor and Loki” presented by Lynne Cullen and Kurt Kish, contact thetwacorbies@yahoo.com or 207-253-0288.

Synopsis: The rocky friendship of Thor; the hot-tempered, mighty God of Thunder; and Loki, the shape-shifting trickster, is as unexpected as a Viking raid, and as timely as today’s political misalliances. Lynne Cullen will tell the stories, with an original musical score composed and played on electric guitar by Kurt Kish.

Friday, June 28 at 11p.m. at SPACE Gallery. “The Boys of Beast: A Tribute to the Beastie Boys” presented by Erin Enberg, call 207-232-4149.

Synopsis: Selected chapters from the Unofficial Beastie Boys Biography, which is based on actual interviews, imagination, rumors, the way LL Cool J remembers things and some truth, will be enacted by the BBoyz with help from Run-DMC, The Beastie Boy’s Wives, The Beastie Girls and hosted by LL Cool J. What’s the time? It’s time to get ill!

Saturday, June 29 at 11 p.m. at Geno’s Rock Club. “Spandex Diaries: My Stretchy Truths” presented by Michael Wood, contact michaelwoodaea@gmail.com or 207-404-0208.

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Synopsis: It’s 2013 and the facade-spawning Facebook reigns. Beneath the heap of digital realities, “Spandex Diaries: My Stretchy Truths” serves up the dirty truth — with hot sauce on the side! Michael Wood’s unashamed standup/improv/musical cabaret drags you down to earth and leaves you frolicking like a pig in the mud.

Sunday, June 30 at 1 p.m. at Portland Stage Company Storefront. “Handbook for the Chronically Single” presented by Randy Ross, contact randy@randyrossmedia.com or 617-623-8302.

Synopsis: A chronically single guy takes a trip around the world hoping to change his luck with love. The story includes scenes set in Greece and Bangkok, along with two relationship gone-wrong segments, “Domination for Dummies” and “The Panty Whisperer,” which take place in Boston.

Sunday, June 30 at 4 p.m. at SPACE Gallery. “Pale” presented by Apparatus Dance Company, contact Janette Hough Fertig at apparatusdancetheater@gmail.com or 215-806-9971.

Synopsis: Pale investigates the comic, sometimes shallow, mostly quiet and often happy world of suburbia through experimental aerial acrobatic apparatus, pimped-up shopping carts, choreographed bowling balls, dreams of flying, and cellophane. Pale originally performed to sell-out crowds at the Philadelphia Fringe Festival.

Sunday, June 30 at 7 p.m. at Geno’s Rock Club. “Game Show: The Show” presented by Cast Aside Theatrical presented by David Surkin, call 207-239-8084.

Synopsis: An improvised interactive game show in the style of The Price is Right. Audience members will compete for cash and prizes. As seen on TV.


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