Blog: Paradise Lost's Journey to Atlantic Fringe (Part II)

Two

by Sara Rodriguez

photos by Jody Burkholder

We’re here.  Hello Halifax!

 After a fourteen-hour drive, we finally made it to our destination.  Tired and hungry, Jody, Paul and I checked in to our hotel around 11pm on Tuesday, August  30th.  The next day, we woke up early to make it to a 9am media event at the Plutonium Theatre, which is conveniently located at about a 10 minute walk from our hotel. Well, so is everything else.  The event consisted of two short previews of selected shows, which Paradise Lost was one of, and short interviews with each media representative set in a “speed-dating” format.  Different stations were set across the theatre and every five minutes, artists were asked to switch.  With about thirty-five shows in the festival (not all artists were present), this format ensured the process didn’t last the entire day.  Interviews were short and questions were concise.  The following day we were all thrilled to discover a picture of Paul’s preview in both The Metro newspaper and The Chronicle Herald. 

  This year’s Atlantic Fringe Festival is produced by filmmaker Thom Fitzgerald (The Hanging Garden, 3 Needles), whom we were delighted to meet.  

  Thursday September 1st was the tech day at our first venue of the festival (DANSpace) and in only two hours, Paul and Jody managed to get everything done.  Later on we decided to kick off the first official day of the festival by going to see two shows: Intríngulis, a solo show by New York actor Carlo Alban and Mesmerize, presented by local belly dance company Cabaret Serpentine.  Both shows took place in the Neptune Studio, a gorgeous space that holds almost 200 audience members, which also happens to be our second venue.  Lucky us.  

  The night ended a block away from the theatre at the Economy Shoe Shop pub where the festival’s official opening party, sponsored by Montreal’s very own St-Ambroise, was held.  Lots of free beer tickets were passed and many friends were made.  At the stroke of midnight, a slice of cheesecake was brought out to celebrate Paul’s birthday and the whole bar lent their voices to sing along.  

Read Part I of the Blog