Fringe Check-In, Part Two

After 12 shows and 7 days, Apocalypse Kow has been taking the 25th Edmonton Fringe Festival by storm. A small storm, yes, but a storm. I think my favourite memory from the past few days was our Tuesday night show. There was a giant thunderstorm and Paul The Tech was worried we'd get hit by lightning, so we shut down our set halfway through. We were all kind of bummed, but then I said, "Hey, why don't we just finish the rest of the set in the Gazebo?" So we did. Half an hour of unamplified Kow, with a very intimate and enthusiastic crowd, and we (and they) absolutely loved it. Great times.

We've managed to get our Kowzoos out to quite a number of people as well, and I think more people have come - and most importantly, stayed - at our shows than ever before. We don't do it for a living like some of the other guys, we're just in it for the performing and the fun, so there's a lot to be said for strangers coming up to me after the show (or randomly on the street a few days later) and saying they really enjoyed our show. It makes a Doc feel good.

And just a few minutes ago, 4/5ths of Apocalypse Kow (with Peach and a few other various groupies) just went to see The Fire Show. The Fire Show is when 7 of the outdoor performers get up on the outdoor stage and play with fire to support the Fringe festival. There was Aytahn from The Tree Show, Paul & Randy from The Wombats, Conrade from The Brucie Show, and two people I don't know but one of whom PUT A BLOWTORCH OUT ON HIS TONGUE. The whole thing was ably hosted by Cowboy Max, and it was great. Silly, beautiful, dangerous, and full of craziness. Before the show, an audience member recognized me from earlier in the day, and said "Are you going to go up there?" To which I replied, "Oh no, those people play WITH FIRE." But at the end of the show, "Ring of Fire" came over the speakers, and Jago said, "Hey, we should arrange this for next year!" A few minutes later, Ninja and I were over talking to Miki Stricker, the festival director, and we asked if we could sing it at next year's Fire Show. Her response? "Done and DONE!"

I love The Fringe: it's where people can come together from all over the place and make a living theater experience for people. And I'm glad to be a part of it. I've met a lot of really cool people through The Fringe, and even though I may not see some of them for the other 51 weeks of the year, it's always good to see them again, whether they're in the crowd for one of our shows, or vice versa, or even if we see each other just passing on the street. Next year will be Kow's 5th year at The Fringe, and if we have it our way, it's going to be awesome. Oh, I've got ideas, people. Just you wait.