Theater is a physical art form, but it is becoming increasingly obvious that its expanded online presence is here to stay, especially as the web smooths out issues of collaboration and access, both financial and physical. In Australia, for example, the Sydney Fringe Festival is expecting its new virtual event to be more than a stopgap measure. For the festival’s chief executive and director, Kerri Glasscock, the Global Fringe initiative is not so much a replacement for the live festival as “a new project that will hopefully continue beyond the pandemic,” she wrote in an email. “What is remarkably ironic is that while all of our physical borders remain closed, our relationships with our international partners and colleagues have been strengthened,” Glasscock said. “Pay what you feel.”)The Fringe moves to the (online) centerFringe festivals tend to be sprawling affairs, but luckily the virtual world can accommodate a lot of shows.

Source: International New York Times August 26, 2020 17:09 UTC