Windsor Fringe Festival takes over downtown
By Lindsey Rivait
Arts Editor
July 13, 2010
 From July 16-25, the Windsor International Fringe Festival will take over downtown Windsor, inside and outside, in a frenzy of performance art.
The Festival showcases a variety of performances including live theatre and other performing arts. Indoor theatre and other performing arts shows are held at the Capitol Theatre, located at 121 University Ave. W. The kids’ venue is at the Art Gallery of Windsor, located at 401 Riverside Dr.
Outdoor events include the Windsor International Buskers Festival on University Ave. from 4-10 p.m., July 16-25. The Chalk and Chocolate Festival takes place along University Ave. on July 17 and 18. Buskin’ to the Beat also takes place in various outdoor locations.
This year’s Festival features performances of all types for every interest. One particularly intriguing performance is Breaking Down in America, a one-man show from Los Angeles’ Patrick Devine. The hour-long spoken word/multimedia show takes the audience on a journey across the U.S. as Devine attempts to drive two jalopies, a 1991 Cadillac Seville and a 1990 Ford Taurus, as far as they’ll take him.
The one-man performance is intertwined with video footage, an unusual combination. Devine explains, however, that this allows him to present an authentic experience. He wanted no preconceived notions of what the story/stories would be or how they would come about.
“While I blogged about this experience as it happened I wasn’t interested in interviewing people along the way or doing a documentary or that sort of thing. The moment you do that, the dynamic between people changes. The camera is always a consideration,” Devine explained.
“Performing the show it feels a little like taking the trip with a whole audience and I think after the show, the audience feels the same,” Devine continued.
The performance aspect was born from a show he did in Hollywood called “Slideshow.”
“You basically are given a theme and ten minutes to show slides. This was about two months after I got back. So I put something together with some photos from the trip and it went over really well and I had a great time doing it, so that was kind of the beginning of things,” he said.
Before embarking on his travels, Devine found himself in a rut and felt he needed to do something about it. Putting on these performances has helped him.
“Performing is great because it is an event for a period of time where you’re in another zone. It’s like sports in that regard. You do everything you can to prepare and then when it’s time you just go and see what happens and for that time you're really living life in the moment. It’s almost impossible to be in a rut during the periods of a performance,” Devine explained.
Breaking Down in America got Devine out of his comfort zone, allowed him to not give himself a hard time, and gave him a purpose.
“A big part of Breaking Down in America for me is that when you’re in a rut you hit a point where you just actually are comfortable in that rut and leaving that rut becomes a really uncomfortable thing. When your car breaks down you kind of have to do... something. You can’t just sit in the car and not leave,” Devine said.
Currently, Devine is working on getting as many people out to his shows as he can and giving them the best performance possible. He’s also putting together a book proposal about his trip as well. Visit www.breakingdowninamerica.com for more information.
Tickets for Breaking Down in America and the rest of the performances can be purchased in advance at the Devonshire Mall, Fringe Headquarters (100 University Ave.), or online, for $10 ($8 goes toward the artist with a $2 service fee). Tickets are also available at the door for $9, cash only. In addition to tickets, a $3 Fringe Button is also required. Buttons are good all week long and gives patrons discounts at a multitude of stores and restaurants in downtown Windsor. For further pricing and full schedule, visit www.windsorfringe.com
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