
The Light Bringer
Best of Fest
Freedom, but at what cost? A Palestinian immigrant and her family find more freedom in the US than expected. A true-life storytelling show written and performed by Laila Lee, directed by Bill Pats. In this one-woman show, Laila brings to light her experiences growing up Muslim in the American South, and how she discovers her own place in the world.
Dr. Porkenheimer’s Porn Factory
Most Views Award
Tampa’s infamous filthy playwright & alternative historian Christen Hailey is back with a decidedly raunchy new episode of the weirdest show about porn writers you’ll ever see. First brought to life in last year’s Fringe hit, Sexy Sexy Murder, the mysterious Dr. Mantis Porkenheimer is the visionary and dirty rich inventor of a variety of pleasure-enhancing tools and tonics, most famously Dr. Porkenheimer’s Boner Juice - “if you get a boner for more than four hours, call all your friends and brag about it!”
Mr. Yunioshi
The Good Social Award
Mickey Rooney's infamous performance as Mr. Yunioshi in Breakfast at Tiffany's is often pointed to as the most egregious example of yellowface in the movies. His over the top characterization is cringe-worthy to watch to this day, but it also raises several questions: Should actors really have the opportunity to play any role? Could there ever have been a "right" way for him to play it? And what compels an actor to play a character that they really probably shouldn't be playing? Asian-American writer/performer J. Elijah Cho attempts to explore these topics and more in his show, Mr. Yunioshi.
FIRE IN THE METH LAB
The Attention Span Award
Renowned Australian storyteller Jon Bennett tells the amazingly sordid and bizarre story of his brother’s life. A sometimes shocking and chaotic tale, Bennett recounts his brother’s experiences with both charismatic hilarity and heart- warming, poignant reflection. Fire in the Meth Lab tells of drug dealers, bikers, high-speed car chases, fights, crime, prison, vomit, exploding houses and even cancer. The show explores brotherly relationships and how siblings with the same upbringing can choose very separate paths.
Vulva Va-Voom Lives in this Bar Now
The Edge Award
Deranged burlesque comedienne misses audience, refuses to leave her last pre-Covid venue. Shot on-site, this documentary follows Vulva’s delusional new lifestyle and Twice Nightly cabaret shows, played to a house of stuffed animals.
Becoming Magic Mike
Venue Tech Choice - HCC
Comedian DK Reinemer (Help! I’m American!, The DK Effect, formerly of Bellingham) performs his smokin’ hot, action adventure comedy, ‘Becoming Magic Mike: An Action Adventure Comedy’ LIVE at Curious Comedy Theatre in Portland, OR. Gleefully dumb and accidentally smart, DK sings, dances and roller-skates his way through a preposterously skimpy plot about a straitlaced detective thrust deep undercover into the unfamiliar world of male stripping.
The Light Bringer
Venue Tech Choice - Crowbar
Freedom, but at what cost? A Palestinian immigrant and her family find more freedom in the US than expected. A true-life storytelling show written and performed by Laila Lee, directed by Bill Pats. In this one-woman show, Laila brings to light her experiences growing up Muslim in the American South, and how she discovers her own place in the world.
An eXceptionally
Wilde Tale
Venue Tech Choice - SMG
Theatre eXceptional strives to create work FOR, ABOUT, and INCLUDING artists with disabilities. The Advanced Training Program is a year-long, invite-only program that provides intense technique based training and professional performance opportunities for dedicated actors with physical and cognitive disabilities.
Mr. Yunioshi
Venue Tech Choice - The Drip
Mickey Rooney's infamous performance as Mr. Yunioshi in Breakfast at Tiffany's is often pointed to as the most egregious example of yellowface in the movies. His over the top characterization is cringe-worthy to watch to this day, but it also raises several questions: Should actors really have the opportunity to play any role? Could there ever have been a "right" way for him to play it? And what compels an actor to play a character that they really probably shouldn't be playing? Asian-American writer/performer J. Elijah Cho attempts to explore these topics and more in his show, Mr. Yunioshi.