For the third year running, Stockholm Fringe Fest is trying to catch your attention with the sole purpose of distributing new and alternative performance art to the grateful public. With 1300 artists from 65 countries applying to take part in “Stoff,” the format this year is somewhat different. You can go and see five or six shows a day in such diverse forms as performance theatre, dance, spoken word, comedy, installations and even opera. If that doesn’t suit, you have a coffee or a beer while taking in video or photo art or watching a pop up performance. And the good thing with all this diversity? If something is not to your liking, there’s 109 other things to choose from.
We got hold of Helena Bunker, Stoff’s Festival Director.
The Edinburgh Fringe Festival has built up a huge reputation since it started in 1947 and the format has spread like wildfire. Could you talk me through how Stockholm ended up with its own version of the concept?
The idea of the festival was born after graduation several years ago. We were a bunch of theatre students who were suddenly wondering what would happen next? We perceived a huge gap in between school and the theatre world. What direction was there to take unless you went on to the Academy of Performing Arts? There was a lack of a platform for young artists who wanted to try out fresh ideas and art forms. Instead we had to go abroad to develop our showmanship.
And after both visiting and performing at several Fringe festivals around the world we fell in love with the Fringe format and decided that we wanted to launch a Stockholm Fringe Fest. In our view it was obvious that Stockholm should be on the global Fringe map – where there are currently 176 Fringe festivals.
The idea became reality at the modest launch in 2010. With a budget of close to nothing but with a strong will, the first Stoff took place with artists from 24 countries – the international interest overwhelmed us. In 2011 Kulturhuset took the festival under its wings and Stoff were suddenly in the limelight being covered by TV, radio and newspapers.
How would you describe the festival and this year’s version?
Stoff is like any three-year-old, curious and unrestrained. The program builds on the idea of gathering interesting and innovative artists from all over the world for four days of performing arts partying.
One of the foundation stones is to give room to the young, new and unproven. Things that might be odd and daring, that don’t really fit in anywhere else. A lot of our artists reside outside the commercial sphere, and our aim is to make Stoff something more than just a festival. It’s a meeting-place; we have workshops, debates, talks and artist-speed-dating.
At the same time it’s important that we offer Stockholmers an experience outside the norm. And either for a heavily discounted price or for free, as over half of the events are.
If we look ahead, what could the Stockholm Fringe Festival develop into if all the pieces fall into place?
A Fringe Festival is traditionally a national matter. You see these festivals as a starting point for the careers of many artists. The audience knows that every year there’s an enormous amount of performance art that you don’t want to miss out on, and the artists knows that they have an international forum to showcase their talent.
Our vision for Stoff it to be seen, experienced and available all over the city, and that other theatres, galleries and not so obvious venues open up to both local and international artists.
Stoff is supposed to be an umbrella under which a lot of small events will take place. We want to be a springboard for local artists, a gateway to Scandinavia for foreign artists, and we wish to entertain our audience with different and questioning art. Furthermore we want to place Stockholm on the international Fringe map. Today the city is not an obvious destination for alternative art. But long term we want the festival to be so big that it will also be an important part of Stockholm’s economy with a lot of visitors, hotel nights, and so on. But first and foremost Stoff is a party. It’s supposed to be fun!
Gimme Five
– Highlights from the programme
Playing With Fire
A Brazilian comedy combining theatre, film, music and visual arts. The play is a tribute to the centenary in 2012 of the death of August Strindberg, directed by Nelson Baskerville, one of the most merited directors in Brazil.
Jesus: The Guantanamo Years
Jesus Christ returns to earth, but he doesn’t get through U.S. immigration because he’s a bearded, Middle-Eastern guy and prepared to die as a martyr. In his first one-man show for almost two millennia, Jesus talks about his time in Guantanamo, his relationship with his father, and his legal battle with Monty Python’s Life of Brian. Sold out three years running at the Edinburgh Fringe.
Stitch & Bitch
Five female opera singers from Sweden and the US. The ambition is to answer a few of life’s most important questions – can you fit both recycling and reclaiming into your life? How is it determined which art is good and which is bad? Experience how five plastic babes turn the concept of trash culture into mincemeat.
Penal Labour
A performance art installation by Ingentinget that takes place during three hours. You are most welcome to come and go as stone by stone, minute by minute, a grey wall of gravel is emerging over a body.
The Fest
The Stoff 2012 awards hosted by the fabulous Robert Fux with entertainment from the thrilling Cunigunda and Johanssons Pelagoner. The Stockholm Fringe Fest party takes place at Studion/Kulturhuset on August 25th.
