This is the green issue, so it's appropriate to read it online. Then grab a bite to eat. If you've got the cash and time, try "Philly's greenest restaurateur." We Shop Eco. Make sure Fido is on board with the eco-friendliness. We really can't take it that far though. And biking in the city still scares us. Lessons learned from the Olympics. Keep on getting ready for Fringe; good luck getting into Wandering Alice though.......

As if we weren’t already anticipating the hell out of Live Arts/Fringe, this piece on Kate Watson-Wallace and her work Car has got us buckling up. If you’re still making up your schedule, they have some suggestions. An ancient Mexican snack makes its way to South Philly, and helps out indigenous farmers. “Is the world ready for composted human feces?” We’re going to say “No,” but then we’re not anarchists. We’ve got hips and tits,......

Director/Theater-founder Meghann Williams...

Performances: Debbie Does Dallas - The Musical (To the Wall Productions) (no future performances); The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged) (Marathon Theater Collective) (no future performances); The Sustainability Project (Figments, Inc.) (no future performances) So Live Arts/Fringe has now come and gone. To be honest, I was kind of relieved that this was the final weekend and that there were only three shows to be seen. Last weekend didn't go so well for me.......

Performance: Trad (Inis Nua Theatre Company) (Future PLAF Showtimes; Additional Showtimes) I realized today that I've gotten to the point at which I don't know what I'm seeing anymore. I show up at the theatre I'm supposed to be at, ticket in hand, and try my damnedest to remember what the Festival guide said about the show I'm seeing: Comedy? Drama? Dance? Musical? Of course, by that point, it doesn't matter. I just have to......

There was very little else for Londonist to be concerned with when the threat of a Tube strike became a very unpleasant reality. The inconvenience was extreme: there aren't many alternatives to the Tube in London despite the best efforts of the Londonist team to get everyone from A to B. Brighter news came in the form of the first ever female Yeoman Warder, or Beefeater as the position is more commonly known, and......

Sure, you can wander through art gallery after art gallery tonight. The same places you always go, with the same cheap wine you always drink. Or, you can take advantage of the fact that there's always a First Friday during the Live Arts and Fringe Festivals, and there are plenty of free or pay-what-you-can PLAF events you can hit tonight and for the next week. A few that we think sound interesting: Sonic Dances A......

Performance: Between the Pages: 3 sisters, a winged boy and a lighthouse (SCRAP Performance Group) (Future Showtimes) During college, I didn't get to see a lot of Fringe shows because so few of them were staged in University City. Now it seems that the Festival has spread far beyond Center City and Old City, and I think that SEPTA should have a special Festival pass, or the Festival should have special shuttles, so that people......

Performance: An·'tis·a·lon (Kaibutsu) (Future Showtimes) One of the things I love so much about the Live Arts and Fringe Festivals is the audience who goes to see the shows. The people waiting to see these shows usually aren't your standard theatre-going audience, or, if they are, they're more relaxed than they are at more traditional shows. They talk to you while you're standing in line. They offer alternative suggestions about other shows to latecomers who......

Happy first weekend of September - and happy Labor Day weekend, too, for our American cities! Let's take a look at what's been happening around the Ist-a-verse. The deaths of two firefighters shook Bostonist this week. Boston's firefighters bent over backwards all week long - first, they fought flames pouring from the Boston Tea Party museum, and then a restaurant fire killed two and injured many more. Their efforts make everything else - like Tom......

Performance: Gatz (Part One) (Elevator Repair Service) (Second half and future showtimes) I'm actually not going to review Gatz until after I see the second half tonight, but as this is a diary, meant to track the Phillyist staff's Live Arts/Fringe progress over the course of the festival, I thought I'd at least give the show an endorsement, based on the half that I've seen. Why? Well, because it only runs until Sunday. So I......

Just like we did last year, we interrupt your weekly theatre listings to present you, instead, with a preview of the Live Arts and Fringe Fests. If you ask this Phillyist, it's the most wonderful time of the year. The 2007 Philadelphia Live Arts Festival & Philly Fringe (yep, that's the branding!) officially kicks off Friday, but a few shows are already having preview performances. What does that mean for you? Hundreds of avant garde......

Once again, nothing new this week, as theatre companies and performers around the city prepare for the Live Arts and Fringe Festivals. Check back here next week for our preview. Meanwhile, to make up for the short listings, here's a longer quote, from 1930s and '40s star of stage and screen Nelson Eddy (the handsome devil you see here): I know, I know the world wants love. I know that the fans want love on......

As with last year, Phillyist will be giving separate coverage to Philadelphia Live Arts and Philly Fringe shows, so our listings through the end of the month may look a little sparse. No fear – there’s still plenty of live entertainment around the city. Now, on with the listings! Nunsense - It’s not nonsense. Through September 30. For more information, call 302.475.2313. Wicked - We hear it’s quite “popular.” Through September 9. Tickets online. It......

Things are slowing down right now, in the weeks before the Philadelphia Live Arts and Philly Fringe Festivals. But that doesn't mean that all of the theatres in Philadelphia are dark. Now, on with the listings! Those Were the Days - We think we can safely say: they don’t write ’em like that anymore! Through August 12. Tickets online. Nunsense - It’s not nonsense. Through September 30. For more information, call 302.475.2313. Wicked - We......

Whoops! We made a calendar boo-boo and we didn't get up the preview for the second week of DanceBOOM! yesterday. So consider this two posts in one—the event information is below! Week two of DanceBOOM! at the Wilma kicked off on Broad Street in a big way with the N.E. Frankford Boys and Girls Club, American Legion Post 224 Drill Team and Nicetown Stars Dance Team. The Nicetown girls were adorable, and the drill......

Megan and Mason Wendell...

Phillyist saw a lot of shows at this year's Philadelphia Live Arts Festival and Philly Fringe. A. Lot. Of. Shows. Thirty, to be exact. And we just got word from Megan at Canary Promotions that we're not the only ones who were getting fringetastic this year. The Festival(s) saw a ten percent increase in ticket sales—about three-quarters of a million dollars in tickets, to be exact. (It's pretty impressive when you remember how much of......

Performances: Killer Pussy (Tapestry Theatre) (No future performances); Hell (Emio Greco | PC) (Future performances). It's the final weekend of PLAF, so the reviews from this point on might just be a little pointless, what with everything closing. But several Fringe shows come back during the regular season, and several Live Arts performers come back at future festivals, and I have all these tickets anyway, so the reviews will continue through the weekend. Killer Pussy......

Performances: BalletX (Ballet X) (No future performances); Lunchlady Doris (Lunchlady Doris) (Future performances); The UHaul Trilogy (Juan Souki) (Future performances); The Convent (Jo Strømgren Kompani) (No future performances). My friend Katie tells me that I have two energy levels: either I'm doing nothing, vegging on the sofa, watching TV, or I'm crazy busy, doing two dozen things at once. Usually, I'm the latter. Which is why I only had one performance on my calendar for......

Performances: Crazy Gary's Mobile Disco (Inis Nua Theatre Group) (Future performances); House (Kate Watson-Wallace) (Future performances sold out). I almost feel like I should have gotten a monthly SEPTA pass for the Festival. I have covered more ground in the last seven days than I normally do in a month. Fortunately, after last weekend's deluge, the weather has been pleasant enough that if I get an early start, I can walk. And if I don't,......

Performances: Amnesia Curiosa (Geoff Sobelle and Trey Lyford) (Future performances); The Sea (James Sugg) (Future performances). One of the things I love about going to the theatre alone is the ability to eavesdrop on other people's conversations, completely uninhibited by conversation with a companion. (To my companions at other shows: I don't love you any less, I'm just stating a fact.) I noticed a man waiting for Amnesia Curiosa who had led me up Front......

If you're attending any of the events at this year's Philadelphia Live Arts Festival/Philly Fringe, and there's a show you especially liked (or especially hated), just shoot us an email with your thoughts and information as to how you'd like us to credit you in the post. We'll be consolidating readers' PLAF diaries (if you need help, see some examples) and posting them as they roll in. Don't be shy, now: we want to......

  Silly us! When we put up the post about the very cool Philadelphia Live Arts Festival giveaway of two tickets to see Rha Goddess' Low, we totally forgot to tell you when the tickets would be good for. Although the show opens tonight and runs through Sunday, the tickets are only good for tomorrow night, September 2. Do yourselves a favor, though, and enter. You won't want to miss this performance!     Photo,......

Rha Goddess' "Low"
12:30PM 8/31 - 5PM 9/1...

We interrupt your regularly scheduled theatre listings to tell you about the Philadelphia Live Arts Festival and Philly Fringe. It's something that we hope will brighten your otherwise bleak, cloudy, drizzly day. It's sure brightening ours! If you're new to Philly or perhaps just new to the Philly performing arts scene, you might be a little puzzled by all the hoopla. Just what exactly is everyone so excited about? What is this Fringe thing?......

The Philadelphia Live Arts Festival and Philly Fringe kick off this Friday, and we're beginning our coverage of the events in what might seem to be the strangest way possible: with food. You see, to truly make it a worthwhile evening out, any evening of theatre is either preceded or followed by a delicious meal. Fortunately for you, there's lots of delicious food around all of the Fringe venues. Here are a few of......

We love Megan over at Canary Promotions. That's because she tells us about all the cool stuff happening around Philly and sometimes gets us in to them for free. She's also just an all-around cool person, so far as Phillyist can tell. So we thought we'd show Megan some love in return and let you know about the awesome bash she and partner Mason (both Wendell) are throwing this Saturday night to celebrate their......

We’re totally jazzed about the Live Arts and Fringe Festivals, but if we started listing PLAF shows, we’d never get the rest of these listings to ya’ll. Check out the festival page (below) for more info – but don’t forget about all of the other theatrical happenings in the Greater Philadelphia area! Loot - Bank robbers and body snatchers and Catholics, oh my! The play runs September 8-October 30 at the Arden Theatre in Olde......

Yesterday, Phillyist gave you a taste of the Philadelphia Live Arts and Philly Fringe Festivals. There's lots more to say about the Live Arts and Fringe, as they offer some of the most exciting arts events that you’ll see in Philly all year. The festivals are chock full of outrageous and insightful performances and happenings – even if you generally eschew live theatre, dance, and music, we guarantee you’ll find something you’ll love. This week,......