Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - August 8, 2024, Winnipeg, Manitoba SUMMER 2024 ISSUE DON’T MISS THE Read online at winnipegfreepress.com/fp-features Available at Manitoba Liquor Marts - while supplies last! P i c k u p y o u r c o p y t o d a y ! THURSDAY AUGUST 8, 2024 ● ARTS & LIFE EDITOR: JILL WILSON 204-697-7018 ● ARTS@FREEPRESS.MB.CA ● WINNIPEGFREEPRESS.COM ARTS ● LIFE SECTION C CONNECT WITH THE BEST ARTS AND LIFE COVERAGE IN MANITOBA ▼ W HAT started as an assign- ment at the National Theatre School ended with local play- wright Kinsey Donald winning the top prize at this year’s Winnipeg Fringe Theatre Festival. Donald, 27, wrote the Harry S. Rintoul Award-winning A Taste of Blood in the Mouth during her first year at the Montreal institution as the result of an open-ended assignment of writing a “unity play,” with two char- acters entering a room for 60 minutes of action without either being able to leave. “It sounds simple, but it was very difficult,” says Donald, a graduate of the University of Winnipeg’s honours acting program. “It teaches you where all the trapdoors and sneakouts are.” The concept of the play — a cat-and- mouse interview between a female journalist and a female inmate — was inspired by what Donald heard and didn’t hear when listening to true- crime podcasts. “As someone who has admittedly consumed a lot of true crime, there isn’t much representation of women being the bad guys,” says Donald, who wanted to reframe the genre to consid- er that dynamic. “And then as I was writing, I thought, ‘What’s the most interesting choice I can make as the writer I am? What’s going to surprise me?’” The strategy paid off at this year’s fringe, with Christine Leslie directing Donald and Katie Welham in the two- hander, which received stellar reviews before earning the Rintoul Award, established by the Manitoba Associa- tion of Playwrights in 2002 to be given to the best new local play at the fringe. Named for the founding artistic di- rector of Theatre Projects Manitoba, it’s a $750 prize, with the runner-up receiving a $250 stipend. The version of the play that ran at the fringe was much better, funnier and spicier than the written product, thanks to Leslie’s direction, Donald says. Originally, Donald intended the hour-long production to take place across a standard interrogation table, but Leslie did away with it, instead choosing to set the action on a large platform with the audience on either side in an alleyway configuration. The show almost didn’t go on: Don- ald’s Cerridwen Productions didn’t get drawn in the original lottery, which meant she had to participate as a Bring-Your-Own-Venue play, which incurs an additional cost. In the end, A Taste of Blood in the Mouth sold out four of 10 shows, buoyed by word-of- mouth, a four-star Free Press review and a spot on the Rintoul short list. BEN WALDMAN MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS Playwright Kinsey Donald’s A Taste of Blood in the Mouth won the Harry S. Rintoul Award for best original Manitoban play at this year’s Winnipeg Fringe Theatre Festival. Fringe by the numbers THIS year’s total ticketed attendance (81,224) kept pace with last year’s (81,500), while box office revenues increased from $716,248 to $811,206. At the festival, 148 companies performed, eight more than in 2023 but still 30 short of 2019 totals. As always, the festival got by with a lot of help from its volunteer friends — 789 to be exact. That volunteer force donated a combined total of 14,628 hours, or 609.5 days. Thankfully, Winnipeg doesn’t have to wait that long until the next fringe festival, which runs July 16 to 27, 2025. ● CONTINUED ON C3 Community programs showcased at annual event Elevated fashion fundraiser FASHION and philanthropy will walk hand in hand at the inaugural Acorn Family Place fashion-show fundraiser. On Friday at 6 p.m., the Sanctuary at 222 Furby St. will come alive, show- casing stylish outfits and highlighting the impact of Acorn’s programs and services. Acorn Family Place, formerly known as Wolseley Family Place, has been a cornerstone of the community since its incorporation in 2000. Known for its wide range of services, including family counselling, parenting program and a clothing depot, Acorn provides support to families who need it. “I’ve been here since 2015, and it’s wonderful to see participants come and shop in our clothing depot for free and then parade their outfits and share the treasures they’ve found,” says Melissa Perron, the manager of opera- tions at Acorn Family Place and one of the event’s organizers. “At some point, I thought, ‘We need to share this happiness with the world; people need to experience this first-hand.’ That’s how I came up with the idea of a fashion show with the donations.” The event will not only showcase the resilience and creativity of the community but also highlight the sus- tainable impact of the clothing depot, Perron says. All outfits featured in the show are sourced from donations and will be modelled by Acorn Family Place participants. Attendees will have the opportunity to bid on the outfits. THANDI VERA RUTH BONNEVILLE / FREE PRESS Acorn Family Place manger of operations Melissa Perron (left) and Arlene Sumner, with her daughter Dakota, show off some outfits that will be featured at Friday’s fashion show. ● CONTINUED ON C4 Kinsey Donald wins fringe festival playwright award BLOOD, SWEAT AND CHEERS ;