By Constance Strickland

June is here and “Women on the Fringe” are again onstage!

There is nothing quite like the buzz that’s created during the Hollywood Fringe. It is a time filled with risk-taking, courage, hope and independent artists creating new work by any means necessary. Each year, I ask women writers a new series of questions influenced by the Proust Questionnaire and Bernard Pivot’s French series, “Bouillon de Culture.” The goal is to understand the artist’s work and their full nature while allowing them a space to reveal their authentic self. It is a great gift and a true honor to introduce women who will be presenting work in myriad genres, exploring a wide range of topics that allow us to examine who we are as individuals and as a society.

Introducing Carmen Kartini Rohde and her show, “Low on Milk.”

Constance: What do you hope audience members take away after experiencing your show?

Carmen: Low on Milk is a musical comedy about a mother who struggles with breastfeeding and must battle the zombie apocalypse to find formula for her newborn. With this play, I want mothers to feel seen. The invisible load of motherhood can be so overwhelming and is not celebrated enough. Mothers are societally expected to feed the kids and keep a happy home, but we don’t always see the journey it takes to complete a simple task like putting food on the table. During a formula shortage and when you feel like your body has failed you in breastfeeding, it can be ridiculously hard, so we might as well sing about it. I hope broader audiences enjoy the show as well and walk away having laughed, quoting lines and singing show tunes.

Constance: What’s been your biggest challenge regarding your development/creation process?

Carmen: It all starts with believing in yourself and in your ideas. A lot of internal work happens before you crack open Final Draft and type up your script. You hope that your idea is worthy enough to invite a group of artists to come together to memorize lines, play piano and trust that an audience will find you. Then it’s all the logistics of producing: getting all your ducks in a row and managing all the moving pieces that come with a theatre production. It’s a challenge, but it’s super fun.

Constance: What are you enjoying most as you create your show?

Carmen: I come from an improv and sketch comedy background, so I love allowing space for collaboration and seeing how actors interpret the characters I wrote. I love hearing a musician add magic to the melodies with different instrumentation.

Constance: What has been the most surprising discovery?

Carmen: That male audience members who aren’t parents found the show entertaining!

Constance: The work will be given away soon. How does that feel?

Carmen: It’s bittersweet, like sending your child off to college. We did our homework together, and bought all the dorm room supplies necessary for a comfortable landing. Now it’s about trusting the process and letting your art live on outside your womb.

Constance: How long have you been sitting with this work?

Carmen: I’ve wanted to produce a musical since I was 13. And I came up with Low on Milk before even contemplating motherhood, when I kept reading about the formula shortage and thought how terrible that must be. Then I had a baby and lived how terrible that is. I added songs and scenes after experiencing birth, lactation consultants, doulas and all the bells & whistles that come with new motherhood, so this project has been gestating for a few years.

Constance: Why Fringe? Why this year?

Carmen: It was probably the worst time in my life to take on a project as big as putting on a musical. I have a baby at home, so I’m not exactly sitting in a field of heather at a typewriter with the winds blowing songs into my ear. With this in mind, I felt like my wit’s end was probably also the perfect time to do Fringe and embrace the joyful and frantic energy that only Hollywood Fringe provides. A theatre production is a lack of sleep and no control over the elements, it needs my constant attention and love. Kind of like a baby. Happy Fringe, everyone!

For info and tickets visit https://www.hollywoodfringe.org/projects/10555

By Constance Strickland

June is here and “Women on the Fringe” are again onstage!

There is nothing quite like the buzz that’s created during the Hollywood Fringe. It is a time filled with risk-taking, courage, hope and independent artists creating new work by any means necessary. Each year, I ask women writers a new series of questions influenced by the Proust Questionnaire and Bernard Pivot’s French series, “Bouillon de Culture.” The goal is to understand the artist’s work and their full nature while allowing them a space to reveal their authentic self. It is a great gift and a true honor to introduce women who will be presenting work in myriad genres, exploring a wide range of topics that allow us to examine who we are as individuals and as a society.

Introducing Victoria Montalbano and her show, “The Princess Strikes Back: One Woman’s Search for the Space Cowboy of her Dreams.“

Constance: What do you hope audience members take away after experiencing your show?

Victoria: I hope they’re laughing through tears!

Constance: What’s been your biggest challenge in terms of your development/creation process?

Victoria: I developed the show through Storytelling, so the biggest challenge was putting the 8-10 minute stories together to create a seamless, 60 minute arc. Also the pandemic. I’ve been doing the show for 3 years, so much of the development process was during the pandemic, when I couldn’t do any in-person staged readings. I ended up doing for people over zoom and having them give me feedback individually.

Constance: What are you enjoying most as you create your show?

Victoria: I love how each audience is different. I never get tired of doing the show, because even though it’s fully scripted, it’s very conversational, so the audience really does affect each performance.

Constance: What has been the most surprising discovery?

Victoria: Certain lines in the show, that are not jokes, somehow get laughs more often than not!

Constance: The work will be given away soon. How does that feel?

Victoria: Well, I’ve been giving the work away at Fringe Festivals across the country for the last 3 years. It doesn’t feel like I’m giving it away. The more people that experience the story, the more it grows, it’s like blowing up a giant balloon filled with Star Wars based double entendre.

Constance: How long have you been sitting with this work?

Victoria: About 6 years total!

Constance: Why Fringe? Why this year?

Victoria: If you’re an independent artist who wants to tour, Fringe Festivals are the best way to do it. In general, it is more affordable than producing independently, and most festivals have a built in audience. I’ve been touring the US Fringe circuit for 3 years, and I’m just getting started! It’s purely logistical that I made it to Hollywood this year. I was also accepted to the San Diego Fringe, which is the last 2 weeks of May, so it made sense to do both festivals back to back!

Constance: If there is anything else that must be said, please say it!

Victoria: Just that I have 2 more shows, Thursday, 6/27 at 7pm and Saturday, 6/29 at Midnight! http://www.victorianotvicky.com/

For info and tickets visit https://www.hollywoodfringe.org/projects/10624

By Constance Strickland

June is here and “Women on the Fringe” are again onstage!

There is nothing quite like the buzz that’s created during the Hollywood Fringe. It is a time filled with risk-taking, courage, hope and independent artists creating new work by any means necessary. Each year, I ask women writers a new series of questions influenced by the Proust Questionnaire and Bernard Pivot’s French series, “Bouillon de Culture.” The goal is to understand the artist’s work and their full nature while allowing them a space to reveal their authentic self. It is a great gift and a true honor to introduce women who will be presenting work in myriad genres, exploring a wide range of topics that allow us to examine who we are as individuals and as a society.

Introducing Mayuri Bhandari and her show, THE ANTI “YOGI”:

Constance: What do you hope audience members take away after experiencing your show?

Mayuri: It’s a sensory immersive experience; it is to be felt, not just intellectually understood. At its core, THE ANTI “YOGI” is a call to action, not only to reflect a mirror but to call out our own ignorance through humor and depth. I hope audiences are amused, moved, touched, and awakened.

Constance: What’s been your biggest challenge in terms of your development/creation process?

Mayuri: The writing. Without a doubt. Showing not telling, and getting past perfectionist syndrome to get the writing on its feet… because it changes a number of times anyway! Also, being the director/producer/marketer/etc. in every aspect; the performer and producer at the same time. I learned a lot, but it was definitely a challenge. I had a wonderful team I brought together – but I still have to execute in all areas!

Constance: What are you enjoying most as you create your show?

Mayuri: The opportunity to combine all my art forms to be a storyteller. I love rhythm; so to be able to express through visual poetry, live percussion, dance, acting and sound in one space with a cinematic feel of the stage has been amazing. I’m a mover, so it’s so wonderful to be able to use my body through all the characters, for my emotions and for the sentiment of the piece.

Constance: What has been the most surprising discovery?

Mayuri: At how much I can accomplish even when I think I’ve hit my limit or doubt myself. I have to give credit to my team: directors D’Lo & Shyamala Moorty, producer Jessica Johnson, my percussionist Neel Agrawal, my team at the Zephyr including Nick Foran, and my friends who have been helping my non-stop. Honestly, it’s been reaffirming to see myself bring all the pieces I envisioned together and trust my voice and my gut more – believe in myself more.

Constance: The work will be given away soon. How does that feel?

Mayuri: This piece and experiences have been with me for so many years – so to see it come out in a full body of work is something. Hopefully, I’m able to take it further and go deeper with the work. I also feel proud to see a big project like this through. It’s been a long time coming and gives way for my next piece to come out that has been brewing just as much.

This show is my Part 1 (focused on Spirituality) and my Part 2 is focused on Sensuality.

Constance: How long have you been sitting with this work?

Mayuri: Honestly, since I was in college or probably earlier, maybe even lifelong. I’ve had so many experiences that I didn’t realize were micro-aggressions or issues that needed to be addressed until later in my life. Initially, I thought “To each their own” and learned that what I was feeling was rooted in a much deeper issue. So though I didn’t recognize it then; it’s probably been since I was very little and accumulating over the years.

I’ve been wanting to do a one-person show for nearly 5 years now, and when the strike occurred last year I decided to work on the piece. The script started around the end of last year. I’ve been sitting with it for the past 7-8 months or so.

Constance: Why Fringe? Why this year?

Mayuri: I learned about Fringe last year after watching several shows and decided I wanted to be a part of it eventually. And when the strike happened, I knew this was the time.

Constance: Anything else that must be said – please add!

Mayuri: Thank you for taking a look at my show, for your time, and for the opportunity! This piece is a call to action and is about a practice much bigger than I – yet through my lens at the same time. I hope it resonates with many.

https://linktr.ee/mayuribhandari

For info and tickets visit https://www.hollywoodfringe.org/projects/10384

By Constance Strickland

June is here and “Women on the Fringe” are again onstage!

There is nothing quite like the buzz that’s created during the Hollywood Fringe. It is a time filled with risk-taking, courage, hope and independent artists creating new work by any means necessary. Each year, I ask women writers a new series of questions influenced by the Proust Questionnaire and Bernard Pivot’s French series, “Bouillon de Culture.” The goal is to understand the artist’s work and their full nature while allowing them a space to reveal their authentic self. It is a great gift and a true honor to introduce women who will be presenting work in myriad genres, exploring a wide range of topics that allow us to examine who we are as individuals and as a society.

Introducing Sunita Param and her show, “Sunita: Back To Me.”

Constance: What do you hope audience members take away after experiencing your show?

Sunita: My hope is that the audience walks away from my show inspired and having experienced a true emotional journey. Laughter, tears, joy and ultimately spiritually uplifted.

Constance: What’s been your biggest challenge in terms of your development/creation process?

Sunita: Initially, when I chose the stories from my life that I wanted to tell, it was important for me to create a real beginning, middle and end.  In addition, I had to choose songs that spoke to me but that also illuminated or supported the stories I was telling.

Constance: What are you enjoying most as you create your show?

Sunita: At this point, I’ve done the show quite a bit over the last few years, but in this incarnation, I’m actually on a stage without being married to a standing microphone.  I absolutely love the freedom, in all capacities, that it has provided me as an actor.

Constance: What has been the most surprising discovery?

Sunita: Not necessarily a surprise, but more of a gratified awareness, that I am capable of performing a 75-minute show – singing 14 songs and holding an audience’s attention.

Constance: The work will be given away soon. How does that feel?

Sunita: It’s incredibly empowering to have written my personal story.  I will have shared myself completely and allowed myself to be vulnerable.  That is powerful. 

Constance: How long have you been sitting with this work?

Sunita: I have been wanting to do a show like this for over 15 years.  And finally in early 2020, I began writing the show and making song choices.  I’ve performed it several times all over CA and on the East Coast in the last 4 years – most recently in February at the Whitefire Theatre’s Solofest. So when I heard about the Fringe this year, I thought, “Why not?” Especially since I had just performed it.  It was fresh. I also was attracted to the fact that it wouldn’t be a one-off performance.  Having 3 performances over the span of 2 weeks gives me the opportunity to tweak, adjust, or just plain make it better than the last performance.

For info and tickets visit https://www.hollywoodfringe.org/projects/10819

By Constance Strickland

June is here and “Women on the Fringe” are again onstage!

There is nothing quite like the buzz that’s created during the Hollywood Fringe. It is a time filled with risk-taking, courage, hope and independent artists creating new work by any means necessary. Each year, I ask women writers a new series of questions influenced by the Proust Questionnaire and Bernard Pivot’s French series, “Bouillon de Culture.” The goal is to understand the artist’s work and their full nature while allowing them a space to reveal their authentic self. It is a great gift and a true honor to introduce women who will be presenting work in myriad genres, exploring a wide range of topics that allow us to examine who we are as individuals and as a society.

Introducing Christina V. Anthony and her show, “I Hope You Heal.”

Constance: What do you hope audience members take away after experiencing your show?

Christina: The themes of the show are identity, forgiveness, self-love, hope, healing and many more! For one of the most beautiful experiences of my life to turn into one of the cruelest was, quite simply, a mind fuck. There was a lot to process, learn and heal from. I want to give audiences a path to healing. All my work is deeply rooted in my identity and staunch female empowerment. I hope audiences will leave feeling emboldened to be their most honest, strong and vulnerable selves. The message I plan to convey through the show is that even when you feel like you’ve lost your inner strength, you can heal and bounce back stronger!

Constance: What’s been your biggest challenge in terms of your development/creation process?

Christina: One of the biggest challenges was editing. My first draft was over 30 pages long and I had to get it down to 10 pages. When I started writing the piece, I wasn’t positive if I wanted it to be for print or the stage. I wrote it in a more prose style, so after I realized I wanted to perform it, I had to rewrite the whole thing to work better for a live performance.

Constance: What are you enjoying most as you create your show?

Christina: I am enjoying the strength I’ve gained by reframing one of the most painful experiences of my life into one of the greatest gifts of my life. It took a lot of time, reflection and self-awareness for me to see the beauty in pain. I now feel like the smartest, strongest, sexiest version of myself. I owe a lot of my growth to the wisdom I gained by writing this show.

Constance: What has been the most surprising discovery?

Christina: One of the most surprising discoveries was how much the audience laughed watching the show. I have been producing and performing in comedy shows for 8 years, so I do try to find humorous moments in my writing. This piece can be very sad and I thought that would be the overwhelming tone, but instead I was greeted with laughter throughout the piece. I’m proud of the balance I managed to create and the moments of levity I am able to give the audience.

Constance: The work will be given away soon. How does that feel?

Christina: It feels scary and exciting to debut this show. I’ve never felt so exposed before in my work. Theater gets different criticism than comedy shows, so this is new for me. I hope people like it and understand that this was intentionally the bare-bones version and I would like to keep developing different performative elements. I know there are always improvements that can be made, but for right now I just want to celebrate the fact that I put this dang thing up and put my whole heart into it!

Constance: How long have you been sitting with this work?

Christina: It took me 3 years to write this show. It has gone through over 20 drafts and has changed dramatically from the 1st draft. I would meticulously edit the piece and then not be able to look at it for a couple of months, then repeat the process of detailed revision. After I brought on a director, we went through another 10 rounds of edits. It was exhausting, but I’m so glad I stuck with it. I’m so proud of the final piece. I’d love to share it with as many people as possible!! 

Constance: Why Fringe? Why this year?

Christina: I’d been holding on to this piece for years and honestly wasn’t sure if I’d ever have the guts to put it up. A friend asked me to do their show where artists do live readings of something they’ve been working on but have never been in front of an audience. I did a live reading of a cut-down 10-minute version. The audience loved it! I was so overwhelmed by the praise, that I knew I had no choice but to go through with it. I debated whether I wanted to just rent a space and put it up, but ultimately I wanted its debut to be a part of a community. I chose Fringe 2024 because of the community aspect of the festival. 2024 marks the 8th year that I’ve been performing and I approached this year as the year I would do everything that scares me. No fears in 2024!

Constance: Anything else that must be said – please add!

Christina: There are two more shows! Tuesday, June 18th @ 6:30pm and Sunday, June 30th @ 7:00pm at The Broadwater Second Stage. You can find more of my work on my website: christinavanthony.com and the show’s Insta is @ihopeyouhealshow. Thanks!

For info and tickets visit https://www.hollywoodfringe.org/projects/10480

By Constance Strickland

June is here and “Women on the Fringe” are again onstage!

There is nothing quite like the buzz that’s created during the Hollywood Fringe. It is a time filled with risk-taking, courage, hope and independent artists creating new work by any means necessary. Each year, I ask women writers a new series of questions influenced by the Proust Questionnaire and Bernard Pivot’s French series, “Bouillon de Culture.” The goal is to understand the artist’s work and their full nature while allowing them a space to reveal their authentic self. It is a great gift and a true honor to introduce women who will be presenting work in myriad genres, exploring a wide range of topics that allow us to examine who we are as individuals and as a society.

Introducing Marisa Ray and her show, “Amen.”

Constance: What do you hope audience members take away after experiencing your show?

Marisa: I hope more than anything that audience members leave with more questions of their own. Our show talks about a lot of big ideas in a very silly and absurd way, which I love, but I hope it can serve as a conversation starter for some of those big ideas.

Constance: What’s been your biggest challenge in terms of your development/creation process?

Marisa: Allowing myself to just let the project go. I found myself still trying to make edits, and it got to a point where I had to just cut it off and give it up to creatives who I could trust to bring it to life.

Constance: What are you enjoying most as you create your show?

Marisa: Watching my director and actors find new nuances and meanings that I didn’t even realize I was writing into the show. In particular, some of the jokes are being added to both visually and sonically in a way I couldn’t have ever imagined. Though that makes sense – my friends and co-creators are all funnier than me! 

Constance: What has been the most surprising discovery?

Marisa: In the rehearsal process, we ended up finding mantras that we started repeating at the beginning of every run. One of those was to “find the love” and compassion in every scene, no matter what was happening in it. This isn’t exactly groundbreaking I suppose, but it served as a reminder that theater is about caring deeply, and even in moments of anger or tragedy, it’s impossible to carry out without a strong core of love – for the characters and for the craft.

Constance: The work will be given away soon. How does that feel?

Marisa: Definitely anxiety-inducing, but also cathartic in a way! I’ve been sitting on it for so long that it’s nice to finally call it done – at least for this phase of its lifespan.

Constance: How long have you been sitting with this work?

Marisa: I wrote the first draft of this play in 2019, and largely forgot about it until recently, when I went back and reread it and found myself genuinely entertained. Since then, I started soft pitching it as just an informal table read, and when we finally did the read this past October, I had actors come up to me afterward asking that I please put it up somewhere. That felt like the kick I needed to actually take the next step and produce it. 

Constance: Why Fringe? Why this year?

Marisa: In a world that feels increasingly disconnected from community and the events that shape our lives, Amen questions how things have been, and how we can take back control over our narratives. Who decides the way that things are, or how we think? If they were relevant once, are they relevant now?

Constance: Anything else that must be said – please add!

Marisa: I’ve had a few people come up to me and ask dubiously if the play was religious – and while it sure does feature God as a main character, I’d issue the disclaimer that God is as much a fictitious character as any other in this play. We don’t discuss or touch on any institutional religion at all – so feel free to come ready to laugh and immerse yourself in a world only slightly similar to our own!

For info and tickets visit https://www.hollywoodfringe.org/projects/10427

By Constance Strickland

June is here and “Women on the Fringe” are again onstage!

There is nothing quite like the buzz that’s created during the Hollywood Fringe. It is a time filled with risk-taking, courage, hope and independent artists creating new work by any means necessary. Each year, I ask women writers a new series of questions influenced by the Proust Questionnaire and Bernard Pivot’s French series, “Bouillon de Culture.” The goal is to understand the artist’s work and their full nature while allowing them a space to reveal their authentic self. It is a great gift and a true honor to introduce women who will be presenting work in myriad genres, exploring a wide range of topics that allow us to examine who we are as individuals and as a society.

Introducing Rahvaunia Johnson and her show, “tHis Is Very IMPORTANT”

Constance: What do you hope audience members take away after experiencing your show?

Rahvaunia: My show’s message is layered, much like life itself. I hope that the audience members leave with the understanding that we are all navigating this world, doing the best we can. We don’t always get it right, but if we lead with love, kindness, empathy and non-judgment, we may realize that we are more alike than different. It would truly make my soul smile if women, in particular, embraced self-work, the importance of sisterhood,and emotional work, which would allow them to recognize their immense importance to the world and the human experience. It is also important for all genders to understand how special the woman truly is. We are all here because of a woman.

Constance: What’s been your biggest challenge in terms of your development/creation process?

Rahvaunia: Outside of never writing anything other than a couple of short films and a few synopsis… The biggest challenge in my development and creation process has been managing my grand dreams and high expectations. I envision everything on such a grand scale and my perfectionist tendencies, combined with a touch of OCD, make it even more demanding. I aimed to create something so impactful that the HIV storyline connecting 3 of the 15 characters becomes unavoidable and deeply relatable. Often, we shy away from topics we think won’t resonate with us, but that’s precisely why I created this show… to challenge those assumptions. This journey has been incredibly challenging requiring me to dig deep and find my inner voice, reminding myself to let go and simply create. I had to learn to step out of my own way.

Constance: What are you enjoying most as you create your show?

Rahvaunia: I most enjoyed the discovery of small nuances that make each character relatable to a diverse audience. It’s incredibly fulfilling to layer the lives of these women beyond their diagnosis, exploring their journeys before, during and after. Creating characters with fragments of all of us, regardless of race or gender, allows me to connect with the audience on a profound level. This process of crafting multifaceted, relatable women was both challenging and deeply rewarding.

Constance: What has been the most surprising discovery?

Rahvaunia: That’s been my ability to create something that is both entertaining and, at times, humorous, while addressing a topic that many consider heavy or taboo. Even the most touching and emotional moments are crafted to take the audience on a journey that ultimately ends in hope and a smile, both on their faces and in their hearts.

Constance: The work will be given away soon. How does that feel?

Rahvaunia: I’ve been blessed to share this work before, and each time I put it out there and leave everything on the stage it’s an incredible feeling. Knowing that my contribution is raising awareness and serving the community is immensely fulfilling. As a BIOPIC woman, my work directly impacts my community, but it also resonates with the broader global community. This sense of connection and service is what makes this experience truly amazing.

Constance: How long have you been sitting with this work?

Rahvaunia: For 16 years or so before finally bringing it to life. Life has a way of keeping you busy and pulling you in many directions, but I never let it discourage me. I knew that when the time was right, it would happen. And it did, at the perfect moment, just as the number of diagnoses among Black cisgender women was on a constant rise.

Constance: Why Fringe? Why this year?

Rahvaunia: Why not? I’ve been a Fringe audience member for some time, and it’s one of the few times in Hollywood when small theatrical productions get the support they truly deserve. LA might not be known as a “theatre” town, but for 30 glorious days, Fringe transforms it into one. The energy and passion during this festival are unparalleled. I originally wanted to participate in the Hollywood Fringe in 2020, but we all know what happened that year. I decided to step back for a while, observing how theatre adapted to streaming shows to keep the art alive during such trying times. But I had a desire to connect with live audiences and that was a priority for my “important” show. And here I am. Hello, Hollywood Fringe 2024. Thank you for making space for me!

Constance: Anything else that must be said – please add!

Rahvaunia: “tHis Is Very IMPORTANT” is my first written piece for the stage. Stepping into unknown territory this project has not only taught me invaluable lessons but also ignited a yearning to create more theatre work. It is my hope to be able to bring those ideas to a stage near you. In the meantime, I am manifesting that TIVI (short for tHis Is Very IMPORTANT) will be performed on stages worldwide. It’s a human experience that deserves to be seen by all. Beyond its stage life, it will evolve into a mini-series. Many people have expressed a desire to know what happens next for my characters, and I hope they won’t have to wait too long to find out.

For info and tickets visit https://www.hollywoodfringe.org/projects/10434