Wright State Theatre Presents 1st Annual Parking Lot Fringe Festival

Wright State Theatre's inaugural Parking Lot Fringe Festival is "a weekend full of student created plays, musicals, monologues, comedy and musical excerpts driven by the purest tradition of storytelling, where a band of troubadours unpack their trunk and send the magic dust of creativity flying into the open space to weave a tale out of theatrical (or parking lot) thin air." This is how Festival Director and Associate Professor of Acting Marya Spring Cordes describes what is sure to be a free-wheeling and joyful celebration of student performance creativity.

Parking Lot Fringe Festival is a two-day outdoor theatrical event that gives students the opportunity for 'live voices to be heard by live audiences' in a COVID times. Breathing life into the sparsely inhabited grand entrance of their Creative Arts Center, the student actors, singers and dancers will send their unique voices out into their campus and community once again. This tailgate-styled event was built from scratch to fill the void for student-produced works normally produced in their workshop space, the Jubilee Theatre Directing Lab. They invite audiences to come feel the raw and unfettered energy of youth in the 'grass roots' impassioned work of this inaugural year. All patrons and performers will follow COVID safety protocols.

Among the highlights of the festival will be revues of the music of "Fats" Waller and the Four Seasons, student-written comedies and music, and two special performances of the social justice drama, THE EXONERATED (by Jessica Blank and Erik Jensen), directed by respected Dayton actor Alan Bomar Jones. The play, which explores abuses in the criminal justice system leading to innocent men and women being incarcerated. Jones, reflecting on the enduring message of this more than 20-year old play, says, "It's happening today and it happened years ago in The Exonerated. Laws change, police officers change, politicians change, but the hatred and prejudice remains the same. It's part of several generations of hate-filled upbringing. This play reminds you that no one is safe."

DETAILS:

Festival Details

Saturday, April 24 Noon-4pm, 5-8pm

Sunday, April 25 Noon-4pm, 4-8pm

Admission: Free (donations accepted)

Location

Performances will take place on the Grand Entrance steps to Wright State's Creative Arts Center. Patrons may park in Lots 12 & 13 for free.

Seating and Safety

The two-day festival requires audiences to observe masking and social distancing guidelines while on Wright State premises. Please bring a camp chair, blanket or other means of sitting in their cordoned-off parking lot. Patrons are encouraged to bring their own non-alcoholic beverages and food.

For more information visit: https://liberal-arts.wright.edu/theatre-dance-and-motion-pictures

2026 Theater Fans' Choice Awards - Live Stats

Best Direction of a Play - Top 3

1. Joe Mantello - Death of a Salesman

20.6% of votes

2. Duncan MacMillan, Jeremy Herrin - Every Brilliant Thing

16.5% of votes

3. Whitney White - Liberation

9.6% of votes

Vote Now! View Live Stats