The Navel Gazers, which will perform from July 18 to July 20 at Whim Space during KC Fringe Fest. | Photo courtesy of Starr Street Productions

Dorri Partain

Managing Editor

KC Fringe — an annual festival showcasing original art, film and theater — returns to Whim Space (415 Prospect Ave.) for the third consecutive year with a variety of performances geared for all ages.

Now in its 20th season, KC Fringe is a two-week showcase of live theater, visual arts, film and events featuring local, national and international artists, according to its website.

Whim Space Founder Kevin King shared that six productions will be hosted at this intimate 60-seat theater, with shows running from Friday, July 18 through Saturday, July 26.  

“It’s always an exciting time, and we love the variety of shows that we get to host,” said King. “Hosting KC Fringe is very cool for us because Whim (Productions) got its start in the festival back in 2011. That was when we debuted my play, ‘Film Classics Presents: Heaven So Far,’ which was the 7th best-attended show in the festival that year.”

“We’re also excited that Improv SpringBoard, our co-resident company at Whim Space, is back in the festival for the second year, with ‘The One Where We Make It Up,’” King said. “Stand-up comics and improvisers join forces in a fresh new show each night. It sounds like a great format!”

Traveling from New York City to KC Fringe for the first time, Starr Street Productions will present “The Navel Gazers” from Friday, July 18 to Sunday, July 20 at Whim Space.

During a phone interview, founding member of Starr Street Productions Charlie Hume shared this will be its company’s first performance in Kansas City. Its original play was written by Jack Harding and is directed by Michelle Chan. In addition to Hume, a graduate of the Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute of New York, N.Y., additional cast members include Moana Baba, Kathryn Taylor and Oscar Wahlberg.

This production is described as a “modern farce” featuring these four actors as roommates, couples and childhood friends in an apartment in Greenpoint, Brooklyn.

“It’s basically the day-to-day life, living in New York City,” said Hume. The company presented the play in three performances in their home city before heading to Kansas City for this weekend’s run at Whim Space.

Following performances in Kansas City, Starr Street Productions will continue on to several other sites on the Fringe Festival circuit.

“We’ll be doing 24 shows in seven cities and two countries ( U.S. and Canada). To rent theater space in New York is very expensive, so it’s cost-effective to do a fringe circuit and perform in multiple cities,“ Hume stated.

“The Navel Gazers” will alternate show times with other productions scheduled for the Whim Space stage, including “Keeper of the Plains,” “How to Smoke Three Cigarettes at Once,” “Alibi” and “Another Life Story.”

Each show in the KC Fringe line up is scheduled for five performances at various times in the evening, or as a matinee. A limited number of tickets will be available at the door 30 minutes prior to showtime. Tickets for each performance are $15 — plus a one-time charge of $5 for a KC Fringe button, which is good for all shows.

Additional venues for this year’s festival include Kansas City Oasis, The Arts Asylum, The Black Box, Center for Spiritual Living, City Stage at Union Station, Unicorn Theater, Music Theater Heritage, MCC Penn Valley Little Theater and The Bird Comedy Theater — which doubles as the box office for KC Fringe.

All productions are rated based on subject matter: All Ages (AA), Parental Guidance (PG) and Mature Audiences (MA).

Tickets, and a complete listing of all KC Fringe productions, are available at the festival’s webpage: kcfringe.org. Fringe 411, actually 816-819-0639, also handles ticket sales as well as offers show information from 12 to 6 p.m., Tuesday through Saturday, now through July 27.

For show times and tickets specifically at Whim Space, visit https://kcfringe.org/venue/whim-space/ . Concessions are available also.