Fort Myers Theater Festival Returns May 29 With Nine Shows at Two Venues

Theater lovers can check out nine different shows at the Foulds Theatre and Off Broadway Palm during the Fringe Fort Myers festival starting May 29. Tickets range between $12 and $15.

"The opening day is May 29. That's when we're going to have the Flamingle...people can come...and hear about a three-ish minute pitch of all the artists' shows," said Michael Hebler, the Alliance for the Arts new Events and Programming Director, to WGCU News.

The festival opens with "Flamingle," a $5 preview event where actors give quick samples of their shows. Die-hard theater fans can grab a complete festival pass for $120.

This year's lineup features something for everyone. Audiences can enjoy 5x10 Funny: Power Plays, be stunned by Mind Reader, crack up during Born Greg, or explore dark history in Genius, Madness and Murder: Tales of the Scandalous Family of John Wilkes Booth. For music fans, there's Plant: The Musical or Ralph Krumins playing piano in Ivories Guy.

Performers choose their own content warnings. Most shows fall into PG or PG-13 ratings. Shows are picked through a lottery system from local, national, and international submissions.

The festival continues despite Gov. Ron DeSantis cutting $32 million from Florida arts funding last June. His decision came from worries about burlesque and drag shows at state festivals.