Black Box Summer

Last Fringe, the Summer Nights program was astoundingly successful. Presented by the Blue Room Theatre and PICA, Summer Nights is the corner of the festival focusing on theatre and contemporary dance, and last year, despite there being more than 200 shows at the festival, 'Sold Out' messages decorated the performance board in the foyer almost nightly.

“We managed to find where our niche was,” says Susannah Day. “We created an atmosphere that people wanted to be in that didn't necessarily compete with Fringe but instead found its own personality.” The Summer Nights program is the only part of Fringe that involves a formal selection process. Most of the program is selected from a pool of applicants, and another one or two are invited. “What we're offering during Summer Nights is consistency,” Day says, “and it's that same product that we provide throughout the year, but with fewer rules around it.”

This year will be Day's second Summer Nights' season. She was surprised and excited by 2013's success and suspects it had a strong hand in boosting attendance across Blue Room's regular seasons. “Summer Nights [provides a] chance for the average Joe Blow who may not come into Northbridge very often at all, and who may not come and consume live performance, to come in and be like, 'Oh, do you do this all year round?' So that's kind of our audience development.”

Summer Nights anticipation has already begun to build. Two weeks out, the Blue Room was already sending out emails to its mailing list warning that Bruce, Tag. You're It and Gym And Tonic were on their way to selling out. And though there might be a higher overall proportion of quirky, fun pieces than would usually be found at PICA or Blue Room, there's also variety, with a good balance of darker, deeper, boundary-pushing works such as MKA Dogmeat, or the deserved remount of Great White. Also in the mix is Run Girl Run by Melbourne darlings Grit Theatre, which is performed entirely on treadmills.

Ask Day for her opinions on the surprise dark horses and she'll ask you not to quote her, and then get excited explaining concepts behind the shows. The impression is of another very strong program this year, and one that reflects both the Blue Room and PICA's efforts to boost ambitions of artists and audiences alike. “We're striving for stronger work, and work that is more thought-out,” says Day. “We know that we're the heart of theatre and dance and we want to stay that way. And it means our program can be really strong and we can sell it in a certain way. We get to have this incredible personality through Fringe because we know exactly who we are.”