Bloomington Playwrights Project’s

Arts Fair on the Square

June 18, 2011
10am – 6pm
Monroe County Courthouse

visit artsfair.org for more information and to download an artist application

The Future of Arts Fair on the Square

The BPP sets out a plan to increase attendance and art sales of 31-year-old Bloomington tradition

The Bloomington Playwrights Project announces its plans for the future of the 31st Annual Arts Fair on the Square, which includes making necessary administrative changes in order to increase attendance and art sales.

The Bloomington Playwrights Project (BPP), a local nonprofit professional theatre company, took over the coordination and administration of Arts Fair on the Square this year after the Bloomington Area Arts Council recently announced it was no longer going to manage the event.

The two main determinants of a top notch Arts Fair are high-quality artworks and plenty of arts patrons to purchase them.  In order to attain the former, the BPP has been consulting with representatives from the Fourth Street Festival to best learn what improvements need to be made.  A greater effort to reach more artists through publications along with a strong jury will help to ensure the presence of top-level art at the event.

The BPP is also seeking to improve attendance by significantly increasing the event’s marketing budget and maximizing cross-promotion with Taste of Bloomington, another exciting annual event running concurrently with Arts Fair in downtown Bloomington.  The BPP has already made plans to collaborate with Taste of Bloomington on the purchase of multiple billboards, newspaper advertisements, feature stories, announcements in national arts magazines, regional target-marketing and yard signs.  The BPP has also redesigned a new home for Arts Fair on the web at artsfair.org.

The BPP has built its recent success on collaboration and sees no reason to break the mold with Arts Fair on the Square.  Plans are already in place to increase the level of cross-promotion with Taste of Bloomington, Farmer’s Market, and even Fourth Street Festival.  For example, plans are being made to purchase a shuttle that will take patrons from the parking lot at the Convention Center to Arts Fair on the Square, Taste of Bloomington, the Farmer’s Market, and back to their cars.  Meetings are currently scheduled to explore all possibilities.

“As soon as I heard that the BAAC was no longer able to put on Arts Fair on the Square and that its future was in jeopardy, it just made sense that we should step up and contribute to the artistic community,” says BPP Producing Artistic Director Chad Rabinovitz. “I’m positive it’s something that we can do well, making significant improvements on the past, and furthering our mission to foster the careers of artists.”

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IU Alumna joins Kissing Frogs team

Nicole Parker, star of MADtv & Wicked, announced as book writer for new BPP/IU Musical Collaboration in February 2011

IU Alumna and Broadway star of Wicked, Nicole Parker, will be working alonside lyricist and composer, Jeremy Schonfeld, to write the book for the Bloomington Playwrights Project & Indiana University’s first collaborative musical production, Kissing Frogs.

“We are over the moon to have Nicole here,” exclaims Producing Artistic Director, Chad Rabinovitz.  “She’s amazingly talented and brings a one-of-a-kind sense of humor to Kissing Frogs that is unmatchable.”

Parker comes with years of theatrical and television experience.  For six seasons, Nicole was an actress and contributing writer on Fox's MADtv. She recently appeared in Judd Apatow's third film, Funny People, and on Broadway as Elphaba in Wicked.  She also happens to be an alumna of Indiana University, just like Schonfeld.

In the show, Greta is just days away from hearing her own wedding bells when the former love of her life sends a long overdue text message that sets her spinning.  An already frazzled bride-to-be becomes an emotional disaster as her cold feet turns into frostbite.  With the clock ticking and so many questions to be answered, Greta sets off on a whirlwind adventure revisiting some of the most-telling moments of her past to answer the ultimate love dilemma -  Has she kissed enough frogs and really found her prince?

Rabinovitz has already cast the show and has begun musical rehearsals with his cast of all IU college students.

“These guys are amazing. Best cast of college students I’ve ever had,” says Rabinovitz.  “In their hands, the show is funny, sweet, catchy, and entertaining. It’s a rare opportunity to be a part of something this exciting from the very beginning, and I’m overjoyed that it’s all happening right here at the BPP.”

Performances of Kissing Frogs by Nicole Parker & Jeremy Schonfeld are scheduled for February 4 – 19, 2011 every Thursday, Friday and Saturday at 8pm and the first Sunday at 2pm.  Tickets are $18 General Admission and $15 Student/Senior and are available at BCT Box Office at the Buskirk Chumley Theatre or online at buskirkchumley.org.

Nicole Parker (Book Author, Kissing Frogs)was seen as Rosemary in How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying at Reprise! last spring. She last appeared on Broadway as Elphaba in Wicked. Her Broadway debut was Martin Short: Fame Becomes Me. Other theater credits include: Juliet in Second City's Romeo and Juliet Musical at the Chicago Shakespeare Theater (Jeff Nomination), and Pamina in The Magic Flute at the Falcon Theater in Los Angeles.  For six seasons, Nicole was an actress and contributing writer on Fox's MADtv. She recently appeared in Judd Apatow's third film, Funny People. This summer, she won a Best Actress award for her work in the short film Weathered at the Damah Film Festival in Washington. Before joining MADtv, she spent two years in Amsterdam as a writer and performer at Boom Chicago, an American-based sketch and improv theater. During her time there she created two new revues, both of which were featured at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. She made her Birdland debut in New York this winter with her one-woman show, Suitcase Full of Lies. Nicole is a founding member of the Waterwell Theater, a non-profit company in New York City. With Waterwell, she has performed as Laurencia in their adaptation of Fuenteovejuna,  and created the role of Victoria Woodhull in Wizard of Wall Street, as part of a new musical workshop series at her alma mater, Indiana University.

Great News for all BPP Subscribers & Patrons!

The BPP has procured (pun intended!) 10 parking spaces in the Procure lot for all of our events in the evenings & Sunday matinees.  The available spaces face the building.  They are labeled with blue signs reading “Reserved 7am—7pm”.  Best of all, there’s no parking pass necessary to display.

The Procure building is located on the Southeast corner of the 9th & Walnut, right across the street from the theatre.