The Philadelphia Artists’ Collective will present J.M. Barrie’s Mary Rose at The Woodlands as part of the 2018 Fringe Festival. (Photo by Ashley Smith)

September is here, which means it’s time to celebrate art and artists at the annual Fringe Festival. This year’s program kicks off Thursday, Sept. 6 and features more than 100 dance, theater, spoken word and visual art shows by local, national and international artists at venues around the city.

Many festival events and shows will be held in West Philly – at The Rotunda, The Woodlands, Gwendolyn Bye Dance Center, Art Church of West Philadelphia, Black Box Theater, and other venues.

Beginning this Wednesday, the Philadelphia Artists’ Collective will present Mary Rose, a play by J.M. Barrie (the author of Peter Pan) at the Woodlands Cemetery and Mansion (40th and Woodland). The historic cemetery is a perfect setting for the play, originally published shortly after World War I, that reckons with loss, love, and immortality. The performance takes place inside the mansion and outside on the grounds (in the event of rain the entire performance will be inside the mansion). Shows begin at 7 p.m. and will run through Sept. 22. More information and tickets are available here. 

Tangle Movement Arts will premiere In The Forest, an immersive circus-theater performance, at the festival. (Photo by Michael Ermilio)

As part of the festival, all-female aerial dance company Tangle Movement Arts will present their new show In the Forest in West Philly’s unique and historic venue, The Sanctuary at the Rotunda at 40th and Walnut. In the Forest offers an “immersive world of circus-theater” experience; the audience is surrounded with a dynamic 360-degree display of aerial dance, live music, giant yarn sculptures, and circus magic. Audiences are invited to choose their view and explore unique landscapes of light and shade, trapeze and aerial silks. The 3D sculptural set of In the Forest is crafted by interdisciplinary artist Jenna Reece, featuring thousands of yards of fabric and yarn donated by the knitters of West Philadelphia. Shows will run September 12-15 and tickets ($14-$20) are available here.

The festival will go on for more than two weeks, until September 23rd. For more information about the festival, visit the Fringe Arts website. You can also pick up the festival guide at the following “hot spots”: Green Line Cafe at 43rd and Baltimore, UC Arts League (4226 Spruce St.), and Community College of Philadelphia (48th and Chestnut).