Tag Archives: Cincinnati Fringe Festival

Z is for Zebra is a story about chronic illness told by artists, the majority of whom identify as chronically ill and/or disabled 

[Cincinnati, OH] The world premiere of Z IS FOR ZEBRA is a one-night-only event at the Cincinnati Fringe Festival as part of their development series. Z IS FOR ZEBRA, written by Katie Scarlett, explores the relationship between chronic illness and grief as told through the eyes of a professor giving a lecture on Kubler-Ross’s “stages of grief.” But what happens when the professor’s overconfident (and unwanted) TA takes her on a whirlwind journey through her own hardships with chronic illness? Together, they navigate the path to acceptance (no matter how fleeting) through a series of successes and struggles with humor, heart, and a lot of pill bottles.

The show will take place on June 5, 2025 at 6:45pm at The Know Theatre on 1120 Jackson Street. The cast includes: Ben Dudley, Kate Stark, and Katie Scarlett. Production team includes: Liz Carman (director), ErinMarie Suscheck (stage manager), and designers Becca Schall, Jared Earland, and Rupert Spraul.

Scarlett, who is disabled herself, strongly believes in art as a form of advocacy. “For a lot of chronically ill people self-advocacy starts young in medical settings. You have to learn how to stand up for yourself because often you’re not believed by medical professionals or you receive a lot of pushback,” Scarlett says. “This show for me was a way of broadening my advocacy past myself. My story isn’t unique. I can name multiple people in the disabled and chronic illness communities who have shared similar experiences. It’s important for other people to know how hard it is to navigate a complex healthcare system when the chronic part of being ill never ends, that’s where the stages of grief kick in.” This message is important as, according to the CDC, more than 1 in 4 adults in the United States are disabled. Most people have someone in their life that has struggled with their health, this story provides more context to relate on a deeper level.

It was important to Scarlett to build a team of disabled artists. She believes disabled stories need to be told, more specifically by disabled artists. “This city is full of incredibly talented disabled artists, and often standard schedules and spaces are built for able-bodied people. It’s been nice to be in a space where no one bats an eye when I pull out an ice pack, attach it to a part of my body, and then continue doing whatever I’m doing. If someone isn’t feeling well, we can work around them or with them in a different way. It would be nice to start bringing that level of awareness to more able-bodied spaces,” Scarlett says.

For tickets and more information please check out the Cincinnati Fringe Festival’s website: https://cincyfringe.com/z-is-for-zebra

CINCINNATI – Wicked Cat Productions will present Stuck written by JJ Ivey and directed by Patrick O’Connell. The production will be presented as part of the 2025 Cincinnati Fringe Festival at Gabriel’s Corner with performances between May 31st and June 8th. Stuck is a sharp, funny, and sometimes steamy new play about what happens when teenage fantasy becomes a messy adult reality.

When Drew’s straight best friend, Dale, stumbles back into their life—drunk, unannounced, and after more than a decade apart—the night spirals into a messy mix of surprising flirtation, nostalgia, and unresolved tension. As laughter gives way to confessions and fears, and old traumas surface, the two must confront their past and what it means for their future. Stuck celebrates the beauty of imperfections, Queer love, and Queer bodies.This production premiered at New York City Fringe in April 2025 where it won the Staff Choice Award. 

“The playwright poignantly sheds light on how a form of healing from trauma comes from a person’s ability to laugh… The chemistry between both actors is electrifying and steamy as they share passionate and intimate displays… Stuck is a declaration that the act of self-love is the ultimate vindication.” – Theatre Beyond Broadway

“A raw, unflinching look at the intricacies of human connection. With moments that are both affecting and undivinable, this production masterfully explores…the fragile boundary between love and loss… this play strikes a resonant chord with its unrelenting honesty.” – Hi! Drama 

WHAT: Stuck by JJ Ivey
WHO: Featuring Royce Thomas Johnson and JJ Ivey

Directed by Patrick O’Connell
With Production Stage Manager Kaitlyn Chase
And Intimacy Coordinator Sean Fletcher Griffin

WHEN:

• 4:15 p.m. Saturday, May 31
• 8:45 p.m. Sunday, June 1
• 8:45 p.m. Tuesday, June 3
• 7:00 p.m. Friday June 6
• 8:45 p.m. Sunday, June 8

WHERE: Gabriel’s Corner 1425 Sycamore St, Cincinnati, OH 45202
HOW MUCH: Single Tickets $20
RUNNING TIME: 60 minutes
TICKETS: https://cincyfringe.com/stuck

Wicked Cat Productions is an independent theater company founded by Kaitlyn Chase and JJ Ivey in 2024. Dedicated to championing new voices and reimagining classical works for contemporary audiences, the company focuses on creating sustainable, impactful theater while ensuring fair compensation for artists and creatives. Wicked Cat Productions made its debut with Death of a Dandelion at NYC and Orlando Fringe in 2024. Follow @wickedcatproductions.

Patrick O’Connell (Director) has been collaborating on “Stuck” since its beginning as a short play. They are a graduate of Emerson College and notable productions include A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Clementine Players) and a staged reading of their own play Roaches! (Tumbleweed Collective). They are an alumni and collaborator with Barr Hill Players and Resident Playwright with Tumbleweed Collective. Follow @patrick.1227.

JJ Ivey (Playwright/Performer) is a nonbinary, plus-size theatre professional from Tennessee. They are currently attending Brooklyn College and trained at Atlantic Acting School. JJ creates work that explores themes of self-image, spirituality, and the contradictions behind perceived identities. Acting credits include Death of a Dandelion (Wicked Cats), A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Clementine Players), and Bloom (SheNYCArts). JJ also works in theatrical management. Follow @jjivey_actor.

Royce Thomas Johnson (Performer) is an actor, writer, and sketch comic from Atlanta, GA. His stage work has taken him across the country with recent NYC credits including Velvet Rage (The Tank), Happenstance (Kraine Theatre), and Crazy About You (Producer’s Club). TV includes Criminal Minds, Chuck, and Hannah Montana. Upcoming film includes the feature Mother Wolf with Melissa Leo. He holds a BFA from NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts. Follow @roycelooksatstuff.

Kaitlyn Chase (Stage Manager) is a New Mexican born Actress, Director, and Producer. She holds a degree in Performing Arts from University of New Mexico and trained at the Stella Adler Studio Conservatory. Acting credits include A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Human Error and The Seagull. Directing credits include Death of a Dandelion and The Third One. Follow @kaitlyncb_1.

Sean Griffin (Intimacy Coordinator) is a member of UnkleDave’s Fight-House. Broadway: Appropriate, Merrily We Roll Along, Uncle Vanya. NY: Seven Year Disappear (New Group); Comedy of Errors (Public); Light in the Piazza, Oliver! (Encores). Regional: View From The Bridge (Long Wharf); Living and Breathing, The Hombres (Two River); Wait Until Dark (Dorset); Maggie, Billy Elliot, Oklahoma! (Goodspeed). Member of Actors Equity and playwright. Follow @sean.fletcher.ny.

For further information or to arrange an interview, please contact Kaitlyn Chase at wickedcatproductionsnyc@gmail.com.

###

Tea TIME:
Erika MacDonald
A NEW EXPERIMENTAL STORYTELLING SOLO SHOW

“MacDonald embodies the “fearless intimacy” that is the essence of Fringe.”
– Orlando Weekly 

(Covington, KY) Fringe favorite and Covington resident Erika MacDonald returns to the Cincinnati Fringe Festival with an all-new performance monologue to entertain and delight. Tea TIME will have its world premiere at the Cincinnati Fringe Festival as part of the Primary Lineup with just five performances on the big stage at Gabriel’s Corner.

ABOUT THE PERFORMER
Erika has participated in the Cincinnati Fringe every year since 2014. Her many Fringe awards include BEST SHOW (The Barn Identity, Tampa Fringe), BEST FEMALE PERFORMER (Tap Me on the Shoulder, Orlando Fringe) and CRITICS’ PICK-OF-THE-FRINGE (Ice Candle, Cincy Fringe). Erika is one of the founders of the Cincinnati Storytelling Festival which will be returning for a fifth year this November. For bio/photos please visit https://www.othererika.com/.

“Delightfully energetic and entertaining” – Watermark 

THIS YEAR:
This has been a big year for Erika in experimental performance:

• This winter she was honored to be invited to be a Featured Teller at the inaugural Fort Myers Storytelling Festival, as part of an eclectic collection of interdisciplinary storytellers
• Erika has been brought on as a consultant for a National Science Foundation-funded research project entitled “our biologies” for her expertise in the field of experimental performance
• This past March, right here on Cincinnati’s Know Theater Underground stage, Erika completed a five-camera shoot of her one-woman show, The Barn Identity, complete with a live studio audience. The video will be released this summer. 

“Smart and comic” – Curve Magazine

THE CREATIVE TEAM:

• Writer / Performer: Erika MacDonald
• Choreographer: Genevieve Bernard
• Director / Sound Designer: Paul Strickland

TICKETS AND INFORMATION
Advance tickets are on sale now. Tickets can be purchased online at cincyfringe.com or during the festival at Festival Box Offices. Please note: No Late Seating to any Fringe Festival Event. Arrive early to avoid disappointment.

TICKET LINK: https://cincyfringe.com/tea-time/

VENUE: Gabriel’s Corner, located in OTR – 1425 Sycamore Street, Cincinnati OH 45202

SHOW DATES AND TIMES (60 minutes):
Friday, May 30th at 8:45pm; Sunday, June 1st at 7pm; Thursday, June 5th at 7pm; Friday, June 6th at 8:45pm; Wednesday, June 11th at 7pm.

PRICING: $20 General Admission | Multi-show passes available.

RATING: 13 & Up

WARNINGS: Adult Language, Hot Beverages

Festival dates: May 30 – June 14, 2025. For more info about Cincy Fringe visit cincyfringe.com.

###

I’m Claudia Pompeya, a Cincinnati-based graphic designer and performer. I wanted to share that I’m debuting my first solo clown show, THE MOTHER, at this year’s Cincy Fringe—a one-night, work-in-progress performance on June 12 at 8:45 PM. Doors open 8:15pm.

It’s a poetic and offbeat exploration of the mother wound, told through physical storytelling, character, props, and absurdity. The piece is deeply shaped by my healing journey through clown.

Claudia Pompeya is a performer and visual artist who accidentally became a clown. She’s trained with Dell’Arte, renowned British comedy troupe Spymonkey, and more. Her first clown work, In My Room, was featured in Wave Pool Art Gallery’s Faux Real exhibition. Former corporate graphic designer. Current vessel of poetic nonsense. She blends visual storytelling with physical performance and soft chaos.

🎟️ Tickets: https://cincyfringe.com/the-mother/
📍 Miami Venue, on the corner of Vine & 13th Streets – Cincy Fringe Festival

Two survivors, one stage – uniting Diana Romero, writer/performer and MS warrior, and Maggie Whittum, director/producer and stroke survivor. Me, Myself and Other is a dynamic and laugh-out-loud solo show exploring Diana’s story of identity, resilience and belonging.

This show is particularly unique in that it is the first time in the 22 year history of the Cincy Fringe that a wheelchair user is performing a solo show.

The show follows Diana’s journey as a first-generation American woman navigating life’s complexities—balancing cultural identities, overcoming the stigma of feeling “othered,” and facing a life-changing diagnosis. Suddenly, she’s navigating a new reality—one defined by physical limitations and societal misconceptions about disability. Despite the setbacks, her journey becomes one of self-discovery and empowerment, showing that the challenges she faced in the past have prepared her for the greatest fight of her life.

In a world that often overlooks or misrepresents marginalized voices, Me, Myself, and Other stands out as a raw, honest, and uplifting celebration of individuality. The show is also notable because it’s entirely created by trailblazing disabled creatives—written, performed, produced, and directed by individuals who understand the journey firsthand.

Diana Romero is an award-winning writer and producer with a television and film background. She was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis at 32. In 2018 she became a wheelchair user and speaks about her experiences with accessibility and advocacy.

Maggie Whittum is a filmmaker, theatre artist, disability advocate, public speaker and stroke survivor at age 33. She has directed and produced plays, musicals and improv comedy in the US and abroad, including shows at the Edinburgh, Edmonton, Vancouver and Toronto Fringe Festivals.

With humor and heart, the show delivers an empowering message: Embracing who you are, even when the world doesn’t, is the key to true belonging.

• WHAT: ME, MYSELF AND OTHER. A solo show. A Cincinnati Fringe Festival selection.
• WHO: Written, produced & performed by Diana Romero. Directed & produced by Maggie Whittum.
• WHERE: Know Theatre, 1120 Jackson St, Cincinnati, OH, 45202.
• WHEN: Sunday June 1 – 6:45 PM; Tuesday June 3 – 8:30 PM; Saturday June 7 – 4:00 PM (with ASL);
  Wednesday June 11 – 6:45 PM; Friday June 13 – 6:45 PM.
• ADMISSION: $20.
• ONLINE TICKETING: https://cincyfringe.com/me-myself-and-other/
• ESTIMATED RUNNING TIME: 50 minutes.
• CONSUMER ADVISORY: Suggested for audiences age 18 and up.