Philly's theater pioneers come out for the SoLow Fest

One has been called the loneliest number, but for some performers, it’s anything but. For them, it’s a unique way to tell a story or explore their view of the world and share it with an audience, all by themselves.

This month, the annual SoLow Fest celebrates the art form for the fifth time in Philly. The event from June 19 through 29 features more than 30 solo experimental theater and performance art works that take place in artists’ homes and nontraditional viewing venues around the city. It’s 11 days of “strange, creative joy,” organizers say.

SoLow Fest was founded in 2010 by Philadelphia performance artists Thomas Choinacky and Amanda Grove. They wanted to perform their own solo work with minimal expense, so they reached out to artists they knew, spiffed up their apartments and other locations, and the festival was born. They’ve been challenging the norm of theater and how people can make and see art since.

It’s a low-maintenance, do-it-yourself event with, the founders hope, low stress for the performers. Organizers even held a workshop on how to produce and show new works with limited expenses (like hosting the event in a space you already pay for). And audiences can see the work without great expense — all shows are “pay what you can,” so there’s limited risk for the audience, too, Choinacky said.

The performance types are wide-ranging: multimedia, interactive, storytelling, visual, experimental, pantomime, and even a clown. There’s also a cheesesteak-eating contest, and one performer offers just a regular ol’ play.

'Backup' theater

Choinacky’s piece this year is called Backup and still is a work in progress. It’s abstract, he said, but looks at what perspective can mean for an audience member. “I’ve been considering the ideas of space and objects in space, and I focused a lot around backup singers,” he said. “What are the things that are not your main point of focus in any piece or concert? I’m putting attention on those things.”

Choinacky will see as many of the other artists’ works as he can. The artists are at different stages, so audiences will see a great variety not only in topic, but in process. Choinacky hopes people will come out and enjoy.

“They’ll see things they may never have seen by taking risks on work and being pleasantly surprised [by] what they get out of it,” he said.

Choinacky likes solo performance. “I can put my stamp on it and say, ‘This is mine.’”

Confronting narrower minds

But he also just really likes creating — in addition to his solo work, he performs as a member of Applied Mechanics theater company, which produces collaborative, immersive, multisensory, and choose-your-own-adventure works. He thinks some people question what kind of range or variety can come from an artist working alone. But he believes in solo performance and thinks people can and will be surprised by the results. For those who may have narrow thoughts about the form, “SoLow Fest is a chance to change people’s minds,” he said.

SoLow has grown each year, mostly by word of mouth, and Choinacky is happy about that. “The festival is a chance for people to get to know the artists within the city, to see people testing the waters of new work [and] allowing themselves to try it and fail if it ends up that way,” he said. “Ultimately it’s the trying that’s most important.”

The SoLow Fest runs through June 29. For the full lineup of shows, reservations, and more information, visit solowfest.com.