The New Orleans Fringe Festival, held each November, launches again tonight with a wide and varied selection of theater and performances. Fringe is a worldwide movement that was started in Scotland in 1947 when eight performing groups were excluded from the mainstream annual arts festival in Edinburgh. They created their own outlet with inexpensive or free venues on the actual fringe of the city. The Edinburgh Fringe Fest is now one of the largest arts festivals in the world, and has spawned copycat festivals across the planet. Since 2008, Fringe has found a comfortable home in New Orleans with our large population of performers and creatives.

The Festival runs seven "official" venues in the Marigny, Bywater, and Central City. These spots include Mardi Gras Zone, the Marigny Opera House, Shadowbox Theatre, and the Old Ironworks building. Limiting yourself to shows at just these places would mean missing out on a lot of what Fringe Fest is about, however. One of the keys to a successful Fringe Fest is the "BYOV" (Bring Your Own Venue) aspect. BYOVs are organized by the artists, and showcase a wonderful and eclectic variety of shows. This year, NOLA Fringe has over 80 BYOVs participating across the city. The majority are walkable, concentrated in the Marigny and Bywater, but there's also a free shuttle that runs from Architect's Alley to Central City from about 4:30pm to midnight each day of the festival.

While some of the shows are clearly adults-only, the festival also has many kid-friendly offerings. On Saturday, the Procession of the Personal Saints launches from Markey Park at 2pm. There are also kid-friendly performances featuring music, dance, storytelling, and Fringe shows in the yard of the Marigny Opera House from noon to 5pm on both Saturday and Sunday.

Admittance to any venue requires a $3 Fringe Fest button, available for purchase at any venue, plus door ticket price or use of one of the multi-show passes.

Most shows are less than 60 minutes, and many feature some of New Orleans' most prolific and talented performers.

Full show schedule, venue map, tickets, and general information all available on the official website: http://www.nofringe.org.

A few of my personal picks from this year's lineup are below:

After the Drop
What better way to explore incompetence, dishonesty, and death than juggling? One man sets himself up to fail both figuratively and literally. Wacky and offbeat, accessible and entertaining, this juggling show is sure to leave audiences wanting to throw things in the air.

Does Anyone Still Wear A Hat?: A Tribute to Elaine Stritch
A timely homage to one of Broadway's greatest dames, Nicole Gruter, Kim Linger, and Harry Mayronne star in this raucous cabaret directed by Chris Wicklein Spurred by the news of Elaine Stritch's death, three roommates share their life's adventures and struggles as they summon the acerbic humor of legendary Stritch through song, plenty of schtick, and yes, a Ouija board.

Maria Kizito
Benedictine nun Maria Kizito aided the massacre of 7,000 refugees at her convent, Sovu, during the Rwandan Genocide. Erik Ehn’s play imagines her prayer life, mediated by an American nun who attends her trial in Belgium. We blend poetry and document to bear witness to the events that took place at Sovu, and examine our own capacity for violence.

Oxblood
A panoramic new outdoor performance about land, labor, and home in the contemporary South. With rich, keening harmonies composed by Brendan Connelly (DuFu, MS), and deeply intimate, unflinching choreography by Angelle Hebert (Home Made), Oxblood unearths the tangled histories buried deep in the land and asks what happens to us when we leave that land behind.

Tale of the King Cake Baby (kid-friendly)
“Tale of the King Cake Baby,” is an original play with music centered on two cousins who chase a king cake baby around the city the weekend before Mardi Gras. Will they catch him and prove to their family that the king cake baby came to life or will they get grounded for leaving the house without permission?

They Don't Eat Corn Here
Travel with Beatrice in search of a kernel of truth, stumble upon the meat of the matter. We're all part of the food chain, but who is the host and who is the parasite? Through rich poetry, live music & dance, we learn, in the end it's the bats who rule the roost. Created by Reese Johanson; Music by Susan Millar Boldissar; Directed by Todd d'Amour.