"Lettres et Café" Fringe Fund

We are producing a play!
I am Abby Day, a playwright, actor, and director... and I suppose a producer now as well! A group of young theatrical artists and I are putting together a play I've been crafting for the past year entitled Lettres et Café for the Minnesota Fringe Festival.

Unfortunately, producing a play is not cheap. So, after some time with an excel spreadsheet budget, we are reaching out to our friends, family, and those who have supported our work in the past at the University of Northwestern-St. Paul to join us in this artistic endeavor by helping us raise $2,300.


What's the play about?
In the rubble of post-WWII Paris, an eclectic group of Parisians find that mimes, unexpected love, and good, strong coffee are the best ways to mend the heart of their beautiful, broken city.

The story is based on a Hungarian play entitled "Perfumerie" by Miklós László; the same play the movie "You've Got Mail" is based off of.  

Our goal in creating "Lettres et Café" is to tell a story of characters discovering hope, joy, and love despite the incredibly dark world they find themselves in.

How did the play come to be?
I wrote the play as a gift to my old high school One Act Team: Concordia Jr./Sr. High in Omaha, NE.

The 25 min. version ended up winning 1st place in the NCAA Conference competition, 1st in the NCAA Districts Competition, and 2nd in the NCAA State competition under the direction of Lori Plummer.



Professional artists seem to say the same things over and over again, "If you want to make it in this business, create your own work."
"Don't wait around for someone to give you permission to create, create something yourself!"

We have taken their sage wisdom to heart... we just need some help doing it.

That's a lot of money Abby! Where is it all going!?
I swear I am not embezzling you out of your money... this time...

Your hard earned dollars will be going into one of three pools:
1. Fringe Festival Fees: Some steep fees are required to participate in the festival.
2. Production costs: This includes renting a space for rehearsals, props (coffee cups, coffee, love letters, etc.), building a set, acquiring and/or building costumes, and designing and printing programs.
3. Marketing: This includes printing postcards and posters, shooting a promotional video, and web advertising. Marketing is an essential element for success for any show, but especially at the Fringe Festival.
The Fringe Festival has 163 plays participating. In order to stand out we need two things, a great play (Done!), and great marketing.

BUT. There are Prizes.
Yes, you heard that right. If you donate, we will give you a prize!

If you donate $10<
- A Thank You card!  And lots of love.

If you donate $25<
- The above prizes AND
- A humorous poem written by one of the cast members on their experience with the show

If you donate $50<
- The above prizes AND
- A poster signed by the whole cast!

If you donate $75<
- The above prizes AND
- Your name on one of the letters used as a prop in the actual show!

If you donate $100<
- The above prizes AND
- A bound, copy of the script, "Lettres et Café" with signatures from the cast

Our Fabulous (will probably be famous someday) Cast and Crew:

Writer: Abby Day
Director: Kasey Manche
Stage Manager: Jeremiah Thiessen

Evalyn Morand: Abby Day
Seymour Castel: Tony Potts
Monsieur Schmidt: Dawson Ehlke
Lili Lebrun: Falicia Cunningham
Prunilla Motte: Gabriella Abbott
Mime: Jillian Johnson
Monsieur Sylvester Leblac IV: Michael Johnson
Ensemble (To play various roles) : Jonathan Horn, Ceciley Pund, Stalyon Blackmond, Allison Burns

What is the Fringe Festival?

A citywide annual theatre festival with 163 plays in 15 venues over 10 days! The available show slots are drawn at random. Once your number is drawn (our number was lucky 222!) you are given a performance space, 60 minutes, 5 performance dates, and a minimal production team. Within these realms you can create anything you'd like. 50,000 tickets are estimated to be sold for the entire festival.
The festival runs from August 3-13th.

We want to come to your show! Where and when Abby!?

Where:
Theatre in the Round
When:
Friday, August 4th- 8:30pm
Saturday, August 5th- 1:00pm
Tuesday, August 8th- 10:00pm
Friday, August 11th- 5:30pm
Sunday, August 13th- 4:00pm

Tickets: http://www.fringefestival.org/
-Tickets don't go on sale yet, but we'll let you know when they do!