10/14/2026
The house was packed on Friday night. Sunday afternoon sold out.
The first-ever Pelham Fringe Festival played The Picture House on October 2 and 4, 2026: five original short plays, with live music and improv between them.
Every play on the bill was new writing inspired by a Pelham Fringe event. Jeffrey B. Fuerst (A Pair of Mopes) and Rich Feldman (Radio Silence) wrote for an "After the Influence" event based on the work of John Patrick Shanley. Joni Fritz (How Can I Help You?), Bette Carlson Siler (So Sorry to Kill You, Poor Little Man), and Andrew O'Brien (The Company We Keep) wrote theirs after an evening themed on Theresa Rebeck. For Andrew and Rich, it was a playwriting debut!
Plays were only part of the evening. The doors opened to a reception with live music, and improv ran between the plays. Jean Garner led the trio at the opening reception, and Ellen Weiss led at the end, while James Ahn Brandfonbrener played piano, Gabriel Schmid-Doyle played upright bass. Jim Ewing, Carolyn Marie Wright and Jill Friedman were featured between plays as the "ACME Moving and Improv Company," performing hilarious improvised scenes while changing the sets.
Pelham Fringe's first table read, on October 29, 2025, drew thirty-two people to August: Osage County. Eleven months later, the company filled The Picture House twice.
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