The Last three days here on 365, we examined some great celebrations of achievement in visual arts–namely, the Uptown Art Fair, the Loring Park Art Festival, and the Powderhorn Art Fair.

Today, we turn our attention toward a different art form: the performing arts.

The Minnesota Fringe Festival is hitting the Twin Cities starting today, August 5th and finishing up on Sunday, August 15th. The festival will be held at various venues in locations throughout Minneapolis mostly, but there are a couple in St. Paul as well.

The festival headquarters, called Fringe Central, will be at Bedlam Theatre on the West Bank near the University of Minnesota, at 1501 6th Street S. in Minneapolis. Fringe Central will be a place to gather, get information, hang out, have a meal or a drink, and meet other folks. Late night events will happen each night after the shows, and there will be a full menu available in the restaurant. Fringe Central hours are from 4pm to 2am Monday through Friday, and noon to 2am on Saturday and Sunday, with Festival Concierge Desk open until 8pm each night. (More info)

The festival runs for a full ten days, so it’s impractical to try to mention every show, but there are a few that caught our attention. First, if you’re like me and are tired of hearing about a certain melodramatic vampire/human/werewolf love triangle, check out Tom Reed’s one-man satire, Bite Me Twilight.

If you’re a survivalist planning for the imminent zombie apocalypse or even just a fan of zombie lore and a cappella doo wop (yes, I said those two things in the same breath), don’t miss local a cappella group Late Night Menu’s musical horror comedy Zombie High School.

Here’s a peek at a rehearsal:

Here’s a complete list of shows, filtered by category, and locations.

Visit the Festival Website for ticket info and admission buttons.

For more information on the festival, FAQ’s and anything else you can think of, visit www.fringefestival.org.