NZ Fringe Festival's Awards & Closing Night Party Held 3/1

The glitz, the glamour and the gloriously-talented folk of cutting-edge entertainment will be showcased next Sunday at the New Zealand Fringe Festival's Awards and closing night party.

The Fringe 09 Awards will be held at Wellington's Paramount Theatre Sunday, March 1. Doors open at 6pm, with the ceremony - and we use that term loosely in full Fringe fashion - kicking off at 6.45pm

Capping off a successful Fringe 09, which saw the largest line-up in many years with 108 participating productions, the celebration will award the best, brightest and most bizarre of Fringe 09 across 14 categories.

Additionally, three productions will be awarded the Pick of the Fringe. Following last year's successful initiative, Downstage Theatre will three gems amongst the delicious, different and downright deviant theatre shows for a return season at Downstage April 29 to May 7.

The entertainment line-up includes Australian multi-instrumentalist Adam Page, fresh from his hit Fringe 09 solo performance series, the winner of the Two Day Play competition, retro band The Flavour of Yesterday, and from the Berlin Bonanza Dota und die Stadt Piraten.

Hosts for the evening are comedians Derek Flores and Vinyl Burns. A closing night party will follow the awards at the Paramount's bar.

The award categories are:
• BEST DANCE (supported by Red Bull)
• BEST MUSIC (supported by Radio Active)
• BEST VISUAL ART (supported by French Art Shop)
• BEST OUTDOOR (supported by Henshaw Signs)
• BEST COMEDY (supported by Becks)
• BEST THEATRE (supported by Afid Mobile
• MARKETING AWARD (supported by Creature Design)
• BEST ‘ONE MAN BAND'/ SOLO SHOW (supported by Trade Me)
• BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN (supported by DPOD)
• MOST ORIGINAL CONCEPT (supported by Springload)
• WHERE DID YOU COME FROM? (Best Newcomers) (supported by Tranz Metro)
• STAND OUT PERFORMER
• OPEN STUDIOS AWARD - People's choice (supported by Resene)
• BEST OF FRINGE (supported by Supreme Coffee)