Arts.Advocacy+Wellness: "National Public Radio (NPR) features FlagBoy"

NPR - Life on The Fringes: Performers In The First Person
featuring Cornelius Jones Jr. and FlagBoy

Last month I performed FlagBoy at DC's Capital Fringe Festival, not knowing who would show up I had an awesome turnout. Self-producing any show can be a bit of a challenge, especially when your producing efforts are over 200 miles away from the actual venue. However, the power of the internet and word of mouth can go a long way.

DC's Fringe Festival producers were truly amazing to me. I was offered numerous press opportunities with Washington City Paper, On Tap Magazine, The Washington Blade, DC Theater Scene, and National Public Radio (NPR). Yes NPR!!!! FlagBoy made NPR. A lil black gay boy from the south sharing his story with NPR. Truly a huge milestone in my career...heck, my life!

Nervous? Of course! When I received the phone call from Trey Graham of NPR, a cyclone of perspiration flooded the white t-shirt I had on at that moment. Trey told me that he was doing a story on how solo-peformers manage to make a living by working the Fringe Festival circuit across the US. Taken aback by this, because FlagBoy is a little over a year old in the touring market. For a second, I thought...you want FlagBoy??? Then as we sat and discussed FlagBoy's journey over the past year, I realized that FlagBoy has had quite a run and quite a fringe journey. Although, technically, Capital Fringe was FlagBoy's first official Fringe Festival, it has played numerous Fringe-like Festivals such as The Midtown International Theater Festival, The Left Out Festival, and one-night ventures at small venues in NYC, Delaware, and Connecticut, which makes it all a fringe!

Thank you Trey and NPR for including my story.
I invite you guys over to NPR's website to watch the audio/visual slideshow:









http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=111812501&sc=emaf



Life on The Fringes: Performers In The First Person

Life On The Fringes: Performers In The First Person

featuring
Kevin Thornton - Sex, Dreams, and Self-Control
Cornelius Jones Jr. - FlagBoy
Ed Hammel - The Terrorism of Everday Life

Some solo performers manage to make a living by working a Fringe Festival circuit that spans North America, from Orlando, Fla., to Vancouver, British Columbia. NPR stopped by the Capital Fringe Festival and asked three artists to introduce themselves.

Credit: Georgia Rhodes (performer portraits), Felix Contreras (audio) and Trey Graham (slideshow production), NPR. Additional photos from Capital Fringe: Paul Gillis, Brian Flores.