Nugget Fringe Festival holds a Gratitude Dinner

 Twice a year, the Nugget Fringe Theater Festival offers an eclectic mix of cutting-edge performances on multiple stages in Grass Valley. This past winter, there were 40 different Fringe shows and 120 live performances. 

On Saturday night, May 19, Nugget Fringe co-founders, Scott and Lois Ewing held a Gratitude Dinner for the top donors and key volunteers from the Fringe this past January. “We created the evening to be a culinary fringe event to illustrate and reinforce the value of the Nugget Fringe Festival,” said Scott Ewing.

The dinner was held in Nevada City in a venue that formerly was a beer vault from a neighboring 19th century brewery. Each attendee was fancily attired in black, white and gold. Many of the guests accessorized in splendid “fringiness” with offbeat hats, jewelry, feathers and chiffon. “We all got to play dress up!” remarked Nandi Szabo, Nugget Fringe merchandise manager.

The dining room, also decked in shimmering black, white and gold décor, set the perfect tone for the meal that was to follow. The jubilance in the room grew as nuggets of exotically prepared meats, cheeses, fish, veggies, fruits, and nuts began to arrive at the tables. Each dish bore the names of past Nugget Fringe show titles such as “Figmentally,” “Eclectigoria,” “Locally Conceived” and “Let’s Misbehave.” These exquisite delectables were as bold, flavorful, and varied as the theatre pieces that bore their names, making the evening a metaphor for the Fringe Festival itself.

Hosts Scott and Lois Ewing closed out the sparkling event by recognizing each and every attendee for the invaluable contributions made to the 2018 Winter Fringe. Each guest went home with a commemorative Nugget Fringe Theatre Festival cocktail glass and many fabulous memories.

Nandi Szabo aptly described the event as “an evening of fun, creative, cosmic, magical, and epicurean delights.” Fringe director Marion Jeffery commented that “It was an evening of wonderful conversation.”

Donors Corinne Gelfan and Jerry Grant were particularly elated by the event. “I really thought it was a very special, wonderful, engaging evening of giving thanks to people who put in eons of time in making the fringe run as smoothly as it did,” Corinne Gelfan said. “I felt special. It was ​a very clever idea.”

Scott Ewing concluded “It was an elegant and engaging event…Everyone had a fantastic time.” The evening also whet attendee appetites for the fringy seasons yet to come. The Summer Mini Nugget Fringe will return this year, July 27-29; and the 5th Annual Full Winter Nugget Fringe Theater Festival will take place next year, January 17-27. 

—Paul Micsan

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