The Fresh Fruit Festival is a publicly supported, New York summer arts festival presented by All Out Arts, and featuring the work of LGBTQ artists as the primary expression of the All Out Arts mission of "Fighting prejudice and homophobia through the arts." It presents a multi-week main-stage presentation every July, and ancillary events year-round.
History
The Festival was founded by Carol Polcovar in 2002 as a merger of New Village Playwrights and New Village Productions reacted to a current reluctance on the part of major venues to present a truly representative array of LGBT arts. Originally sponsored by All Out Arts, Inc., a 501 NY State non-profit since 1991, it shortly became a fully owned D.B.A. of All Out Arts. The Festival includes a wide range of plays, visual arts, dance, and film presentations. Along with the Hot! Festival, it is among the most prominent LGBT-themed festivals in the New York artistic community. Carol Polcovar served as Founding Artistic Director of the festival for its first decade, and upon retirement in 2013 accepted an "Outstanding Achievement" Award for the Fresh Fruit Festival's mission from the Manhattan Borough President's Office.
Ancillary programs
The Festival presented the first of several "OUTmusic" programs in New York City, consisting entirely of vocalists, musicians, and composers who were Lesbian, Gay, Bi, or Transgendered. As Outmusic became an organization, All Out Arts served as their fiscal conduit and aided their becoming a unique organization. Outmusic is now a national foundation, sponsoring National Outmusic Awards since 2001. In 2006 the Festival presented the first event solely dedicated to and entirely by LGBT Native Americans. Native American elder Kent Lebsock presided over the opening convocation, and the event included members of the Cherokee, Mohawk, Chikasaw, Navajo, Creek, Lakota, Kumeyaay and Cree tribes. The Festival produces an annual winter OUT-wright Program, which facilitates developmental readings by LGBT authors, underwriting the expense of such events, as well as presenting lecture-demonstrations and public panels featuring published LGBT authors and poets.
