The official show image for Kind Fool Theater’s production of Witness Loudly by Kyle B. Dekker, which runs from August 7-16 at Strike Theater in Northeast Minneapolis as part of the 2026 Minnesota Fringe Festival.

Critiquing recent and contemporary events is a hallowed tradition in the arts, ranging from epic poetry to paintings, film, and theatre. One such work at this year’s Minnesota Fringe Festival is Witness Loudly by Kyle B. Dekker, an artistic response to the Operation Metro Surge that sent 4,000 federal agents to Minnesota for an immigration crackdown whose least impacts have been estimated at $700 million in economic damage, alongside still-unfolding human and legal consequences.

The Arts Reader’s Basil Considine sat down with Dekker to discuss this show and Fringe festivals’ impact on his artistic oeuvre.

Official Show Description

Operation Metro Surge pitted armed ICE agents against the residents of Minnesota. Kyle B. Dekker recreates a live rapid response call on stage based on his own experiences as a constitutional observer.

What are some of the things that you do as an artist?

I am a playwright, storyteller, actor, director, play producer, part-time filmmaker, prop builder, and jack-of-all-trades indy theater maker. I also do a little film photography on the side for fun.

How did you first engage with the Minnesota Fringe Festival, and how has that changed over the years?

I produced my first show, a sketch comedy, for the Minnesota Fringe in 2014 after getting in last minute off the waitlist. [Since then,] I’ve become much more confident as a theater maker; Fringe enabled me to grow as an artist. I’ve now created three solo shows and toured them around the country at several different Fringe Festivals.

Minnesota Fringe 2026 will be my 15th Fringe Festival overall. I still produce, but I’ve focused more on telling personal stories on stage rather than the broader comedies I started doing years ago. I will always have comedic elements in my show, but I’m always challenging myself to grow by trying new genres and styles each year. Fringe is the perfect place to do that.

What’s a favorite piece of non-Fringe theater that you experienced in the last year, and why?

Walking Shadow put out an original show, Mae West and the Trial of Sex, that was just fantastic. A wonderful blend of history, social commentary, and acting exhibition that will stick with me for a long time. Plus, it was a world debut piece, which is something I seek out and love.

What is your role in bringing this show to the stage?

This is a deeply personal show about my own experiences as a constitutional observer during Operation Metro Surge. It’s an opportunity to tell my story and the story of my neighbors.

This is my first fully solo project. Every element of the show is me: writing, graphic design, marketing, sound design, and performance are all handled by me. It’s such a deeply personal tale; I needed to be fully hands on in this production.

What kinds of things will the audience experience at your show?

The audience will experience a multimedia storytelling play complete with actual video footage from my phone and dash cams and recreations of Rapid Response calls with the help of local voice actors. They will experience moments of terror and loss as I try to recreate the intensity and danger of ICE in Minnesota, but they will also experience hope and determination in tales about community and cooperation.

The general aesthetic is bare bones storytelling with art from local artists on display.

What’s a favorite moment in this show, and why?

There’s a sequence where I recreate a Rapid Response call of a very intense moment I experienced that always chokes me up, but it has a great emotional connection to the text and audience that I adore (this show just completed a run at the Green Bay Fringe Festival July 17th-19th).

What are two other Fringe shows that you are interested in seeing, and why?

1) Too Fat to Run by Eileen Tull. I saw this at the 2024 Elgin Fringe in its early run, and I’m excited to see it again after Eileen – a very talented performer – has had more years and performances to make it shine even brighter.

• Read the Arts Reader’s preview of Too Fat to Run.

2) Fighting Unicorns by Angela Fox. I saw a table read of the script last fall and fell in love with the story. I can’t wait to see it in its full glory with a full cast and puppets!

What’s up next for you, creatively speaking?

I will be on stage as an actor with Rogues Gallery Arts in their Twin Cities Horror Festival premiere of Augmentation.

I also write weekly non-fiction essays on my Substack that are free for all to enjoy.

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Basil Considine

Basil Considine was the Editor of the Twin Cities Arts Reader from 2018-2022. He served as Performing Arts Editor and Senior Classical Music and Drama Critic for the Arts Reader's first five years, before succeeding Hanne Appelbaum. He was previously the Resident Classical Music and Drama Critic at the Twin Cities Daily Planet and remains an occasional contributing writer for The Boston Musical Intelligencer and The Chattanoogan. He holds a PhD in Music and Drama from Boston University, an MTS in Sacred Music from the BU School of Theology, and a BA in Music and Theatre from the University of San Diego.

Basil was named one of Musical America's 30 Professionals of the Year in 2017. He was previously the Regional Governor for the National Opera Association's North Central Region and the 2021-2022 U.S. Fulbright Faculty Scholar to Madagascar.

Latest posts by Basil Considine (see all)

• FRINGE FILE #7: INTERVIEW – Multidisciplinary Theatremaker Kyle Dekker and Witness Loudly - July 25, 2026
• FRINGE FILE #6: INTERVIEW – Actor Robin Carlisle on A Real Piece of Work and Falling Into Fringe - July 24, 2026
• FRINGE FILE #5: INTERVIEW – Ariel Pinkerton, Mermaids, and The Importance of Living - July 21, 2026