It’s BFF 24 in 25, the 9th Annual BFF Binge Fringe Festival of FREE Theatre, Feb 25 - April 4, the only FREE Fringe Festival in the nation, offering 30 plays, workshops and family-oriented events. Tonight:

Twenty years before Shakespeare's play takes place, King Lear meets the midwife who delivered his daughter Cordelia, and finds out his young wife has died in childbirth. This is a prequel to Shakespeare's Lear. A first-look reading of Tony Cronin’s play.

Santa Monica-based writer, director, performer and musician Tony Cronin is known not only for his direction and performances with Theatre For a Small Space, his recent acclaimed production of Krapp’s Last Tape, and countless film, television and stage productions, but also as an authority on the Bard. His play, Spirit of the Dane has been produced worldwide, including the Edinburgh Festival and at Santa Monica Playhouse last year.

The BFF celebrates the range and depth of the human condition and the idea that theatre arts experiences are vital, transformative, and must be available for all. Special thanks to generous grants from the We Are Santa Monica Fund, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors through the Los Angeles County Department of Arts and Culture, the City of Santa Monica and the Santa Monica Arts Commission, and Playhouse PALS.

FREE as part of the BFF Binge Fringe Festival of Free Theatre. Rated: 16+