Ever hear the one about the bartender who wanted to be an actor… In what BourbonBlog calls “a first-of-its-kind production,” Anthony Caporale, co-founder of Broadway Theatre Studio, proudly presents THE IMBIBLE: A SPIRITED HISTORY OF DRINKING as part of the 18th annual New York International Fringe Festival – FringeNYC.

The drinks are on the house as you join world-renowned mixologist and raconteur Anthony Caporale for a boozy romp through the history of spirits and cocktails as he tells the story of spirits and cocktails from 10,000 BC to present-day, accompanied by The Backwaiters acappella group, comedy sketches, costume changes, and even on-stage demonstrations of fermentation and distillation. After seeing the preview performance of The Imbible at this year’s Manhattan Cocktail Classic, The Huffington Post declared the show “an absolute must-see!”

You must see how Anthony Caporale figured out how to bartend while he’s acting. He says, “We’ve been working on a one-man show that tells the story of spirits and cocktails from about 10,000 BC to present day. I’m fairly sure no one in the beverage industry has done this before in a stage play format, and I think it will give us an entirely new way to engage consumers.”

He continues, “If you’ve ever seen Robert Wuhl’s Assume The Position or Colin Quinn’s Long Story Short, you’ll have some idea of what I’ll be doing, though I’ve added live demonstrations of things like fermentation and distillation, lots of comedy, and even a barbershop quartet to provide musical transitions as the story moves across the centuries. Just to really put it over the top, I’ll also be serving drinks to the audience throughout the show! The whole point of the show is to help audiences appreciate spirits for their cultural and historical significance, as opposed to viewing them primarily as intoxicants or as part of a rite of passage. In short, we’re encouraging responsible consumption and promoting the beverage industry in the most positive light.”

The Imbible will run from August 8th through the 23rd at The New York International Fringe Festival (www.fringenyc.org), North America’s largest multi-arts festival that hosts over 70,000 attendees and is the birthplace of many New York theater hits. The audience will be treated to several of Caporale’s famous craft cocktails during the performance, including a classic Old Fashioned and the cleverly named Rusty Ale. By the end of the show, they just might be singing along with the cast! Drinks are included with the price of a ticket at all performances.

Broadway Theatre Studio (www.broadwaytheatrestudio.com) was founded by Caporale and DiMattei in 2009 as a development workshop and incubator for new American plays and musicals. Hundreds of actors have attended BTS workshops since its inception, and the company has collaborated with some of the best writing talent in New York. Past projects have included renowned playwright Jack Feldstein’s new comedy The Ansonia and award-winning playwright/composer Zoe Sarnak’s original musical The Quad. Last season, BTS produced original works in both the Manhattan Repertory Theatre One-Act Play Competition and the Strawberry One-Act Festival, advancing to the finals in the latter while earning DiMattei a Best Actress nomination along the way.