Last year the Miami Performance International Festival surprised many when it drew upwards of a thousand visitors to avant performances scattered across South Beach and the Design District.

Some wondered if a stand-alone performance-based festival, scheduled during the steamy dog days of summer, would catch on with a public that might prefer hugging their air-conditioning units while watching LeBron James snag his first championship trophy.

Instead, Festival organizers discovered that local culture vultures would much rather risk another type of heat stroke while experiencing an artist's version of a culinary exorcism or another performer inviting them to grope the contents of a bra box strapped to her chest for a dollar.

See also:

- Eleven Animated GIFs from the Miami Performance International Festival (NSFW)

This year M/P '13 roars back to the 305 courtesy of the folks at Edge Zones and has been expanded to a month-long series of offerings concluding with an intense four-day performance blowout staged June 27 through 30 at several venues throughout the Big Mango, and, the best news is, that it's all free to the public.

The fest boasts video installations, music, poetry, and other nontraditional art forms by more than 40 local, national and international names from 17 countries ranging from Cuba to Poland and Panama to Italy.

It all kicks off Saturday, June 1, beginning at 7 p.m. at Edge Zones Projects (60 NE 39th Street, Miami). The opening event is "Antipodes: Reunite Me," a performance by the SMS Ensemble that navigates the space between the technological and natural worlds through movement and storytelling in a whimsical fashion.

For a full event schedule call 305-303-8852 or visit miamiperformancefestival.org.

Follow Cultist on Facebook and Twitter @CultistMiami.