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Life after Fringe >> Shows we'll see again and others we'd like to
by AMY BARRATT Despite record ticket and beer sales, there were few shows to get really excited about at this year's Fringe. Two notable exceptions (artistically, if not financially) were Mask On and Josephine * Bonaparte.
William Young's Josephine--briefly reviewed last week--was so un-Fringe that it was Fringe: a period love story in 19th-century dress performed in a stinking hot fourth floor dance studio converted into a cabaret. Young, who is currently--though not necessarily permanently--based in Toronto, plans to do some rewrites, possibly expanding the work to a full-length play with a view to doing another production (not necessarily starring himself) in Cabbagetown. Both shows mentioned above were performed in Venue 4, Le Building Danse on St-Laurent near Rachel, which wins the prize for worst venue/best shows. I saw Chasing the Janitor Upstairs (Bards of Blabbermouth) there on the last day and found the blend of storytelling, cool music and sketch comedy thoroughly enchanting. If the pacing seemed off during that performance, it could very well be that the performers were trying hard not to pass out from the heat. I was lightheaded just sitting in the audience, so I can only imagine how they felt under the lights. By the way, the two amazing bluesmen from that show, Thomas Hellman and Olaf Gundel, can be seen performing at Café Sarajevo every Tuesday night.
Winner's circle It's no surprise that Rick Miller's Slightly Bent won the Just for Laughs award for Best Comedy. JFL was looking for something edgy and original to include in its "Fringe" series, but they require a high level of professionalism, something not found in abundance at the Fringe. The JFL shortlist for the comedy award included Last Will and Teste (solid sketch comedy, but maybe not different enough); Call Me (very funny but also a real play with plot and characters--not necessarily what the comedy festival wants); Everybody's F#!&ing But Me (polished, but not screamingly funny); and Carl Rosensweig, How Was Your Vasectomy? (Catskills material from the slacker generation. These kids may have a great career ahead of them, but it ain't going to come that easy.) Slightly Bent will have three shows at Just for Laughs, July 22, 23 and 25. In a pleasant change from last year, both the Centaur and Just for Laughs awards went to local companies. Last year, the comedy festival chose New Yorker Susan Jeremy's Was That My 15 Minutes? and the Centaur People's Choice Award went to Stay Black and Die, from Anchorage, Alaska. This year's Centaur award (based on audience votes) went to Elan Zafir's Leaf in the Mailbox. At least I'll get to see the beginning that I missed (and find out whether the plot makes sense) when the show plays the Centaur theatre September 1519. The Chapters bookstore Best Text award went to Keir Cutler for Teaching Shakespeare, an almost too-real send up of English profs. Final Fringe thoughts * love@last.com, initially not well received, apparently underwent major renovations in the course of the festival, particularly in terms of staging. Sarah Carlsen of FEAST productions hopes to remount her one-woman show in the not-too-distant future. With some rewrites and a new director, this tale of computer love could yet be a winner. * Only show I walked out of: Periostracum. Ordinarily, I try not to overhear boring conversations in bars. Maybe it got interesting later but I think, by 45 minutes in, something should have happened. * Swing band Kamikaze Mustang (average age 12?) rocked the neighbourhood inside out, getting Fringers from three to (at least) 63 up dancing. * The best thing about the Fringe is all the new scripts. Good or bad, they are a sign of incredible vitality in our theatre community. |
Created and performed by four young women who studied theatre together at John Abbott, Mask On consisted of four interwoven monologues. With distinct physical and vocal mannerisms inspired by their homemade masks, the four created funny and poignant portraits of a milquetoast tenant (Amy Sobol), an insecure wife pining for her absent husband (Kori Gulotta), an earthy girl whose boyfriend wants to make her over as a debutante (Holly O'Brien) and a desperate street performer (Anana Rydvald). The company, called Random Acts of Comedy, has no immediate plans for a remount, but I'll be keeping my eyes open for these talented women, individually or as a group.