Hot Job
and humiliation

Winners and losers at Fringe ’02

by AMY BARRATT

Here in Quebec, we’ve grown almost resigned to having those butt-inskys from Ottawa screwing up our good times. But wouldn’t you think they could leave our harmless little Fringe Festival in peace? No such luck.

Half of the winners and runners-up at last Sunday’s Frankie awards were not present to pick up their prizes. Why? Time and time again during the ceremony, “Gone to Ottawa!” came the cry. See, the “nation’s capital’s” own Fringe began last weekend, thus stealing away half of the companies before they even got a chance to party. And this during our Fête Nationale. Quelle humiliation.

Ironically, we can at least brag that we saw The Canada Show first. That hilarious condensed history of Canada, created by three guys from Calgary of all places, was already on the road when it was announced as winner of the Just for Laughs Best Comedy award. That means they’ll be back in a couple of weeks (July 16–21) as part of JFL’s On the Edge series. Ticket prices there are a little steeper than at the Fringe but this trio—a blond, a brunette and a redhead—are worth it.

One way or another, it looks like we’ll also have another chance to catch Job: The HipHop Musical, which overall was the most impressive of about 15 shows I saw at this Fringe. At least a runner-up in every category it was eligible for, this show was the outright winner in one: Best Text, sponsored by Chapters bookstore. I can’t wait to see how they manage the “public reading” that is part of the prize. A straight reading of the rap lyrics would be a scream, but I can’t see the astonishing duo of Eli Batalion and Jerome Saibil giving anything less than a full performance complete with sweat and headsets. Possibly a first for Chapters.

For a minute there it looked as if Job would also be the recipient of the Centaur Showcase award. That’s because the winner, The Elephant Club, comes from Melbourne, Australia. Reached on her way to New York on Monday, Nicola Gunn, the one-woman wonder behind this show about the rich fantasy life of an office worker, confirmed that she will be able to come back in October for the five-night run at Centaur. She’s travelling around North America in the meantime with the Sabotage III guys, one of whom is her squeeze.

A couple of my own awards:
* Worst artistic decision of the Fringe: local company Street Scene productions changing the title of its show from the intriguing A Day in the Life of Ernest Frogwahler to the bland, forgettable Mortal Escape.
* Pleasantest discovery of the Fringe: jazz fans in the city are already familiar with the vocal stylings of John Labelle, but his appearance in Molly’s Follies was my introduction to this incredible talent. In phrasing and vocal quality he sounds like a young Frank, and not only does he cover old standards but he writes his own songs too—new standards, you might call them. He performs weekly at Kaizan and Modavie restaurants and has a new CD, Too Close for Comfort, coming out this summer. :

The Canada Show, July 16–21 at Centaur Theatre, various times. Box office 288-3161.
The Elephant Club, October 1–5 at Centaur Theatre. Tickets go on sale in the fall