by AMY BARRATT

The Montreal Fringe has been getting so good the last few years, it’s easy to forget its humble beginnings. In the early ’90s, the festival was small and, mostly, quite terrible. It’s the fact that there’s no screening process that makes the Fringe special: anyone from rank amateur to polished professional can get in, and they do. So far this year, the shows I’ve seen reflect that democratic process at work.

Tyrannos Rex

Nicola Gunn won the Centaur "Showcase" Award last year for her one-woman show The Elephant Club. The slight Australian lass returns this year with another tour-de-force titled Tyrannous Rex. She’s brilliant. Using only voice and body language, she portrays half-a-dozen distinct characters in the surrealistic tale of an aristocratic English couple, Rex and Celia, the Gypsy girl, Irma, who invades their life and, uhh, a talking black leopard. It’s weird stuff, but mesmerizing. Venue 3, Geordie Space.

Molière Than Thou

Also alone on stage is Tim Mooney in Molière Than Thou. Mooney is clearly enraptured by the great French playwright, as evidenced by the fact that he has translated/adapted 15 of them. The program says that "Molière Than Thou was born of the need to promote these works," and that’s what it feels like. Mooney appears as Molière, who goes on to perform six monologues and one dialogue from his catalogue of plays. If Mooney’s delivery is a little more sing-song-y than I would like, the translations are wonderful. Though it doesn’t bear up as an independent play, Molière Than Thou is well worth seeing both for those familiar with the work and those looking for an accessible introduction. Venue 6, Infinit Bath.

One-Man Hamlet

Sooner or later, somebody had to try it: One-Man Hamlet is Clayton Jevne’s solo take on the most famous play in the English language. The impression it leaves is that a) Jevne couldn’t afford to pay other actors and so is doing without them and b) that he never got to play Hamlet 20 years ago and so is taking a crack at it now. Frankly, he’s most convincing as Polonius and just plain scary as Ophelia. Self-indulgent. Venue 7, Portuguese Association.

Hamlet

The Hamlet to see this Fringe is the four-actor, one-musician version playing at the MAI. Unlike the One-Man Hamlet, this production’s minimalism looks like an artistic choice rather than a financial necessity. It cuts the story back to the bare bones but is visually interesting, even for those not very familiar with Shakespeare’s text. Venue 1, MAI.

Isla Xooxiimictlan: An Aztec Fantasy

This play by local company The Acting Project, reminded me of the bad old days. Unlike their entry last year, Ricardo Jamon: Master Mentalist, Isla is no fun. It can’t decide whether it’s a comedy or a pretentious art piece. Either way, it is badly acted (and badly sung), and paced for dead people. Venue 7, Portuguese Association.

Job II: The Demon of the Eternal Recurrence

Pacing is not a problem for the duo of Batalion and Saibil in Job II. If you saw Job, the Hip-Hop Musical last year, come back this year for the second act. The show reprises many of the same characters as well as the pair’s flair for rhyme, rhythm and reading. Not content with reinterpreting the Bible, this time they also introduce the ideas of Nietzsche. It’s more accessible than it sounds. The guys need to do something about the ending though - not the way it’s written, but the way it’s staged. Venue 6, Infinit Bath.

On the fringe periphery

• The Roy Street Collective (111 Roy E.) is presenting an "Off-Fringe" production called Eliot and the Dark. It runs June 19–22 at 8 p.m. with a Sunday matinée at 2 p.m., $5/$7, 284-5211.

• Also, for the brave of heart, Optative Theatrical Laboratories, producers of the infamous Car Stories at the 2001 Fringe, as part of its "Reclaim the Fringe" campaign is presenting a new version of Car Stories every evening throughout the festival. To be one of three spectators at a time packed into the back seat of a car, call 921-2850 to book tickets and learn the location of the show.

• Local sketch comedy troupe Chicks With Tricks is donating the net proceeds from their Fringe run to the Breast Cancer Society of Canada, so check them out.

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