PLAYBOT: Foolish Foreigner fights Fringe!
What a bonehead move: A bigass high-production jukebox musical is plopping into Edmonton to compete with the opening weekend of the biggest theatre festival in the Americas – and on the same weekend as the classic rock festival, too! What were they thinking?
Literally a jukebox musical called Jukebox Hero, based on the songs of Foreigner, plays Aug. 16-19 at the Jubilee Auditorium, just down the street from the Edmonton International Fringe Festival. So that’s four nights and a potential 10,000 bums not in Fringe seats. Or vice versa. Talk about diluting the market.
But NO! It turns out “they’re two different audiences,” according to one local arts marketing guru. Sure, there’s some crossover, but for the most part, many Fringe-goers wouldn’t be caught dead at a bigass high-production jukebox musical based on the songs of Foreigner; and fans of such entertainments might not even have the Fringe on their radar. As for Rockfest, unless Foreigner was actually playing (they’re not), it probably won’t impact Jukebox Hero (or the Fringe, for that matter ) one little bit. Makes you think how diverse this thing called “theatre” is.
Of course this is the perfect opportunity for Fringe artists to bridge some gaps. In addition to handing out flyers at the Fringe, they should hump down to the Jube and promote their plays to the musical theatre and/or Foreigner fans in the lobby – who might exclaim, “Zounds, Mildred, what is this ‘Fringe’ of which this jester speaks? Let us partake of it!”
Rob Gee in ‘Death – a Romantic Comedy’
Familiar Fine Fringe Friends
There’s a cruel Catch-22 of the Fringe: The best-known names will usually – generally – deliver the best experiences. Conversely, the best-known names can sell out their plays, so you won’t get to experience them. Or you might get lucky. Here are a few familiar names that are hard to go wrong with. Get your tickets while you can!
Rig Pig Fantasia (Stage 1) – It’s from the dependable Wishbone Theatre; and Michael Peng, who was so good in Bashir Lazhar, is in this pungently Alberta play, which tackles large topics over a backdrop of gritty oil workin’ man drama.
Red Shirt Diaries (Stage 2) – Rapid Fire Theatre is like the Second City of Edmonton, usually turning out top-notch comic actors – in this case taking a poke at Star Trek. RFT are doing several Fringe shows this year.
Daddy’s Boy (Stage 3) – Seems like South African storyteller Erik de Waal has been here every year since the Fringe started. He must be doing something right – thriving in that fertile netherworld betwixt stand-up comedy and spoken word.
Martin Dockery: Delerium (Stage 3) – This guy’s been here a lot, too, a riveting raconteur who adds a dash of confessional monologue to the stand-up-spoken-word mix.
Amber Nash (left) stars in ‘Big Ol Show’ – Civil War sketch comedy!
Death – A Romantic Comedy (Stage 5) – The brilliant Brit Rob Gee is an actual psychiatric nurse during the off-season. His latest show in Edmonton deals with love and death, and that pretty much covers it.
WASP (Stage 5) – Steve Martin is the playwright here – yes, that Steve Martin, who was just in Edmonton trading insults with Martin Short. This play seems to be a poke at the “American dream.”
Big Ol’ Show (Stage 11) – Amber Nash – the voice of Pam on Archer – stars in this sketch comedy revue set in Civil War America.
A Lesson in Brio (Stage 12) – From within their BYOV-fiefdom in the heart of the Fringe grounds, Teatro La Quindicina is premiering another new Stewart Lemoine play – and it appears to be a “period piece.” Any of the Fringe shows scheduled at the Varscona Theatre are a good bet this year. Also noteworthy is a new work from Guys in Disguise, Don’t Frown at the Gown.
Jem Rolls: I, Idiot (Stage 13) – Another brilliant Brit who’s at the Edmonton Fringe a lot – noted for his captivating “performance poetry.”
Mark Meer (left to right, all him) in ‘One Man Walking Dead’
2 Sherlock Holmes Mysteries (Stage 14) – Kenneth Brown and John D. Huston have been making theatre in Edmonton since it was just wood and nails. Here they play all the characters in a pair of classic mystery tales.
ThunderCunt (Stage 19) – Sharon Mahoney is no stranger to the Fringe, both on the inside stages and outdoors, often sharing her feelings and airing personal issues in confessional monologues. This one sounds like a doozy.
One Man Walking Dead (Stage 22) – If you crunched the numbers, you would probably find that the formidable comic talent Mark Meer has done more Fringe shows than ANYONE. Here (among several productions he’s in this year), he attempts to render the popular zombie TV series all by himself.
The Flight of Puppets (Stage 22) – It’s not so much the name as where the Sun Theatre Group is from – Tehran, Iran, a long way from home. There is a briefly compelling blurb in the Fringe program: “This show is about religion and freedom.”
Fetch (Stage 28) – Playwright Cat Walsh, with her surreal sci-fi style we experienced in a couple of spooky plays last season, also stars in her new play – which deals with a mixed-up little girl and a toy dog that talks. Creepy!
Mike & Chantelle Delamont: Maybe Baby – (Stage 36) – From playing God to the devil to a soon-to-be-dad in this play about impending parenthood, Victoria’s Mike Delamont is always a delight – also working hard in his other hit show, An All New God is a Scottish Drag Queen (Stage 22), and with Wes Borg in The War of 1812 (Stage 37).
One Man Stranger Things (Stage 37) – This trend of comically trying to render an entire movie or TV series with one actor is getting out of hand – but few do it better than Charles Ross, whose One Man Lord of the Rings (also on Stage 37) is a riot. He will also be doing One Man Pride and Prejudice (Stage 16). One Man Triple Threat Prize!
