FRINGE: 4 plays about SEX
It used to be that a guy could grab a brewski and check out some gratuitous female nudity at the Fringe festival – and not have to think about what it meant. Not so much anymore. Times have changed. For the better! From harbouring “shameful” secrets, we are in a modern age of lively and […]
FRINGE: 3 hilarious COMEDIES
The program notes for Blarney Productions’ Tragedy: A Tragedy (Stage 3) suggest a take on how a modern TV news organizations might report on the end of the world. It quickly becomes apparent that it’s not really the end of the world at all – just the usual coming of night. As a reporter observes, […]
FRINGE: 2 plays from UNEXPECTED artists
Walk (Stage 17) is unexpected because it is a new method of expression from one of Edmonton’s best writers – the Edmonton Journal’s Liane Faulder, and this is her stage version of a true story. The results demonstrate that she is a promising playwright. About 10 years ago the columnist wrote a book, The Long […]
FRINGE: 2 great STORYTELLING shows
AWKWARD HUG (Stage 11) is the perfect show to see if your family was a little weird, and you always felt a little out of place. Actor and playwright Cory Thibert takes you back in time to 2009 when he was just 19 years old. His story recounts his family’s move from their old house […]
FRINGE 5 out of 5: Xanadu a spirited send-up on wheels!
Xanadu: The Musical – at the Edmonton Fringe on Stage 25 (Strathcona High School) – was a daring Broadway experiment. The original reference is to a favourite Victorian poem. The verse inspired a 1947 Rita Hayworth movie, Down To Earth. The story is about a gorgeous Greek Muse who descended from Mount Olympus to thwart […]
FRINGE: You can’t HANDEL this brilliant musical!
You may have seen a touching coming-out-of-the-closet tale at the Fringe – but never one like this. And you may have seen a Broadway show tune revue – but never one like this. Elegantly combined in Handel: The Musical! (Stage 16), the result is sublime. George Frederick Handel is arguably the most popular composer who […]
FRINGE REVIEWS: 4 plays about DEATH
British performer Rob Gee was plagued with problems on the opening night of his new Fringe show, Death – A Romantic Comedy (on Stage 5). First there was an unfortunately-timed fire alarm, delaying the opening by precious minutes. He also told us that some git had nicked his pants – so he had to perform […]
FRINGE 5 out of 5: Scorch an enthralling revelation
Scorch (Stage 28) is based on the true story of the British schoolgirl who was found guilty of posing as a Goth boy to get another teenage girl into bed. She was charged and went to prison. This event, chronicled in Britain but largely unknown here, is the obvious basis for this play – but […]
FRINGE: 2 ‘One Man’ parodies
When faced with the rash of “one man” plays at this year’s Fringe – that is, single actors attempting to render an entire popular movie or TV series in a comedic manner – a nagging question comes up: Do you have to be a diehard fan of the original material to fully appreciate its lampoon? […]
REVIEW: 2 more MASTERS of the Fringe
Bright Young Things don’t mind taking on the big ones. The company has given us, and received much audience (and Sterling Award) love for previous productions such as Sartre’s No Exit and Rattigan’s Deep Blue Sea. Their current Fringe production is Tom Stoppard’s minor theatrical masterpiece, the confounding The Real Inspector Hound (Stage 12). Two […]
Actor literally breaks leg, has to cancel Fringe show
It’s all fun and games to say “break a leg” to an actor – until he actually breaks his leg. It happened to Reed McColm, who was to star in the one-man Glen Berger play Underneath the Lintel at Stage 14 – but it has been cancelled in the wake of his injury. “Break a […]
REVIEW: 2 MASTERS of the Fringe
Don’t Frown at the Gown (Stage 12) comes from those long-time Fringe Masters Darrin Hagen and Trevor Schmidt under the production umbrella of Guys in Disguise. The duo, who write and perform their own stuff, have long since broken out of the gay ghetto (although their orientation is obvious and celebrated), with shows like Flora […]
