Audience Picks at the 2012 Minnesota Fringe Festival

The top selling shows for each Fringe venue will have an encore performance at 8:30 P.M. tonight.  Here is link to purchase tickets in advance: http://www.fringefestival.org/2012/picks/.  Here are some suggestions:

Ash Land, by Transatlantic Love Affair, earned the 8:30 encore at the Rarig Thrust.  We saw the show on Friday night.  (By the way, five stars to the Fringe staff and volunteers managing the enormous Rarig complex).  Conceived and directed by Diogo Lopes, the ensemble creates a potent piece of storytelling using only their bodies and voices, with Harper Zwicky on slide guitar.  They become the mature wheat gently blowing in the field, the pigs in the pen, and the creaky kitchen door.   Every heightened theatrical movement is  evocative, but the execution is so seamless that it never feels gimmicky.  This is a bold, beautiful piece of theater.

Photo by Jeff Larson


The Gentlemen's Pratfall Club is the 8:30 encore at the Southern.  Here is my previous blog post.

Fruit Fly: The Musical is the 8:30 encore at the Rarig Arena.  This delightful all new mini-musical has been selling out the Arena.  I'm excited that more people will have the chance to see it.  A gay guy (a fruit) and a straight girl (a fly) meet-cute, sing, dance, and grow up in the happiest show in the fringe.  There are growing pains, but their friendship always prevails.  The dynamic duo of Max Wojtanowicz and Sheena Janson are top-notch singers-actors, and Michael Gruber's score lets them shine.  Nikki Swoboda's deft direction makes the implausibility of cabaret-in-the-round a feature, not a bug. 

Portrait of the Artist as a Yo-yo Man is the 8:30 encore at the Rarig Experimental.  Here is my blog post.

Curt and Laura Used to Be Good at Gymnastics and Stuff is the 8:30 encore at the Gremlin.  If you want to cap off your Fringe Festival/Summer Olympic marathon laughing your ass off, this is the show to see.  Rockstar Storytellers Laura Bidgood and Curt Lund take turns recounting the horrors of gym class with humor and honesty.

Family Fringe at the 2012 Minnesota Fringe Festival

As the Fringe gears up for a huge closing weekend, here are some suggestions for choosing family shows.  The official website has audience reviews that can be very helpful while choosing for kids.  These reviews have become part of the Minnesota Fringe culture; they give everyone a chance to participate.  Once you wade through reviews by clearly written by relatives, you can get a feel for what to expect. 

I am not a fan of ranking fringe shows with stars or kitties or thumbs up, although I am occasionally guilty of using the term  "must-see".  The fringe needs to remain a place where artists can take big risks.  It's a conundrum for me as a blogger.  I'll tell you if I don't like something-and I'll tell you why. I have definite turn-offs (theater as therapy comes to mind as well as singers who don't even try to sing in tune.)  But the fringe needs to remain a place where artists can take big risks.  It subverts the spirit of the Fringe when a major newspaper divides shows into the categories of "worth considering", "could be worse" and "avoid like the plague".

But I digress.  I haven't seen any shows this year that are appropriate for tots.  Please leave a comment below if you have seen one.  The Gentlemen's Pratfall Club comes close-but only if your child grasps the concept of DO NOT TRY THIS AT HOME.  It is a great year for teen shows, with Analyzing the Bully, Class of '98 and Rip being my (wait for it.....) "must-sees".



So here are some suggestions:

Ages 5 and up:
Hans the Obscure I loved this sweet, subversive little show.  I hope to get a blog post up tomorrow.
The Gentleman's Pratfall Club (with reservations, see above)

Ages 10 and up:
 Portrait of the Artist as a Yo-yo Man
Mime Without A Mask (We haven't seen this one yet.  But we never miss a Kirsten Stephens and Dean Hatton show.)

Ages 13 and up:
Analyzing the Bully
Class of '98 A witty twist on Back to the Future with some skilled teen actors.  Funny from beginning to end. 
Pop-up Musical Great for the young musical theater fan. 
Rip A new twist on Rip Van Winkle story with a rock/ bluegrass score. 
The Hungry Games: Mocking the Mockingjay Tom Reed gives the Hunger Games a comic twist.  FYI-there's quite a bit of profanity

These are my picks for young people.  But you never know what might strike a chord.  My 14 year old son thoroughly enjoyed Ivory Tower Burning, which was a dialogue about sociology. No time travel, aliens, or swordfighting. 

Portrait of the Artist as a Yo-yo Man

Portrait of the Artist as a Yo-yo Man is a delightful show with yo-yos, paddle balls, folding chairs, and paper moving.  Paper moving?  Yes, paper moving.  Paper moving is awesome.  The stunts are amazing, but what makes this show a must-see is the storytelling.  Yo-yo Man David Harris wizard tells a sweet coming of age story that gives hope to nerds everywhere.   It's classic Minnesota Fringe.  Part vaudeville, part spoken-word, part-stand up, and near impossible to describe. 

Harris' sideman, 15 year-old drummer Sam Mistral, is quite the comedian himself.  The artist's page recommends this show for ages 16 and up, but I would feel very comfortable bringing an 11 or 12 year old.  Both the Saturday and Monday shows sold out the tiny Rarig Xperimental Theatre, so I would recommend reserving your tickets.

I Didn't Read the Fine Print at the Minnesota Fringe Festival

Saturday night we rearranged our Fringe schedule because of the Uptown Art Fair traffic.  We had selected a show at the Brave New Workshop Student Union.  We decided to head to the Theatre Garage early and see whatever was playing before our next scheduled show. We ended up seeing first time playwright and director Wendy Russ Robson's show I Didn't Read the Fine Print.

I Didn't Read the Fine Print is a charming play about Sasha (Melinda Kordich), a vintage clothing shop owner who tries to save her struggling boutique with the help of a mysterious businessman (Bill Collins) promoting a very unconventional sales strategy.  Kordich and Collins have a very easy chemistry.  Veronica Hanson as Zoe, the neighborhood girl gives an adorable performance as Sasha's sidekick.  The cozy set and colorful clothing add to the intimate feeling of the play.  At times, the play could use a little more drama.  But this is one of those fun little shows that embody the spirit of the Fringe Festival.

 The show is recommended for ages 12 and up.

Cecily and Gwendolyn's Fantastical Twin Cities Anthropological Probe at the 2012 Minnesota Fringe Festival

Cecily and Gwendolyn's Fantastical Twin Cities Anthropological Probe, created by Karen Getz and Kelly Jennings, is an audience-guided improvisational comedy show.   Continuing this year's Fringe time-travel meme, Victorian anthropologists Cecily and Gwendolyn have come to the Twin Cities to study our culture.  Welcoming their guests into the Bryant Lake Bowl with chit-chat and biscuits, the women put everyone at ease. 
The topic drawn on Saturday was enemies.  The focus became the rivalry between St. Paul and Minneapolis, and Getz and Jennings found a lot of humor (or should I say humour) in the topic.  They are fantastic improvisers.  This is a fun show for all ages.  But be prepared to join the party!

Pop Up Musical at the 2012 Minnesota Fringe Festival

Pop Up Musical, by Mix Tapes, is a fun musical review for the whole family.  A quartet of singers sing classic show tunes while the rest of the cast adds commentary with cue cards, a la VH1's Pop-Up Video series.  For example, during Jennifer Eckes' soulful rendition of "Suddenly Seymour" from Little Shop of Horrors, we learn the random fact that Kleenex™ is a proprietary eponym.    During Judi Gronseth and Timm Holmly's sweet rendition of Edelweiss, we get pop-ups documenting Christopher Plummer's true feelings about The Sound of Music.   The concept is cute and silly, the show is light and fun, and the able singers make the Rarig Xbox feel like a cozy cabaret.

The only thing that was missing for me was live musical accompaniment. As Gronseth sang in her moving "Send In the Clowns"-well maybe, next year?  How about Pop Up Musical 2 at the 2013 Minnesota Fringe Festival?  I'd like to hear Eckes sing "Don't Cry for Me Argentina" from the balcony.   It can't hurt to ask!

Answered Prayers. A comedy of Edits, and Silence at the 2012 Minnesota Fringe Festival

Friday Highlights

Nautilus Music-Theatre's Answered Prayers was the first show I put on my schedule this year.  A collaboration of librettist Jim Payne and composer Robert Elhai, the previous two installments of Sherwood Anderson's Winesburg, Ohio stories were presented during the 2010 and 2011 Fringe Festivals.  With a simple and elegant set by Molly Diers and the two person orchestra of music director Jerry Rubino and Elizabeth Bell, this "work-in-progress" is more polished and professional than most fully produced shows.  The stories work well as vignettes, so beginning at this part of the story will not hinder your enjoyment of the show.

Joshua Hinck returns as George Willard, the young reporter from the town paper.  Norah Long, who played George's mother last year, is back as Kate Swift, the passionate high school teacher who is the town outsider.  JP Fitzgibbons completed the trio as the Reverend Hartman, the spiritually struggling minister.  Under the direction of Ben Krywosz, they take you on a fifty minute journey to the past that feels so in the moment. 

I could go all music geek on you and tell you why I love this score for five pages.  But I have about 10 more shows to blog!  Composer Elhai takes this elegantly scripted character study and knows when to insert a hymn tune, or bring back a theme, or let Joshua Hinck's sweet voice soar.    He gives his singers so much to work with emotionally. 

Comedy of Edits, by Callahan and Lingo, is not really by Callahan and Lingo.  Callahan was busy.  So Allegra Lingo has brought on a new partner for this show, writer Taylor Brorby.  Taking a risk that pays off nicely, she deviates from her usual storytelling format.  Comedy of Edits is a scripted play with two characters.  Directed by Kim Schaufenbuel, it is part play, part autobiography, and part lecture.

I enjoyed the play.  Lingo and Brorby have an easy chemistry.   But I'm not a literary writer, so some of the nuances went over my head.  And that's okay.  It reminded me of the response to Allegra's piece Crescendo, which is one of my favorite Fringe shows ever.  Crescendo used the music of Aaron Copland not as an accompaniment but almost as a character.  I'm a musician, so the music references were a bonus for me.  If you devour Joyce and Wolf, those references will be Easter eggs.  But the core story of Comedy of Edits is the universal struggle to create.

I really wanted to like Silence, A Deaf Musical, by Yellow Bird Productions.  According to the artists page, it is "A Deaf musical, examining the gap between hearing and Deaf cultures and how shared interest, romance, and tragedy bridge that gap."  The concept is wonderful-I grew up near the National Technical Institute for the Deaf, and I have seen this idea work.    Silence combines hearing and non-hearing actors into the story.  The show has two strong romantic leads, Canae Weiss as Abby, whose dancing is the best part of the show, and Robert Korsmo, who has an easy charm and a strong voice.  Shawn Vreizen, as Interpreter #1 is equally as strong as Mark.
Unfortunately, the story is steeped in melodrama.  The audience is told more than they are shown.  And the big dramatic event is telegraphed early in the show.  The singing cast struggles with sharing hand held microphones.  And even with amplification it is a struggle to hear some of the singers. 

Analyzing the Bully by blank slate theatre at the Minnesota Fringe Festival

Analyzing the Bully, written by the youth members of blank slate theatre is one of the best examples of theater for teens by teens I have seen in years.  Under the direction of Adam Arnold, the young people of blank slate have crafted a satire that explores bullying with truth and humor.  The play explores the complexities of the issue of the day more clearly than any "expert".  Before the Minnesota legislature and the task force for the prevention of school bullying make any decisions they need to see this play. 

The audience is welcomed into the theater by three doctors in white coats.  They proceed to teach the absolute facts about bullying.  But as the show progresses and we start to see the perspective of the bully we learn that peer abuse is not a black and white problem.  It is complex. 

The show manages not to get preachy.  It is the commitment of the four young actors (Thomas Hedlund, Shawn Michael Chromey-Daniels, Taylor Hall, and Stephanie Kahle) that keep the show from after-school special territory.  

Everyone who works with kids should see this show. 

Minnesota Fringe Festival: The Complete Works of William Shatner (abridged)

Whew!  Five shows today.  I skipped 10:00 PM so I could  write and (maybe) get some sleep.

There were three of us today-myself, my husband Chris, and our 14 year old Tommy.  We started out with The Complete Works of William Shatner (abridged) at the Rarig Thrust.  We are big Star Trek fans, so we know our Shat.  Complete Works is a wacky homage the actor and his singular career.  There are a lot of pop-culture references, but unless you grew up under a papier-mache space rock you will be able to follow the basic plot.





A Shakespearean understudy named William Shatner (Brandon Ewald), walks out of his 1950's dressing room to find himself on a barren planet with none other than Capt. James T. Kirk (Windy Bowlsby) .  They are soon joined by T.J. Hooker (Derek "Duck" Washington), who makes his entrance by rolling off of a moving car, and the Priceline Negotiator (Tim Uren) .  Denny Crane (also Tim Uren) makes a cameo as well.

As you can see in the photo above, these actors do not resemble Shatner at all.  That's part of the joke.  Bowlsby has Kirk's adventurous swagger and punctuating hand gestures down pat.  You forget immediately that Kirk is being played by a woman.  Uren sounds just like the Shatner we see today on late night talk shows. 

I won't give any spoilers, but the storyline they concoct is both ridiculous and clever.  It is a very fun show.

It is recommended for ages 12 and up. 

Nucleus...and Other Cell Bodies

Nucleus...and Other Cell Bodies by Kelly Radermacher is like watching a microscope slide come to life. It is beautiful to watch.  Six strong dancers beautifully illustrate the story by marching, leaping, wriggling, and writhing.

Radermacher chose electronica music to accompany the dancers.  Her choreography strongly reflects the style of this ambient music, where texture and rhythm are often more prominent than a melody or traditional form. 

The show is recommended for ages 7 and up.  I would take a younger child if they have seen dance before and can be quiet for 50 minutes. 

The Gentlemen's Pratfall Club: An Uplifting Comedy About Falling Down

Comedy hurts. Falling down is hard.  In The Gentlemen's Pratfall Club: An Uplifting Comedy About Falling Down, the comedy team of Levi Weinhagen and Joshua English Scrimshaw prove their comic thesis with real blood.  After a series of epic pratfalls, the audience realized that the blood dripping from Weinhagen's chin was real.  He is fine (according to Facebook)-but he had a curtain call at the E.R. to get a few stitches.

Weinhagen plays Walter, an unemployed actor.  He is a self-pitying sad-sack of a guy who fails an audition to replace the deceased Captain Clumsy.  Walter can't fall down.   Scrimshaw plays everyone else, including Walter's French clown nemesis, his best friend, and his crusty mentor.  After a slow start with too much talking, the show takes off with a hysterical training montage.  I won't give spoilers, but there is an "I don't believe he did that" moment in the show that is worth the price of admission.  Scrimshaw is fearless in his antics; he is both the Acme steamroller and Wile E. Coyote.  

This show is recommended by the artists for ages 7 and up.  The show contains live cartoon violence and a quick crotch gag.