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No Ultrapass this year, but R and I are both attending. We'll probably see about a dozen shows. Actually, R will see fewer because he also visited all three of the local outdoor art shows over the weekend, leaving me to Fringe alone for the early part of the afternoon.
This year I'm trying a deliberate strategy of choosing as many shows as possible with the "historical" tag. After many years of Fringe, I know how to find the big crowd pleasers (which usually turn out to be pretty good to excellent by anybody's standards). But sometimes you get a little tired of pop culture mashups, frenetic physical comedy, and inventive new approaches to Shakespeare. The "historical" show is a mixed bag, ranging from earnest but amateurish to surprisingly excellent. Our Thursday kickoff play was one of the latter, and became the little-known show that we are recommending to everyone. Here's the review I posted on the Fringe site.
The Accidental Hero
The Midlife Vic (aka Patrick Dewane)
An Overlooked Gem by Sharon Kahn
Rating: 5 stars
A superb multi-media one-man show that deserves a much bigger audience than the dozen or so in attendance on opening night. Alone on an almost empty stage, Patrick Dewane switches effortlessly between himself and his Czech-American grandfather to unfold the hidden tale of What Grand-Daddy Did in the War. It turns out to be pretty remarkable. Dewane starts with the pictures, memoirs and home movies that Grandpa left behind, adds some subtle rumination on human nature and heroism, and fleshes it out with his own considerable acting chops to make an extraordinary 1-hour performance. Strongly recommended for everyone who appreciates good story-telling, one-man shows, and history (both global and family).
This year I'm trying a deliberate strategy of choosing as many shows as possible with the "historical" tag. After many years of Fringe, I know how to find the big crowd pleasers (which usually turn out to be pretty good to excellent by anybody's standards). But sometimes you get a little tired of pop culture mashups, frenetic physical comedy, and inventive new approaches to Shakespeare. The "historical" show is a mixed bag, ranging from earnest but amateurish to surprisingly excellent. Our Thursday kickoff play was one of the latter, and became the little-known show that we are recommending to everyone. Here's the review I posted on the Fringe site.
The Accidental Hero
The Midlife Vic (aka Patrick Dewane)
An Overlooked Gem by Sharon Kahn
Rating: 5 stars
A superb multi-media one-man show that deserves a much bigger audience than the dozen or so in attendance on opening night. Alone on an almost empty stage, Patrick Dewane switches effortlessly between himself and his Czech-American grandfather to unfold the hidden tale of What Grand-Daddy Did in the War. It turns out to be pretty remarkable. Dewane starts with the pictures, memoirs and home movies that Grandpa left behind, adds some subtle rumination on human nature and heroism, and fleshes it out with his own considerable acting chops to make an extraordinary 1-hour performance. Strongly recommended for everyone who appreciates good story-telling, one-man shows, and history (both global and family).
