Day 4 (Sunday) - an excellent day
Aug. 9th, 2010 05:02 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
dreamsharkOnly saw 4 shows, but enjoyed them all. The bike ride over in the sauna-like heat wasn't all that bad, really. The nice thing about biking is that there's always a breeze. Another advantage of biking in hot weather is that it makes beer taste like nectar of the gods, which made a quick beer and sandwich lunch at Fringe Central between shows into an ecstatic experience. Normally I don't even like beer particularly, but I truly believe what my karate sensei taught me - beer restores the electrolyte balance. It must be true or it wouldn't taste so good when I'm hot and sweaty. Anyway, here's the day's theatrical fare, with full reviews behind the cut:
Bite Me Twilight * * * * *
presented by Tom Reed
Venue: Mixed Blood
More later
_____
Show Goons * * * * *
presented by One of a Kind Productions
Venue: Mixed Blood
More later
_____
Ballad of the Pale Fisherman * * *
presented by Isabel Nelson
Venue: Mixed Blood
Quick Review: sweet, simple, short. Material a little thin, but still a charmer.
_____
The Selkie * * * *
presented by Scotia Productions
Venue: U of M Rarig Proscenium
Quick Review: good basic ethnic dance show with a little story ladled on top. Turns out I like Highland dance better than I thought I did.
FULL REVIEWS
Bite Me Twilight * * * * *
presented by Tom Reed, Venue: Mixed Blood
If you think you have to have read or seen some of the Twilight series to appreciate this show, you're wrong. I know no more about the phenomenon than anyone else who hasn't been living in a cave for the last couple of years, and I never stopped laughing and applauding from beginning to end. This guy is just an incredible performer. He dances, sings, leaps around the stage while whipping his shirt on and off, and rubber-joints his way in and out of character so fast that he can play both sides of a couple making out without ever missing a syllable of his rapid-fire patter. The show is much like the equally hilarious Harry Potter sendup from last year, but he's not coasting on his success. He throws himself into his performance 100%, his surprisingly ripped abs glistening with sweat by the end. One of the best shows we've seen this year.
_____
Show Goons * * * * *
presented by One of a Kind Productions, Venue: Mixed Blood
Even in a year when you can't throw a rock without hitting a musical, this one stands out. If you want to see outstanding singing, acrobatics, and yes, ACTING, ignore the inane title and show description and see this one. The plot is a silly comic-book thing, but who cares? It's a musical. The writing is witty, the tunes are infectious, and the (slow motion cardboard) special effects are to die for. Somehow the cast makes you care about these ridiculous characters. The love duet is a highlight of the show - not only beautifully done but genuinely moving.
_____
Ballad of the Pale Fisherman * * *
presented by Isabel Nelson , Venue: Mixed Blood
A simple but moving staging of the Selkie legend at its most basic. A shape shifting seal woman is trapped in human form when her sealskin is lost to her. She learns to love her human husband, but still yearns for the sea and her old seal companions. When she finds her skin again she is forced to choose between her human family and her home. The story is lyrically presented as a combination of words, music and dance, with dancers transforming themselves from seals to townspeople and back again.
I enjoyed the show, but was not as blown away as most of the other reviewers. It was very short, and yet I thought it lagged in the middle. Really, it was only about 20 minutes worth of material enlongated to get past the half hour mark.
Rather than try to stretch the story even further, I would have liked to see the first story tightened up a bit and a second act with a different Selkie story (there are many). It was a cruel tease to name the main character "Peter Kagan" and then not follow it up with Gordon Bok's haunting musical theme. "Peter Kagan and the Wind" would have been a great second act.
_____
The Selkie * * * *
presented by Scotia Productions
Venue: U of M Rarig Proscenium
Good basic ethnic dance show with a little story ladled on top. Actually a mix of modern dance and traditional Scottish jigs and reels, but mostly the latter. Turns out I like traditional highland dance better than I thought I did. All those men in kilts, y'know. We saw a familiar face up there too - Jerry Corwin.
Bite Me Twilight * * * * *
presented by Tom Reed
Venue: Mixed Blood
More later
_____
Show Goons * * * * *
presented by One of a Kind Productions
Venue: Mixed Blood
More later
_____
Ballad of the Pale Fisherman * * *
presented by Isabel Nelson
Venue: Mixed Blood
Quick Review: sweet, simple, short. Material a little thin, but still a charmer.
_____
The Selkie * * * *
presented by Scotia Productions
Venue: U of M Rarig Proscenium
Quick Review: good basic ethnic dance show with a little story ladled on top. Turns out I like Highland dance better than I thought I did.
FULL REVIEWS
Bite Me Twilight * * * * *
presented by Tom Reed, Venue: Mixed Blood
If you think you have to have read or seen some of the Twilight series to appreciate this show, you're wrong. I know no more about the phenomenon than anyone else who hasn't been living in a cave for the last couple of years, and I never stopped laughing and applauding from beginning to end. This guy is just an incredible performer. He dances, sings, leaps around the stage while whipping his shirt on and off, and rubber-joints his way in and out of character so fast that he can play both sides of a couple making out without ever missing a syllable of his rapid-fire patter. The show is much like the equally hilarious Harry Potter sendup from last year, but he's not coasting on his success. He throws himself into his performance 100%, his surprisingly ripped abs glistening with sweat by the end. One of the best shows we've seen this year.
_____
Show Goons * * * * *
presented by One of a Kind Productions, Venue: Mixed Blood
Even in a year when you can't throw a rock without hitting a musical, this one stands out. If you want to see outstanding singing, acrobatics, and yes, ACTING, ignore the inane title and show description and see this one. The plot is a silly comic-book thing, but who cares? It's a musical. The writing is witty, the tunes are infectious, and the (slow motion cardboard) special effects are to die for. Somehow the cast makes you care about these ridiculous characters. The love duet is a highlight of the show - not only beautifully done but genuinely moving.
_____
Ballad of the Pale Fisherman * * *
presented by Isabel Nelson , Venue: Mixed Blood
A simple but moving staging of the Selkie legend at its most basic. A shape shifting seal woman is trapped in human form when her sealskin is lost to her. She learns to love her human husband, but still yearns for the sea and her old seal companions. When she finds her skin again she is forced to choose between her human family and her home. The story is lyrically presented as a combination of words, music and dance, with dancers transforming themselves from seals to townspeople and back again.
I enjoyed the show, but was not as blown away as most of the other reviewers. It was very short, and yet I thought it lagged in the middle. Really, it was only about 20 minutes worth of material enlongated to get past the half hour mark.
Rather than try to stretch the story even further, I would have liked to see the first story tightened up a bit and a second act with a different Selkie story (there are many). It was a cruel tease to name the main character "Peter Kagan" and then not follow it up with Gordon Bok's haunting musical theme. "Peter Kagan and the Wind" would have been a great second act.
_____
The Selkie * * * *
presented by Scotia Productions
Venue: U of M Rarig Proscenium
Good basic ethnic dance show with a little story ladled on top. Actually a mix of modern dance and traditional Scottish jigs and reels, but mostly the latter. Turns out I like traditional highland dance better than I thought I did. All those men in kilts, y'know. We saw a familiar face up there too - Jerry Corwin.
