Fringe Report - Sunday August 7
Aug. 7th, 2005 10:24 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
dreamsharkBiking the scenic route from our house to Red Eye Theater: about 8 miles.
Biking the sensible (e.g, shortest) route: about 3 miles.
Guess which route we picked. Well, actually we did both. Long way down, short way back. One advantage of the long route is that it runs right through Sebastian Joe's. *heh* Coyote Chocolate... mmmmm.
The last 2 years, Richard and I spent a whole day in Loring Park, visiting various venues. Maybe we always did this on Saturday in the past. Anyway, I was shocked to discover that on Sunday only TWO of the six Loring Park venues were operating. Bummer. However, we decided that the 4:00, 5:30 and 7:00 pm shows at the Red Eye looked good enough, so we did those. Had dinner afterwards at a very nice bar/restaurant around the corner with a name so lame and generic that all I can remember is that it contained the words Bistro, Bar, Over-Caffeinated and Etc. Definite branding problem there, but pleasantly spacious, blessedly air-conditioned, and serving tasty enough food of the clever appetizer and gargantuan nutty salad variety at surprisingly reasonable prices.
Show #1: Bourbon and Butter (or was it "Butter and Bourbon?") 3 stars out of 5. One of those stars is for exceptionally clever use of the backlit projection screen behind the stage. It's either a 6-act play or a set of skits loosely tied together. The fact that I'm not sure which gives you an idea of the quality of the writing, which is just one short step away from its obviously improv roots. Some bits were quite enjoyable, particularly the monologue delivered by the one female in the show as she tries to get her step-daughter to unlock a door. Other parts, not so much so. Not worth going out of your way to see, but not a bad filler if you like sketch comedy.
Show #2: Mythed. 5 out of 5. An absolute gem. This is going to be one of the big hits of The Fringe. Song , dance, physical comedy, Welsh mythology and a soupcon of audience participation by people who REALLY know how to sing, dance, cavort, write and act. Performed on a totally bare stage except for a small electric piano. When the music needs a little accompaniment, one or the other of the actors sits down and starts playing. When the story moves inside, cast members turn themselves into furniture. When it moves outside they sprout leaves and turn into trees. When it needs a chorus, they bunch up and start harmonizing. See this one if you can. It's by an out-of-town troupe, so you're not likely to get another chance. And here's the strange thing. The thing that shows how totally clueless I really am, no matter how I rattle on about Fringing. We were just there because the time was convenient. Certainly we'd never heard of this show, which has only been presented once before EVER (in somplace like South Dakota). The show before this one was lightly attended, as was the show after it. But Mythed was sold out! Every single seat, filled! How did people know about this? Who starts the buzz on a show that nobody has seen yet? And how do so many people hear it?
Show #3: Michigan Disasters - 5 out of 5. Tim Uren is reliably good if you like one guy bouncing around on a stage telling stories. He uses a few props and he leaps around pretty energetically at times, but it's still one guy on a stage telling stories. In this case he goes back and forth between cozy family stories and detailed renditions of famous Michigan mine and maritime disasters. They don't seem to have much to do with each other initially, but in the end they all connect.
Biking the sensible (e.g, shortest) route: about 3 miles.
Guess which route we picked. Well, actually we did both. Long way down, short way back. One advantage of the long route is that it runs right through Sebastian Joe's. *heh* Coyote Chocolate... mmmmm.
The last 2 years, Richard and I spent a whole day in Loring Park, visiting various venues. Maybe we always did this on Saturday in the past. Anyway, I was shocked to discover that on Sunday only TWO of the six Loring Park venues were operating. Bummer. However, we decided that the 4:00, 5:30 and 7:00 pm shows at the Red Eye looked good enough, so we did those. Had dinner afterwards at a very nice bar/restaurant around the corner with a name so lame and generic that all I can remember is that it contained the words Bistro, Bar, Over-Caffeinated and Etc. Definite branding problem there, but pleasantly spacious, blessedly air-conditioned, and serving tasty enough food of the clever appetizer and gargantuan nutty salad variety at surprisingly reasonable prices.
Show #1: Bourbon and Butter (or was it "Butter and Bourbon?") 3 stars out of 5. One of those stars is for exceptionally clever use of the backlit projection screen behind the stage. It's either a 6-act play or a set of skits loosely tied together. The fact that I'm not sure which gives you an idea of the quality of the writing, which is just one short step away from its obviously improv roots. Some bits were quite enjoyable, particularly the monologue delivered by the one female in the show as she tries to get her step-daughter to unlock a door. Other parts, not so much so. Not worth going out of your way to see, but not a bad filler if you like sketch comedy.
Show #2: Mythed. 5 out of 5. An absolute gem. This is going to be one of the big hits of The Fringe. Song , dance, physical comedy, Welsh mythology and a soupcon of audience participation by people who REALLY know how to sing, dance, cavort, write and act. Performed on a totally bare stage except for a small electric piano. When the music needs a little accompaniment, one or the other of the actors sits down and starts playing. When the story moves inside, cast members turn themselves into furniture. When it moves outside they sprout leaves and turn into trees. When it needs a chorus, they bunch up and start harmonizing. See this one if you can. It's by an out-of-town troupe, so you're not likely to get another chance. And here's the strange thing. The thing that shows how totally clueless I really am, no matter how I rattle on about Fringing. We were just there because the time was convenient. Certainly we'd never heard of this show, which has only been presented once before EVER (in somplace like South Dakota). The show before this one was lightly attended, as was the show after it. But Mythed was sold out! Every single seat, filled! How did people know about this? Who starts the buzz on a show that nobody has seen yet? And how do so many people hear it?
Show #3: Michigan Disasters - 5 out of 5. Tim Uren is reliably good if you like one guy bouncing around on a stage telling stories. He uses a few props and he leaps around pretty energetically at times, but it's still one guy on a stage telling stories. In this case he goes back and forth between cozy family stories and detailed renditions of famous Michigan mine and maritime disasters. They don't seem to have much to do with each other initially, but in the end they all connect.
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Date: 2005-08-08 04:41 am (UTC)Anyway, as I'll say in my own LJ, Nibblers: A Musical With Sharks garnered my first five star rating of '05, and is my current favorite Fringe show of all time. You'll love it.