A quiet finish - Richard went to the Powderhorn Art Fair and I did nothing in particular except back up my external hard drive, which looks to be about to fail. We drove over to the West Bank to see a 7pm show and an 8:30 Fringe Encore, both of which were amusing without being particularly memorable. The first show was only 45 minutes long, which gave us time to have beer and artichoke dip at the open-air beer garden on the corner.

7pm Southern Theater
Mansion of Dust - Joseph and Sarah Stevenson Scrimshaw * * * 1/2
She's a dancer, he's the local King of Comedy. They teamed up last year for a dance/spoken word piece called "The Whisky Fairy" that was one of our favorite shows of the Fringe. This year's show was not nearly as good. The dancing was great, but the story part was tedious - a whisker-thin narrative that was not improved by silly accents and anti-French jokes. They made excellent use of props and the beautiful theater space, and Joe revealed yet another talent when the "professional European dusters" uncovered a full drum set in the empty mansion they were cleaning. Sarah is a wonderful dancer, and Joe is such an acrobatic clown that he turns in a pretty fair dance performance himself just by capering around her and copying her moves. I just wish there had been more dancing and less Inspector Clouseau.

8:30 Southern Theater Encore
Lick! * * 1/2
Terminally dumb, but it did have nice lights and flashy costumes and a lot of energy. It was a pleasant enough way to wind up 10 days of intense Fringing, but I simply cannot understand how it got all those 5-kitty ratings. The concept: reunion show of a glittery-shirted boy dance group doing what I think is deliberately bad 80's style dance routines. The dance numbers are interspersed with a schtick about how Incredibly! Sinfully! Sexy! their show is (not!) and some mildly amusing bickering within the group. The occasional reference to Transformers threw the audience into a frenzy of laughing and clapping. All of which suggests that the target audience was born between, oh... 1975 and 1979? It seems like they'd be a little old to be blown away by such juvenile humor, but I guess the performers know their niche audience.

Such a fun day! Not only was everything we saw excellent, we saw friends! Spent some time in line at Squawk with minnehaha K, waved to barondave and Johanna across a crowded room and chatted with a couple who turned out to live on our block while in line for "Bard Fiction." We managed to hook up with friends for dinner during the 8:30 slot and had a swell time: mle292 mgs eileenlufkin, plus WINOLJs: Barb and Mark and Diane. We had beer and sandwiches at the relocated Acadia Cafe, which is the latest incarnation of the building formerly known as the New Riverside. Barb's right: the black bean burger is great, especially with a pitcher of beer to counteract the aggressive jalapeno. Mmmm. Here's what we saw.

1:00 p.m. - Squawk * * * * *
2:30 p.m. - Jurassic Dork * * * * *
4:00 p.m. - Buyer's Remorse * * * *
5:30 p.m. - Tales ... Of the Expected! * * * *
7:00 p.m. - Bard Fiction * * * * *
10:00 p.m. - Tragedy of You [2nd time] --


___________
1:00 p.m.
Squawk * * * * *
presented by Walking Shadow Theatre Company
Venue: Gremlin

Surprisingly thoughtful examination of the nature of friendship wrapped in an absurdist comedy about a penguin in the military. The acting was excellent and the penguin puppet was wonderful. It must have been a difficult decision deciding how to handle the penguin's dialogue. The decision to have him speak only in squeaks and squawks but be instantly understood by everyone on stage was the perfect way to solve the problem. This technique not only preserves the "otherness" of the penguin, it engages the audience by forcing them to fill in for themselves what Falkland must have just said.
___________
2:30 p.m.
Jurassic Dork * * * * *
presented by John Skelley
Venue: Gremlin

Unspeakably hilarious (assuming you are familiar with the movie - it would be pretty baffling if you were not). Like all shows of this nature, success is completely dependent on the talents of the solo actor, and John Skelley rises to the occasion with rubber-faced mimicry and frenetic athleticism. Inspired use of mood music and ridiculously silly props pushes it over the top into brilliance. The first dinosaur sighting is recreated by a swim noodle with a balloon on top poking around from behind a curtain, followed shortly by Skelley lumbering around the corner with the assemblage attached to a bike helmet on his head. The use of toy cars and other small size props allows sudden changes of scale that are inherently funny, especially juxtaposed against the memory of just how scary that part of the movie really was. Not only did this show make me laugh myself silly, it reminded of just what a good movie Jurassic Park really was. I think I'll add it to my Netflix queue.
___________
4:00 p.m.
Buyer's Remorse * * * *
presented by Sarah Gioia and Steve Moulds
Venue: Mixed Blood

It certainly didn't sound appealing in the show description (what - ANOTHER show about cold-blooded murder) but we added it to our schedule after numerous recommendations from passing strangers in line at other shows. Sure enough, it was well done and I'm glad we saw it. The actors were excellent, especially Sam Landman as Parker the hitman and Matt Rein as Matt. Tone was a bit of a problem, though. Matt's character reacts to events like a normal human being, whereas the other characters are all caricatures of one type or another. Rachel is particularly disturbing, coming off as a borderline sociopath. It left me unsure whether I should be treating it all as a silly spoof and laughing at the clever lines or if it was supposed to be a nightmare scenario from the point of view of Matt.

___________
5:30 p.m.
Tales ... Of the Expected! * * * *
presented by Ari Hoptman
Venue: U of M Proscenium

Stellar cast, but the material was pretty thin. Maybe I've just seen a few too many variations on the fractured fairy tale, and the genre just isn't as funny as it was back when I was watching Rocky and Bullwinkle. It would have been a great kid's show if it weren't for the astonishingly foul-mouthed Mom in the first play. Don't get me wrong - she was hilarious - but she pretty much takes the play off the table as a kids' matinee.

___________
7:00 p.m.
Bard Fiction * * * * *
presented by Tedious Brief Productions
Venue: U of M Thrust

I've only seen Pulp Fiction one time several years ago, so a lot of the spoof went over my head. However, I caught enough of the references to see how brilliantly the source material was adapted to the Elizabethan style. If there's a remount of this play I think I'd rewatch the movie and then see the play again. The dialogue flew so thick and fast that it would take several viewings to pick it all up.

___________
10:00 p.m.
Tragedy of You [2nd time] * * * * *
presented by Joseph Scrimshaw Productions
Venue: U of M Thrust

Saw this again simply because I'd just talked some of my dinner companions into seeing it and went along for the ride. I was curious to see how much it changed with a different "you" as the seed. Not as much as you might think, actually. It was significantly less hilarious on second viewing, but interesting to see how the whole process worked. I probably didn't get 5 kitties of enjoyment out of the second viewing, but it would be silly to give it a different rating the 2nd time around. It's a brilliant marriage of pre-scripted post-modern theater, physical comedy and improv.

Three excellent productions in a row, PLUS Sebastian Joe's ice cream. Not to mention beautiful weather and a nice little bike ride - what's not to love? 

7:00 p.m.
AfterLife    * * * * *
presented by SunsetGun productions (Candy Simmons)
Venue: Intermedia

I decided to see this one after chatting with the performer as she handed out flyers for her show. She had such an expressive face that I thought she'd be a good solo performer. She was.  Richard and I also have a fondness for the "3 short pieces" Fringe show format. In this case, the writing was extraordinarily strong, the production values were unobtrusively excellent, and Candy Simmons is just a brilliant actress. Don't miss this one if you like well-written, well-performed character drama with a comic edge.

___________________________________
8:30 p.m.
Where Egos Dare: The Musical!   * * * *
presented by New Breath Productions
Venue: Theater Garage

I gave this one 4 kitties instead of 5 because crowd-pleaser musicals like this are getting to be a dime a dozen at the Fringe. But damn, it's a lot of fun. If you enjoy show tunes, don't miss it. Excellent all ages show, especially for kids with an interest in the theater.

__________________________________
10:00 p.m.
Strange Weather    * * * * 
presented by The Great Heresy Theater Company
Venue: Garage

Richard and I try to attend at least one s.f. show each year, but this is the first one that was actually GOOD. It's not the usual wacky sci-fi costume comedy that we've seen at past Fringes. This one is a very intense, sensitively performed, well-produced family drama set in a dystopian post-apocalyptic future. Kind of a downer, though. I'm glad I saw it, but I  wish we could have seen the shows in a different order so we could have finished up the evening on an upbeat whistling-Cole-Porter note.

I purely hate to pass up a free ticket to Valleyfair, so when the company picnic fell in the middle of the Fringe I decided to do them both. I actually had a great day, but a thoroughly exhausting one. Met up with some of my co-workers at 10am at Valleyfair, rode both of the Power Towers, the new Extreme Swing (yikes!) and 4 roller coasters (one of them twice). Concluded that the Power Towers and Steel Venom are the best thrill rides in the place, Extreme Swing is maybe a little too much, and Wild Thing is a damn fine roller coaster. Dashed home, took the seat out of the van with help from thorintatge and popped my bike in the back and met up with Richard at Augsburg for 3 Fringe shows.


2:30 p.m. Venue: U of M Proscenium * * * [Richard]
The Nightingale
presented by The Urban Spectrum Theatre Co.

4:00 p.m. Venue: Augsburg Mainstage * * * * [Richard]
Needs, Wants, Desires!
presented by Rhino Productions

5:30 p.m. Venue: Augsburg Studio * * * * 1/2
Parry Hotter and the Half-Drunk Twins
presented by Empty S Productions

8:30 p.m. Venue: Mixed Blood * * * * *
The Curse of Yig
presented by Tim Uren

10:00 p.m. Venue: U of M Xperimental * * *
June of Arc
presented by Sandbox Theatre


______________________________________________________
5:30 p.m. Venue: Augsburg Studio   
Parry Hotter and the Half-Drunk Twins * * * * 1/2
presented by Empty S Productions 

Extremely hilarious show wherein one man recaps all 7 books, doing all the characters, and punctuating it all  with a few songs. Tom Reed is incredibly talented - watch for him in the future. Show definitely requires  basic familiarity with the Harry Potter Phenomenon to appreciate properly, but I am living proof that one  book, two movies and everybody you know talking about it is enough familiarity to enjoy the show. Marked down  from 5 stars for overly loud musical accompaniment that drowned out the singing and the fact that the room  was at about 90 degrees.


_______________________________________________________
8:30 p.m. Venue: Mixed Blood       
The Curse of Yig              * * * * *
presented by Tim Uren 

HP Lovecraft is best when read aloud. There is something about his hypnotic cadence and plummy verbosity that  needs to be heard with the ear to work its awful magic. But this performance is much more than a simple  reading (like last year's "Rats in the Walls.") At the start of the show it is essentially two narrators  taking turns reading the introductory exposition, but after a while Tim and Amy slip into the characters of  Walker and Audrey Davis and lead the audience into the ultimate "there's something under the bed" nightmare.  Beautifully done, despite the occasional slips of the tongue.


_______________________________________________________
10:00 p.m. Venue: U of M Xperimental     
June of Arc                * * *
presented by Sandbox Theatre 

June Cleaver (Beaver's mom) weaves a wistful tale of unrealized possibilities as she recalls her hopes and  dreams from before she married Ward, waves her arms around mechanically, rationalizes her present empty  existence, and fails to notice that the men in her family are doing nothing in each scene but grunting like  zombies and falling over. Every few minutes there is a commercial break. The 3 male performers hold up  black-and-white 2-dimensional versions of the products they are touting and do a verbatim reconstruction of  vintage 1950's commercials. 

I'm not sure quite what the point of this show was. I think it was supposed to be incisive irony of some  sort. But for me it was just a trip down memory lane. The actress who played June was perfect - she had the  same little string of pearls, wide brittle smile and that finishing school accent that all actors used to  affect when they weren't playing criminals or low-class women (in which case they used broad Brooklyn  accents). Yet, she somehow managed to bring some emotional resonance to the role and was really rather  touching, provided one overlooked the incongruous zombie grunting in the background and the peculiar bits of  physical business where she tried to sit down on the stove and kept sliding onto the floor. But the star of  the show was the commercials, every one of which I recognized. If you had asked me to describe a Salem  cigarette commercial from 1956 I wouldn't have been able to, but when the jingle started, I found myself  singing along ("For smoother taste smoke Sa-lem cig-a-rettes.") I'm not sure what the younger generation is  getting out of its current fascination with the 50's, but I'm getting a nostalgic kick out of it all. I can't  in all good conscience rate this show higher than 3 stars, but I got at least 4 stars of enjoyment out of it.

Okay, I have my first surprise 5-star recommendation of the season - Traveling Musicians. Go see them! They're appearing almost every evening at the Nomad Bar (5th and Cedar, conveniently close to Fringe Central) and they are awesome!

There were 3 of us last night, me and Richard and my friend Trisha. Here's the short list of what we saw:

7:00 p.m.
The Traveling Musicians *****
presented by 3 Sticks
Venue: Nomad

8:30 p.m.
Tragedy of You *****
presented by Joseph Scrimshaw Productions
Venue: U of M Thrust

10:00 p.m.
Bedroom Stories *** YMMV
presented by Scaramouche
Venue: U of M Xperimental

______________________
First, a full review of Traveling Musicians (3 Sticks).

I wanted to see them because I was so impressed by their inventive, athletic dance performance last year: The Gypsy and the General. I had no idea what to expect of this year's performance, but this wasn't it: 4 oddly clothed musicians on a tiny stage at the back of a neighborhood bar. WTF, I thought they were a dance troupe? By the end of the hour they were, in fact dancing on the stage, cavorting around the room and dancing on the bar. Yep, they're dancers. They are also awesomely eclectic musical performers and just a hell of a lot of fun. It's difficult to describe the show without giving away too much - just go see them! Buy a Magic Hat beer at the bar and don't sit too close to the stage unless you want to be blown away by the oversized sound system. And bring a lighter! All I can say is that when they swing into their last number, everybody in the bar should be holding a lighter aloft. And watch for their CD, rumored to be available sometime later during Fringe week. I'm not sure where to buy it but I'll be looking for it. And I hope we have the opportunity to drop in to the Nomad again between performances (there's the beauty of an Ultrapass)

In other news, Joe Scrimshaw is still absolutely brilliant. And yes, he's all over the Fringe in various guises, so who can tell what I'm referring to? Tragedy of You at the Rarig Thrust Stage. Get there early - it very nearly sold out on Friday and will probably be turning people away for the rest of the run.

Our third venture of the evening was less of a success: one of those "we're already in Rarig so what's showing at 10pm?" things that you try if you have an Ultrapass. In this case it was Bedroom Stories, a dance/spoken word performance by somebody who calls himself Scaramouche. Lots of slow, angular solo dance with short, baffling story interludes. On the plus side, he's a good dancer with an extremely expressive face and body. On the minus side, the only thing he seemed to be interested in expressing was disappointment, anguish and death. He writhed around on the floor in front of a bright light, reciting death poetry to the large shadow on the wall. He changed clothes. He fiddled with his tie. He impersonated a chef presenting a gourmet dinner. He played the accordian and told a story about his dead dog. He did a very impressive dance where he showed his ability to mimic dead animals. He told a long, excruciating story about breaking up with his girl friend and did more depressing dances. He told a story about a cow, and then the show ended abruptly. WTF?? I gave it 3 stars because I got about that much enjoyment out of it. However, this isn't a mediocre performance. If you get what he's trying to do it might be 5 stars for you. I think it was about 1 star for the other two people in my party.