With limited time on my hands and five vouchers left of my 10-play pass, I needed to hop to it and see shows during the closing weekend of Toronto Fringe. Here are the last five shows I saw, in order of attendance:
Sour Grapes: I’d seen playwright/actor Allan Turner perform as Mullet the Clown before, but never as another character. Playing the trickster Coyote with a decidedly cranky, nihilist edge, Turner took us on a funny, cerebral and philosophical journey as Coyote experiences an existential crisis of sorts. Awesome work from the entire cast, which also included Chloe Payne (Clown), Darryl Pring (Doctor) and Dave McKay (Spider) – directed by Bruce Hunter.
Stealing Sam: Playwright/actor Steven Gallagher’s sharply funny and deeply moving one-man show about a man’s tribute to a dead ex-lover who died of AIDS. Directed by Darcy Evans, Gallagher had the audience laughing one moment and reaching for Kleenex the next as we followed him through the life and times of a gay man of a certain age, dealing with loss and modern-day dating. If you missed this show during its Fringe run, you can still catch Stealing Sam at The Best of Toronto Fringe.
This Play Is Like _____: Written and directed by Glenys Robinson, the company (Tiny House Productions) is made up entirely of members under 20 years old. Using shadow puppets to play out a legend and a live action present day story, the audience goes along on two young female hero’s journeys. Lovely work from the cast: Arden Dunlop, Kya Mosey, Ben Tersigni and Forest Van Winkle, and puppeteers Ana Ghookassian, Haruka Kanai, Patrick Kinhan and Yasaman Nouri, with vocals by Sarah Carmosino. Keep your eyes peeled for these talented, promising young talents. I’d fill in the blank with “Life.”
Fracture: Edmonton company the Good Women Dance Collective performed two pieces for this show: “Pod” (choreographed by Alida Nyquist-Schultz, and performed by Nyquist-Shultz and Ainsley Hillyard, with music by Piotr Grella-Mozejko) and “Shatterstate” (choreographed by Alison Kause, and performed by Kause, Kate Stashko and Alida Nyquist-Shultz, with music by Caleb Nelson). “Pod” was a sensual, otherworldly journey through creation and growth, with the two dancers responding very differently to the transition – creating both tension, intimacy and drama. “Shatterstate” explores perception and déjà vu – the dancers’, the audience’s – and how perspectives can diverge and intersect. Beautiful, cerebral, moving and sexy – Fracture moves on to the Winnipeg and Edmonton Fringe festivals. Definitely a company to watch out for.
Much Ado About Nothing: Shakespeare BASH’d unleashed the Bard upstairs at the Victory Café again this year, this time with the quip-exchanging, clueless wannabe lovers Beatrice and Benedick. Always a popular company, their shows consistently sell out – and I managed to squeeze in on the waiting list for their closing performance. Directed by Eric Double, and time-shifted nicely to post-WWII, this production boasts an amazing cast: Andrew Anthony, Andrew Gaboury, Ellen Hurley, Jamie Johnson, Elisabeth Lagerlöf, Milan Malisic, Brenhan McKibben, Jesse Nerenberg, Julia Nish-Lapidus, Kyle Purcell, David Ross, Amelia Sargisson and James Wallis. Miss them at Fringe? No worries, you can catch their fall production of Romeo and Juliet November 19-23 in the Junction at 3030 Dundas West (Toronto).
I wasn’t able to get in to see Jessica Moss’s one-woman show Polly Polly, but had great fun in the ticket line when Moss paid us a visit – with Timbits for us. Thanks, Jessica! Will do my best to catch Polly Polly at the Best of the Toronto Fringe.
Speaking of, you still have a chance to sample some of this year’s Toronto Fringe programming and perhaps see something you missed during the festival run – check out The Best of the Toronto Fringe, running July 17-31 at Toronto Centre for the Arts.
life with more cowbell 