My Fringe So Far
I’m a total dumbass and forgot that the darn thing started Saturday, so I didn’t see anything last weekend. To make up for it I plunged in Monday night with three shows. Saw two on Tuesday, and then by Wednesday I realized that if I’m going to maintain this pace, I might as well have bought an UltraPass. So I’m cutting myself off when my second punchcard runs out.
My favoritest show of Fringe so far has been A Brewed Awakening. This is one of those “bring your own venue” shows. I’m really enjoying these. The characters were likeable, the story kept me interested, the message was good. I didn’t even notice that it ran 75 minutes (most Fringe shows are an hour long). It’s playing at the May Day Cafe, and they worked that really well. They had just enough room to move around, the audience was just close enough, and neither got in the other’s way. (Note: If you want to catch the last performance, there’s been a schedule correction.)
My second favorite by a hair was Calculus:The Musical. Fantastic! There’s the double bonus of the math itself, and then the recognition of each song as they launch into it. Hilarious. There are still a number of chances to see it, so go see it! I’ve had “F of x plus h minus f of x all over h as h goes to zero…” in my head for days.
Before I go on, tell me what you’re liking at the Fringe.
Guess Who’s Coming To… was enh. A married couple, storytelling about meeting each other’s families and tales of their married life. They’re from L.A., professional actors, and it shows. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, but… I like my Fringe a little grittier. A little less glossy. If that makes any sense.
Great Hymn of Thanksgiving/Conversation Storm was pretty good. The first part of the show was a dinner table percussion performance. Definitely got that Fringe-y weirdness to it, but I was bored after the first 10 minutes. And I was cringeing watching the one guy shred the fibers on the bow he was scraping across his mandolin. The second part was a thought experiment on torture, punctuated by the fact that they skipped back and forth between scenes (by calling out the scene number). Funny and creepy. Very good. I had heard a lot about it and caught it on the last night. Definitely worth it.
Saw The Depth of the Ocean at the Downtown YWCA on Tuesday. I really liked this one. There’s a plot twist that very slowly crept on me, and it fully dawned on me about halfway through. Watching the characters start to realize it at the end was great. Another “bring your own venue” show. ( Others: 1926 Pleasant, which has been selling out, is playing at the 1926 Condos, and H.P. Lovecraft’s “The Rats in the Walls” is playing at the Mill City Museum.)
I had high hopes for Criteria, but I was disappointed in this one-man show. I liked the premise: the imagining of the United States a couple hundred years from now (it’s no longer “the United States”). The first third of the show explored the history of the nation up through that point. But then when it transitioned into his moral dilemma (I won’t give that part away if you might still go see it), I got bored. His delivery was great. I was sort of caught up in the intrigue, even though I was thoroughly bored with the plot by the end.
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One of the best shows at the Fringe was “Janet & Tina: Hard Up”, but since the girls in it are from out of town, no one is seeing it.
I’m keeping that one on my schedule, since you recommended it before.
calc and pleasant have been my fav’s (aside from my friends putting them on), I’m gonna hit some more shows tonight.