Minnesota Fringe Festival Day 10: DOLLY WHO?, The Very Model of a Modern Monster Scientist, Pillow Talk, Monster Science’s Greatest Hits, John Wick by Tim Wick (no relation), Wells Is Third On The Waitlist (Winner of The Stages of MN Fringe of the Day Award).

DOLLY WHO? This wasn’t on my schedule, then I started hearing from fellow Twin Cities Theater Bloggers (TCTB) and audience members that it was a show to see if at all possible. Unfortunately the slot I had where I could make a change was another show that TCTB’s were encouraging me to see. Then while in the midst of taking over the Minnesota Fringe Instagram account on Monday, I got a chance to meet and talk briefly with Dolly and that small interaction convinced me that was the show I was going to see and I’m so glad I did. Dolly is a writer, artist, animator, and performer whose quirky personality and dry humor makes her show about a show that doesn’t exist a truly original work.

https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2023/dolly-who-

The Very Model of a Modern Monster Scientist is a unique twist on the usual Reverend Matt show. First off I have really enjoyed Matthew Kessen’s Reverend Matt’s Monster Science lectures since I saw my first one at the 2019 Twin Cities Horror Festival (TCHF) What’s different about this version is that while it features moments like his usual lecture formats, this one morphes into a play that introduces a new Character to the Monster Science Universe (MSU, I made this phrase and acronym up we’ll see if it sticks!) in the person of Elora Riley who applies for the position of Monster Science Assistant, she is coincidentally played by Elora Riley. If you like Monsters and deadpan humor about monsters and society you’ll love this and all of Reverend Matt’s shows. I’m excited with the possibility that we will, as Rev. Matt says at the end of the show, being seeing more of Elora Riley in the MSU.

https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2023/the-very-model-of-a-modern-monster-scientist

Pillow Talk Is a spooky little show that runs just over 30 minutes. There’s absolutely room to expand this show to a 45 to 60 minute length and it would be a great fit for a future TCHF. At the Performance I saw one of the original cast members had fallen ill the day before and Riley Parham whom I saw yesterday in Romeo & Juliet are Dead stepped in with script in hand to play the role so the show could go on. He was great in his own show yesterday and was really good again today even with script in hand. The entire cast is quite good in this LGBTQ+ horror show that spans multiple time periods. The clear delineation of which would be something to solidify if the show is expanded.

https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2023/pillow-talk#cast

Monster Science’s Greatest Hits: “The Ecology of the Muppets” If you know what these shows are you know how fun these lectures on various monsters can be. In these Greatest hits performances, each one of the time slots features one of his most popular lectures. This one was on Jim Henson and his Muppet creations. Though many of them are Monsters, Muppets are not what we generally think of as monster. So this one was kind of a different take on the Monster Science Lectures, but a really entertaining one. It also reminded me of two movies I’ve somehow never seen. In fact every time these films are mentioned, I say to myself I can’t believe I’ve never seen that. they are The Dark Crystal and Labyrinth. This is a theme that strangely will continue through the rest of Day 10.

https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2023/monster-science-s-greatest-hits#info

John Wick by Tim Wick (no relation)– Is a thorough and encyclopedic knowledge of all four films in the John Wick Film series necessary to enjoy Tim Wick’s new show that presents a comically abridged reenactment of all the films in the franchise? No. How do I know that? I’ve never seen a single John Wick movie. Might I have gotten even more out of the show if I had, perhaps. It may be that some of the references and jokes would have added meaning, but I still had a great time. Tim narrates what his five actors are acting out and his running commentary on the action and the series itself is very entertaining. Warning: There is an awful lot of nerf violence in this show, but no dogs were harmed.

https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2023/john-wick-by-tim-wick-no-relation-

THE STAGES OF MN FRINGE OF THE DAY AWARD winner!!!!

Wells Is Third On The Waitlist is one of the funniest one person shows I’ve seen at Fringe this year. Wells Farnham, describes the benefits of being on the Fringe waitlist. He was on it five times previously never lower than 80th. He felt he was doing something important as the sheer number of people who apply for the lottery and the available slots when compared, the discrepancy in those numbers, the larger it is the bigger a deal it is for those who get in. This year he was third, and before long he was in, something he never thought would happen and probably didn’t even want to happen. He liked being one of the numbers that made those who get in look good. His show details his search for a suitable topic for a Fringe show. It ends up being a rundown of the plots of the Fast and Furious Franchise. Which, as you may have guessed, I have never seen a single one of those films. Farnham’s performance his hilarious, and he does what all good storytellers do, draws everything that came before back together at the end. The next time Farnham gets into Fringe, He should embrace it full on as he definitely has what it takes.

https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2023/wells-is-third-on-the-waitlist

Minnesota Fringe Festival Day 9: When You Hear the Chime, Romeo & Juliet Are Dead, Big Dad Energy, Stabby Stab Stab (Winner of The Stages of MN Fringe of the Day Award).

When You Hear the Chime features Nichole Carey and Andrew Lester as two kids in an attic going through one of their Grandmothers old belongings. A combination of them acting out stories like Rumpelstiltskin and The Little Mermaid, playing dress up with the Grandmother’s old clothes, and their tentative and uncertain conversations about the adult world around them. Lester, obviously a trained dancer, gets multiple opportunities to display those skills as he portrays the young boy with ADHD, he uses his body control to elegantly represent the boys physicality, his constant need to be moving. Carey gets an unexpected moment towards the end of the show to reveal a wonderful singing voice. The show has a lot of imaginative whimsy punctuated with moments of tenderness.

https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2023/when-you-hear-the-chime-

Romeo & Juliet Are Dead is a look at what might have happened to the star crossed lovers after they died at the end of Shakespeare’s famous tragedy. In an empty void, Romeo sits making counts on the floor with Chalk, when Juliet suddenly appears. The lovers at first sight begin to profess their love for one another and their joy at being reunited in the afterlife. But infinity gives them time to reflect on their romance, how well they know each other and if marrying someone you’ve know for less than a week is really a good idea. What plays out in this abstract nether world where rooms are decorated and furnished by drawing items with a piece of chalk is a glimpse at what a life together, forever, is really like. They get a crash course in what marriage is like once the romance has worn off. The script effectively and elegantly mirrors the language of Shakespeare most of the time but occasionally gives a nod to the characters ages by having them speak in the same vernacular as my teenage children did.

https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2023/romeo-juliet-are-dead

Big Dad Energy is Stand up comic Jamie Campbell’s one man show about not being a Dad. He’s funny and has a positive message. The best bit is the one he did at the Fringe preview about pineapple on pizza. When you are needing a laugh and a blast of positivity this will be the show to take in.

https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2023/big-dad-energy

THE STAGES OF MN FRINGE OF THE DAY AWARD winner!!!!

Stabby Stab Stab is a collaboration between two local favorite theater companies that attendees of MN Fringe Festival and Twin Cities Horror Festival (TCHF) know well, Special When Lit and the Winding Sheet Outfit. This is a remount of a production that if memory serves, sold out every performance last fall at the TCHF. It is a dramatization of the 2014 true crime popularly known as “the Slender Man Stabbing” that focuses solely on the two 12 year old girls, Morgan Geyser and Anissa Weir who committed the heinous crime. The show is a reminder that people are more than the one worst thing they’ve done in their lives. It doesn’t try to excuse their actions but it does help put things in perspective and bring to the forefront that these were 12 year old children. We gain some understanding of the loneliness and the intense need to connect that the two girls whose inner world seems as real to them as the one outside their heads. It reminded me of the wonderful true crime based film by Peter Jackson Heavenly Creatures.

The girls are brought to vivid life by the shows Playwright Nissa Nordland Morgan as Morgan and Kayla Dvorak Feld as Anissa. Nordland Morgan brings her uncanny ability to play childlike without crossing over into cloying childishness. Her character is the one who stabs and her performance makes clear that the girl is young, naive and suffering from mental illness that has caused a relaxation of her grip on reality. Her script, the result of exhaustive research includes texts between the girls and even a short story written by Morgan. All of this is giving us a picture of the girls tween world view and it brings some modicum of understanding to such an unfathomable act. Dvorak Feld has wowed me over and over agaib the last twelve months, every time I see her name in a program I have to double check it’s the same actress such is her range, I’m never sure that’s the same actress I saw last time as such and such character. Stabby Stab Stab is backed with eerily appropriate live musical accompaniment by Derek Lee Miller and Sam Landman. The effective Lighting by Andre Johnson Jr. combined with the projections and Production Design by Director Amber Bjork made this the show to beat at season XI of the TCHF.

* This review for Stabby Stab Stab contains material from last falls production that featured the same cast. Mostly because it’s still how I feel but also because I need to sleep.

https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2023/stabby-stab-stab

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Minnesota Fringe Festival Day 8: Coyfish, “Starved”, The Shrieking Harpies, Mother Courage Bear and Her Children (Winner of The Stages of MN Fringe of the Day Award).

Coyfish by THEATRE23 was perhaps more interesting to me than it will be to some audiences. The problem is that it’s sort of meant to be a surprise so this is going to be a hard one to write about. I enjoyed it, the acting is good but a little stilted. Most of the dialogue takes place between two characters in different locations typing to each other in a chat room, and I think that plays a big part in the performances. The script is by Michelle de Joya who is currently kicking ass and taking numbers in Theater Mu’s The Kung Fu Zombie Saga: Shaman Warrior & Cannibals. The script is good but would benefit from a longer form, the ending feels truncated and unsatisfying, this might actually be better suited for film.

https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2023/coyfish

“Starved”: The Astonishing True Story of the University of Minnesota Starvation Experiment is the best acted and most complete and fully realized dramatic production I’ve seen so far at Fringe this year. An expansion of this would be a great fit for the History Theatre in St. Paul. Based on the true story of a study on the effects of starvation conducted during World War II by the University of MN on volunteers made up of conscientious objectors. It makes it clear the tremendous amount of courage and sacrifice made by those who participated. Branded cowards by much of society, these men participated so that they could be of service to mankind without engaging in the taking of human life.

https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2023/_starved-the-astonishing-true-story-of-the-university-of-minnesota-starvation-experiment

The Shrieking Harpies is an improv show so you know the drill, every performance will be unique. If you like it, you could take in more than just one of their time slots. The Shrieking Harpies are Hannah Wydeven, Lizzie Gardner, Taj Ruler and on the keyboard Justin Nellis. Unlike the other musical improv show I reviewed earlier in the Fringe run, Opera Punks, The Shrieking Harpies create a single 1 hour improvised musical rather than creating individual songs. I’ve seen the Harpies several times before and considered skipping them this time to catch one of the 50+ shows I won’t be able to get to. Then I said, screw it! I love them, and I’m so glad I went.

https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2023/the-shrieking-harpies

THE STAGES OF MN FRINGE OF THE DAY AWARD winner!!!!

Mother Courage Bear and Her Children was created by Clevername Theatre, the same company behind my favorite show of the 2022 Minnesota Fringe, Who’s Afraid of Winnie the Pooh? I don’t know if their theater is dedicated to creating works around childhood bears or if this is a coincidence. We’ll see next year in the do a show about a bear from darkest peru. This time around we have militant German Directors take on The Care Bear franchise, here presented as an allegory about capitalism and military industrial complex. The Care Bears and the Care Cousins have been at war with each other for centuries. Mother Courage makes her living off selling care messages but her greed eventually costs her everything. This is another brilliant idea by Clevername Theatre that takes a childhood property and makes a dark adult comedy that works. This is one of the best shows in Fringe, it’s not quite at the level of Who’s Afraid of Winnie the Pooh, but that maybe because I have a deep and abiding love of Winnie the Pooh and very little first hand knowledge of the Care Bears.

https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2023/mother-courage-bear-and-her-children

Minnesota Fringe Festival Day 7: Two Stars in the Vast Dark, The Resilient Child, Allegro, Boy Crazy (Winner of The Stages of MN Fringe of the Day Award).

Two Stars in the Vast Dark is a Science-Fiction story that acts as much of the genre does as an allegory for our current times. Faithful readers know that I gravitate towards stories that have a transgender component or representation. Creators, Charlotte Grey & Theo Leverenz, use the story of a deep space trucker played by Leverenz in the loneliness of space and the ships A.I. the BARD system, played by Grey as parallels to several different modern problems. There is the loneliness of the Transgender or non-binary, gender nonconforming individual who can feel marginalized and unsupported. But it also speaks to what we all went through during covid. The convergence of these experiences can help create understanding and empathy for those in our society on their transgender journey. As the Transgender Trucker and the Bard System connect, it shows us one path in which we might find connection with our fellow beings through our shared experiences. Oh, and it’s filled with songs that are all good, if a bit too similar to each other.

https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2023/two-stars-in-the-vast-dark

The Resilient Child created by Ariel Pinkerton is the exploration of the phrase, the resilient child and it’s meaning. We look at the world of children and parents through the lens of seven performers who all bring something different to the mix. Four adults and three youths all at different ages. The three youngest performers read something they have each prepared, the pieces reflecting their age and outlook on the world. The adults talk about their parents, childhood, being a parent, and reflections on the idea of the resilient child. Denzel Belin’s portion about his relationship with his father is at times very humorous while Katie Starks account of her mother’s final years is more dramatic. Aaron Henderson’s story told in the first person is really and examination of how to parent and embrace the resiliency of children as a way to help them learn to be adults. I think everyone will identify with something in the show, many with parts of every piece. The one that really resonated with me personally was Ariel Pinkerton’s who talked about the difficult life decisions she made without including her daughter, divorce, and asking a partner to move in with them. How children in these situations adapt to the new normal, new guardians, new siblings, blending of families. Just today my youngest son who is 20 is having a hard time and doesn’t really want his Mom and Dad around trying to help him, he wants his step-sister or as he thinks of her, his sister. Children have the ability to accept things and often find the positive, they see what they have gained, whereas we as adults can find it harder to see past the down sides of things.

https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2023/the-resilient-child

Allegro is written, directed, and stars Garrison Shea as a character who creates a soundtrack to his life that not only he can hear, but also those who are close to him. It’s a great idea with a good cast but a script that doesn’t fulfill the ideas potential. Maybe it’s somewhat autobiographical, maybe it isn’t, but that does seem to be a mistake writers can make. Getting locked into something that they feel they need to remain faithful to even in a disguised form. I’d encourage Shea to take this concept and go in a completely different direction. This has a very, artist working through something, feel to it. The story, aside from the high concept musical score that follows the character around part, feels like something that might have happened, which always feels cliche. The main character is really unsympathetic and this makes all of the resolutions feel unearned. I don’t want to discourage Shea, I think the general concept is really strong and as a performer I thought he was convincing even when the story wasn’t. I would definitely be on board for Allegro Take 2.

https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2023/allegro

THE STAGES OF MN FRINGE OF THE DAY AWARD winner!!!!

Boy Crazy is the one woman show by Madde Gibba who sings and overshares about her adventures with men. Combining various elements of storytelling, audience participation, in scene reading, and the performance of original songs, it’s another show that will be slightly different each time. So if you love it you might want to take it in a second time. Gibba, is so open and engaging of a performer that we are instantly with her. She’s very funny and you expect to laugh at her songs, but where this takes an interesting turn is that I found the songs for the most part, even after a hilarious explanation of why she wrote it, to be unfunny, but goodddddd. And she’s a very good singer, hamming it up if the song calls for it, or just performing it. These seem to be songs that have, as their catalyst, a funny or painful story, which was used to write a straight song. I thoroughly enjoyed Gibba’s show and her mention of Buster Keaton in a lyric put her over the edge to be awarded the completely useless and unrecognized, ‘Stages of MN Fringe of the Day Award’.

https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2023/boy-crazy

Jagged Little Pill Rock’s the Orpheum and Rings My Ears.

Jade McLeod & Lauren Chanel. Photo by Matthew Murphy, Evan Zimmerman for MurphyMade, 2022

Jagged Little Pill, the third album from Alanis Morissette released in 1995 was kind of a big deal to my generation. We were in our early twenties transitioning into adulthood which is what the album felt like for Morissette, less pop, a little darker, with a more mature sound and lyrics. After 5 straight days at the Minnesota Fringe Festival and 26 shows, I needed to switch gears and was looking forward to shaking it up a little bit. Then it happened, our soccer team Minnesota United progressed in League Cup to the round of 16 in a penalty shootout…a home game on the same night. This is as close as I ever want to be to a Sophie’s choice situation. Theater is my passion but as Dani Rojas says, “Football is life”. Professional, or in my circumstance hobby, integrity won out and I opted to honor my commitment to review Jagged Little Pill: The Musical. Spoiler, I watched the game after the show and the the Loons won again in a penalty shootout and are progressing to the quarter finals this Friday at 7:30 PM! I will be honoring my Fringe commitments and watching the game around midnight, at least it’s an away game. But I digress, in the end I made the right decision even though I missed singing Wonderwall with my Loonatics at Allianz, I got to see a show that defied the pigeon hole we tend to put Jukebox musicals in. Jagged Little Pill: The Musical is a show that actually addresses our human flaws and allows us to see that good people do bad things but facing those mistakes is how we heal.

Featuring music by Alanis Morissette and Glen Ballard, lyrics by Morissette, with additional music by Michael Farrell and Guy Sigsworth. The book for the musical won the Tony Award in 2020 and is by Academy Award winner for Original Screenplay(Juno) Diablo Cody. The story tackles multiple issues with parallel storylines running throughout the show. Among the topics explored are rape, consent, LGBTQ+, Drug addiction, marital problems, privilege, adoption, and race to name a few. The show opens and closes with Mary Jane Healy composing her yearly Christmas letter so we get a nice little summary of where each of the characters in the family who are the focus of the show are at in the beginning and a nice little wrap up at the end. Mary Jane is recovered from a car accident suffered that year. Her husband Steve works 60 hours a week as a partner in his law firm. Son Nick has just been accepted into Harvard. While adopted daughter Frankie is always championing a cause, while secretly dating Jo a gender nonconforming classmate. This is a heavy show thematically but all of these themes do coalesce and illustrate how life’s struggles are systematic. Trauma from sexual assault can lead to a need for control, not dealing with it can lead to substance abuse issues, which can lead to marital issues which affect your children. Control can lead to expectations which can create pressure in one child and feelings of second best in another. I don’t want to say anything more about the plot because I think it sounds heavier than it is. It ultimately ends in a good and very real to life place and one of hope. What really is amazing about the show is how naturally the songs work, typically jukebox musicals tend to have a lot of songs that feel shoehorned in, like square pegs pounded into round holes. The tone and feel of the show emulate the vibe of the original album.

The female and nonbinary cast is very strong led by Heidi Blickenstaff as Mary Jane has a powerful voice and turns in a performance laced with sarcasm, vulnerability, and denial, at times wickedly funny and others heartbreakingly devastating. She’s the character everyone thinks is so perfect and in control, but underneath she’s the one spiralling out of control. Ironic don’t you think? Lauren Chanel plays her adopted, black daughter, Frankie. Chanel also has a very good voice and finds the tricky path to walk playing the girl we side with at times but also allowing us to see her privilege, which is also kind of ironic, don’t you think? Finally, Jade McLeod, who identifies as nonbinary, plays Frankie’s romantic interest Jo. McLeod gives Blickenstaff serious competition for best vocalist and they gets a couple of best songs from the album to perform “Hand in My Pocket” and “You Oughta Know“. The men don’t fair as well both Dillon Klena who plays Nick and Rishi Golani who plays Phoenix, another romantic interest of Frankie’s both seem too weak vocally, I’m not sure if the parts are out of their vocal comfort zone or if it’s something else.

Speaking of something else, the one major criticism of the production is the sound mix and design by Jonathan Deans. Everything is too loud and it causes the voices to become distorted, so the audience loses the lyrics that are being sung at times. It’s at the worst when there are multiple characters singing at once, particularly if they are singing different parts. The solo songs and quieter ones are best. The show is well staged and directed by Diane Paulus who uses Lucy Mackinnon’s video projections sparingly and effectively in coordination with Riccardo Hernandez Set Design. Projection as part of scenic design is here to stay, I’m not in favor of its use instead of actual sets. I think it works much better when it’s utilized like this to complement the physical set design. The show allows for a surprising amount of creative lighting given its setting in white upper class suburban Connecticut, but Lighting Designer Justin Townsend gets some moments to really shine creatively, pun intended.

If you are a fan of Alanis Morissette’s album Jagged Little Pill or a fan of musicals like Next to Normal you’re likely to really connect to this show as I did. For your enjoyment there are a couple of suggestions, bring some ear plugs, better to have them and not use them then not have them and wish you did. Second, please note this message from the Hennepin Theatre Trust website for this show so you are aware of anything that might be triggering for you.

Please note: This production contains strong language, adult themes, drug use, and moments of sexual violence that some may find upsetting. Jagged Little Pill addresses many topics of contemporary life, including sexual assault, opiate addiction, transracial adoption, gender and LGBTQIA+ identity, marriage struggles and mental health.
https://hennepintheatretrust.org/events/jagged-little-pill-broadway-tickets-minneapolis-mn-2023/

Jagged Little Pill: The Musical runs through August 13th at the Orpheum Theatre in downtown Minneapolis. Click the link above to purchase tickets. It’s one of the strongest new musicals to come around in years. Tackling complex human issues and illustrating the ways in which we are all more than one thing. We are not one issue, we exist within families and communities and we all affect and influence one another.

Minnesota Fringe Festival Day 5: A Jingle Jangle Morning, Fargo Allegro (Winner of The Stages of MN Fringe of the Day Award), Lost In Bear Country: Birth, God, Death… and the Berenstain Bears, and OPERA PUNKS.

A Jingle Jangle Morning By Spektakular Theatre is a science-fiction play inspired by the imagery of Bob Dylan’s classic song Mr. Tambourine Man. It’s lighthearted, whimsical and perfect for families with younger children. The show was created by Micael and Adam Gauger who also created the puppets, sets, and music for the show. It’s the puppets and sets that are the highlight of the show that tells the story of a young girl who ends up traveling to another world through a portal in an effort to rescue the moon. The most impressive single element is a large blue beetle type creature played by young actor Georgia McPherson. It’s a very fun costume and kudos to McPherson for scampering around on the ground and bringing the creature to life. While fun for the kids, it’s levels out at amusing for adults. While the story and performances are good, there’s a children’s show quality to the production that really makes its target audience the 10 and under crowd.

https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2023/a-jingle-jangle-morning

THE STAGES OF MN FRINGE OF THE DAY AWARD winner!!!!

Fargo Allegro By Nightfall Productions is basically as near as I can tell a line for line reenactment of the Coen Brothers film Fargo. As a big fan of the film and having been raised in Fargo I had to make room on my schedule for this one. I was rather amazed at how complete this production was and how creative in execution. The one addition is a jem of a narrator in the persona of Paul Bunyan played by Reverend Matt himself, Matthew Kessen with Heather Meyer as his companion Babe the Blue Ox. A fabulous cast and crew brings Director Brad Erickson creative staging to life. A combination of clever props, set pieces, projection, lighting, and a wonderful live-musical score under the musical direction of Hawken Paul. The entire cast is spot on but stand outs are husband and wife duo of Jay and Justine Carroll Melchior, Jay plays Jerry and has that Minnesotan accent down perfectly (my apologies if you weren’t trying to do an accent Jay), and Justine as Marge who has to play straight man to the collection of goofballs that surround her. Also Jeffrey Nolan who has quickly made it onto my must see list of local performers, gives a performance completely different from yet just as good as everything else I’ve seen him in so far.

https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2023/fargo-allegro

Lost In Bear Country: Birth, God, Death… and the Berenstain Bears this is a one man somewhat improvised show featuring the Berenstain Bear obsessed ADHD brain of Phil Gonzales. Created by Gonzales with his daughters Willow Piotrowski and Mitzi Gonzales Gravitz, each show features a wheel that Gonzales spins to determine which topics he will discuss, all of which he filters in some way through his encyclopedic knowledge of a certain bear family and their multimedia empire. This is a high energy and very funny show. Gonzales is a genuinely endearing performer who actually piqued my interest in learning more about the Berenstain Bears, whom I hadn’t thought about since my kids got out of first grade. Luckily, Gonzales has a Podcast which is about to hit its 400th episodes titled Deep In Bear Country – A Berenstain Bearcast .

https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2023/lost-in-bear-country-birth-god-death-and-the-berenstain-bears#

OPERA PUNKS is a musical Improv show from Secret Cult Created by Kelly Shuda a former Music Director for The Second City in Chicago. Shuda plays the music in every imaginable genre and the five performers take suggestions from the audience and improvise songs on the spot. This has always been the most frightening form of improv for me to watch, I’m terrified for the performers as I cannot imagine the pressure of trying to be funny, rhyme and on key all at the same time. This cast is fearless though and I laughed out loud (with all the letters) many times.

https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2023/opera-punks

Minnesota Fringe Festival Day 4: Audacious Ignatius: Lost in Atlantis (Winner of The Stages of MN Fringe of the Day Award), Baldwin’s Last Fire, 1992: Mistakes Were Made!, Grindr Help Desk: The Musical, Butts in Seats: How to Get People to Attend Your Shakespeare Production by Having Musical Settings for the Lyrics in His Plays. Numerous Examples Included, Gilda: A Tribute to the Beloved Comedienne Gilda Radner, Let Me Say This About That.

THE STAGES OF MN FRINGE OF THE DAY AWARD winner!!!!

Audacious Ignatius: Lost in Atlantis Kyle Dekker’s new one man show takes the form of a cautionary historical lecture of 19th Century Politician, the second ever Lt. Governor of Minnesota, Ignatius Loyola Donnelly. Dekker’s entertaining and well thought out dissertation draws the portrait of a man whose ego drove his every action and reaction. A man whose speeches drew large crowds and whose course of action was always to attack his critics rather than take the high road. Throughout his life a land speculator, Congressman, Poet, and Science Fiction Author but his lasting legacy belongs to unhinged and science denying theories regarding the lost continent of Atlantis. Like, for real. Dekker makes the case with this look into the past that the more things change the more they stay the same. Instead of the lost continent of Atlantis, we have the lost election of Atlanta theories. Dekker, isn’t so on the nose about it, like a good teacher he gives us the facts and armed with them trusts in our ability to draw our own parallels. Like a good teacher he also makes the subject matter fun as well as informative.

https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2023/audacious-ignatius-lost-in-atlantis

Baldwin’s Last Fire is a mystery play, featuring as it’s protagonist the real life celebrated black gay author James Baldwin, set towards the end of his life during his retirement in France. It’s fun to see a mystery play at Fringe especially one’s that’s played straight, no pun intended. When children of immigrant families begin to disappear and then turn up murdered, one of the parents comes to Baldwin asking for his help as the police are doing nothing because of the color of their skin. They know Baldwin is intelligent and that he understands being “invisible” to those in authority. Reluctantly, Baldwin encouraged and assisted by his caretaker Park, begins to look into the disappearances. Director and star Harry Waters Jr. creates some interesting visuals such as a restless night and a Butterfly motif that are well realized.

https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2023/baldwin-s-last-fire

1992: Mistakes Were Made! is the new show from Jason Schommer. I enjoyed Schommer’s show last year about his relationship with Twin Cities comedic legend Louie Anderson and I liked this one even more. Schommer has a wonderful sense of storytelling pulling details together and fulfilling the promise of seeds planted earlier in the show. It helps that I’m roughly the same age as Schomer and all of his references from things like Days of Our Lives fall right into my pop culture make up as well. There’s a lot of audiences that will relate to his story of growing up overweight in “sensitive” small-town America, and of revisiting those feelings as an adult at high school reunions. Schomer also asks us to meditate on what makes a person a bully, a villian, or just a good person whose done a bad thing. And he does it all while making you laugh out loud.

https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2023/1992-mistakes-were-made-

Grindr Help Desk: The Musical is one of the hottest shows at Fringe this year selling out performances, so if this is something you’re interested in it’s highly recommended that you reserve your seat early or prepare to be in line really early. That said, this show isn’t for everyone, nor does it really live up to the hype. I knew Grindr was a hookup app but I didn’t realize it was just for gay men, having no experience with the app, perhaps if you are a user it will be more up your alley. I expected the show to be raunchy, which I’m fine with, and I didn’t mean to imply that I have any sort of issue with it dealing with gay sexuality, faithful readers know that I always try and boost the signal of LGBTQ+ productions. My issue is that I thought the humor would come from more than just saying naughty things. It’s a show with a great title, a premise rife with potential that is far too willing to settle for the shock value laughs and thus under delivers on every other aspect. There are definitely enjoyable moments and the star Jeremy Johnson is engaging and commits to the material. Unfortunately, it’s the material that lets him down as the songs are really just music that accompanies sexually explicit terms, and most of the humor avoids anything meaningful. It may be that I’m just too old for this material, I’m sure I would have loved it at 18 but at 51, I expect more. So perhaps gauge your interest on where you fall between those age ranges of 18 to 51. So again in warning this is not for everyone, I suspect men who have used Grindr will relate to the humor involving the apps features than someone unfamiliar. Also, it uses a lot of sexual jargon which your Mother probably knows, but you want to believe with all your heart she doesn’t, unless you are super comfortable with all of that, don’t go to this with your Mom.

https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2023/grindr-help-desk-the-musical

Butts in Seats: How to Get People to Attend Your Shakespeare Production by Having Musical Settings for the Lyrics in His Plays. Numerous Examples Included has a very noble goal which aligns with mine and my fellow Twin Cities Theater Bloggers. Creator Ken Takata is trying to devise ways through music to make Shakespeare more accessible to audiences and thus more successful. The problem with the show itself is that it just isn’t polished enough or clear and precise enough in it’s execution. The artists who perform Takata’s songs are all fantastic singers and many of the songs themselves are very good, I was particularly taken with his song for The Tempest. Tanaka primarily needs to work on scripting the moments between the songs so the production as a whole reflects the quality of the musical performances.

https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2023/butts-in-seats-how-to-get-people-to-attend-your-shakespeare-production-by-having-musical-settings-for-the-lyrics-in-his-plays-numerous-examples-included-

Gilda: A Tribute to the Beloved Comedienne Gilda Radner created and performed by Helena K Cosentino shows Cosentino’s affection for the late Gilda Radner. Alternating between giving biographical information about Radner’s life and career with reenactments of some of her best routines. Cosentino’s performances as Radner are all pretty good, not so good that you’d mistake her for Radner, but good enough that many of the routines instantly brought back memories of seeing them performed by Radner on TV when I was a kid. You’ll see all your favorites from Roseanne Roseannadanna to Emily Litella and Baba Wawa. The show pays loving tribute to Radner and was a fun way to spend an hour, remembering the brilliant entertainer that she was.

https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2023/gilda-a-tribute-to-the-beloved-comedienne-gilda-radner

Let Me Say This About That is an improv show starring Raffi Jarvis, Heather Meyer, and Danna Sheridan. Like the other improv shows in the festival this is a show you could see multiple times as each performance will be unique. The question with improv shows is less about what happens, because it’s always different, than whether the performers are funny or not. These performers are funny. The show is structured so that at every performance they improv three fake podcasts complete with commercials suggested by the audience. It’s a fun idea and these performers had me laughing quite a bit which is something of a feat for the 22nd show in four days that begins at 10:00 PM on a Sunday. If you like improv, you are in safe hands with the team behind this show.

https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2023/let-me-say-this-about-that

Hey faithful readers for more Fringe fun follow Minnesota Fringe on Instagram at mnfringe where members of the Twin Cities Theater Bloggers will be taking over the Fringe’s instagram account through Monday August 7th, which is the day The Stages of MN takes control!!