Finster Finds

September is a traditionally quiet month for theatre in Edmonton.  I think the Fringe has something to do with that.  People need a little time to recover, rehearse and build the next show.  Similarly the audience needs a bit of down time to handle all that happens in the Fall and many are a bit tired out and pocket poor from whatever shenanigans they have participated in over the summer months. There are a couple of shows coming towards the end of September to kick off the 2014-15 Theatre Season.  Kim's Convenience by Ins Choi opens the 2014/15 season at the Citadel Theatre.  This is the Soulpepper Theatre production which started at the 2011 Toronto Fringe Festival.  It's a tight little comedy about a Korean family who runs a convenience store in the rapidly changing Regent Park area of Toronto.  Following it's runaway success at the Toronto Fringe, it was picked up by Soulpepper for an even more successful production ( both commercially and cri...

It feels a little weird to write a wrap-up because technically I am not done.  I have a hold-over show to go to this Saturday so that means it's technically still Fringe, right? I have to say, I was very pleased with the line up for hold-overs this year.  I think they really represent some of the best work that was presented this year - best in that the companies involved worked hard and went the extra mile to produce something that was artistically excellent. It's also very diverse, which I like, as I think it represents the diversity of what Fringe goers want to see. Also, all of the shows held-over made my Word of Mouth posts which tells me that they were the kinds of shows that a Fringe Goer would tell someone to go to! You can find the Hold-Overs here . So, as I look back, here are the shows that resonated the most with me from this year's Fringe Festival.  Bear in mind I did not see everything (I think I saw 27 shows in addition to my own 2): DogFight - This ...

I saw four shows in addition to my own yesterday and in my travels I got from the Fringe site to Scona High School in less than 10 minutes.  I am pretty proud of myself! Here are the highlights from what I saw! Red Wine, French Toast, and the Best Sex you Ever Had - A Sold Out Westbury Theatre for a dance show? WHY?  Because it was so good.  Accessible, complicated, whimsical, & saucy - so many descriptors for this show.  It's held over for good reason and I am so glad to see a piece like this in the mix.  This is one of those fringe gems that makes the Fringe lottery of ticket buying pay off.  You pay $15 and you get to see something worth so much more. Polly, Polly - A really interesting concept and very funny solo piece all about Polly. Sit centre if you can because of the sight-lines in the space, but it's still engaging even from the sides.  It surprised me a little because it wasn't what I was expecting - that's always a good thing. Lot...

A Couple More Word of Mouth Recommendations... I was running a lot yesterday so I didn't get a chance to talk much... 3... 2... 1... The Story of O's McCrackin 2 ( good thing it's held over! ) Daddy Issues Two more days, catch 'em while they're here! As to the running, over the last few days I made it from Holy Trinity to the Garneau Theatre (Metro Cinema) in 6 minutes and from the Fringe Grounds to Scona in less than ten minutes.  For the first feat, Keri Mitchell dubbed me a "Fringe Goddess" so I am going to be getting that on a t-shirt!

Today was our Back to Back Shows day for Crack and Little Monsters .  Both shows went well with healthy audiences for the afternoon and engaged and appreciative audiences.  So wonderful to see familiar faces as well as new faces of people who just came to check us out. We only have one more show left for Crack (Sunday - 8 p.m.) but there are two chances to catch Little Monsters (Friday - 12:30 p.m. and Saturday - 11 p.m.). The response for both has been terrific so I hope you get a chance to catch one or both of them. After the double feature I took in my Janine Hodder Double Feature!  First up was Swordplay by David Belke with music by Darrin Hagen. It's a silly but clever story of royal siblings separated at birth with a prophecy and evil villains and assassins.  The cast was wonderful.  Great voices from pretty much everyone ( although I wished for mics - but it is fringe ) and excellent comic timing and choices.  Mat Busby was delightful as the ...

Here are the Word of Mouth Recommendations for Thursday, August 22nd. I had both my shows back to back today and then saw two shows so I didn't get to ask a lot of people... but here you go! Shangri-La - I have to say I have received the most number of recommendations for this show than any other.  It shows up in the list on any given day only once, BUT I actually have had more than one person that day recommend it. I'm hoping to fit it in, if I can.  Eavesdrop - This is also a repeat! Her Mark - Also a repeat! God is a Scottish Drag Queen - Again! 3... 2... 1... - We've seen this one before too! It's a Bird, It's a Plane, It's Superman - First day to make the list! AN UPDATE - I keep forgetting to put Crookback on this list.  It came to me from someone via twitter so it wasn't in my notebook, but they wanted me to make sure I got it on the list! I hope you all make it out to some shows - I cannot guarantee the pedig...

I slowed down a bit because having two shows was catching up to me, but I have still seen some good things.  Here are the highlights of Monday to Wednesday: The Deep Blue - Moody, tortured, well-acted and directed. If you like a serious piece and if your fringe show choice doesn't have to be about laughs, this is a solid choice. Her Mark - Atmospheric monologues about a family of women from Newfoundland.  Gorgeous lighting and authentic in look and tone.  I loved hearing the accents ( reminded me of home - Fort McMurray ).  Cheryl Jameson delivers one monologue that nearly broke my heart. Little Miss Understood - Any parent of a teen will relate to this, although the teen onstage seemed far more likable than was implied ( maybe I'm just comparing her to my own ). It's a light comedy and suitable for 10 and up. eleven-oh-four - I CANNOT SAY ANY MORE STRONGLY: SEE THIS SHOW - This is my favorite of the Fringe so far. I am not done, but this is a brilliant ne...

These are from the last two days.  I've had some great conversations with people in line.  Remember, read the program for what kind of shows these are.  They are what people recommended, but you may not like certain types of shows or some kinds of content and they might be on this list!  My favorite is on this list (eleven-oh-four) so I encourage you to check that out! We Glow eleven-oh-four Body of Light Bull's Heart Zanna Don't Fruitcake The Deep Blue Sea Crack* Sundogs Flora and Fawna Little Monsters* Harold of Galactus Newman Mentalism Presents: Mind Games Letters to Laura Her Mark 3... 2... 1... This is Cancer I hope to have some more conversations tomorrow! Enjoy the Fringe! Go see a show! * Yeah, so these are my shows - but those were the recommendations.  I did know the people, but they insisted they were recommending honestly based on what they saw.

Here are a few more Word of Mouth Recommendations: The Legend of White Woman Creek Who Killed Gertrude Crump Eavesdropping Lobster Alice Zanna Don't Her Mark 3... 2... 1... We Glow Shangri-La Fugly McCrackin 2: The Whackining This is Cancer Neon Nightz God is a Scottish Drag Queen There's a variety here! I think it's cool that there are dramas, musicals, comedies, solo-shows and dance shows on this list!

I've managed to rack up a few shows this weekend, in between opening both of my own shows, and trips to the beer tent to visit with friends! Here are some of the highlights: Thom Pain - It's a a cool, challenging piece of theatre excellently performed and directed.  Key word is challenging.  This company has taken a real risk with this play, but isn't that what Fringe is all about? Famished - I laughed so much at this completely inappropriate musical about zombies in Victorian England. Well-sung and it holds no quarter on crossing lines. You have to appreciate the politically incorrect.  If you can't, then this is not for you. Letters and Words  - A Dance Show!? Yes! I haven't seen a dance show in years, but I was so glad to see this.  So wonderful to see such strong, powerful, graceful women in this piece.  I found it so engaging. The music was very cool and sometimes it was whimsical, sometimes sad, and sometimes in-your-face funny. I guess I need...

I took a little time today to talk to some people in lines and at the Beer Tents about what shows they would recommend. Here are the Word of Mouth recommendations for Sunday, August 17th, 2014: Hospital Tales She Tells Daddy Issues Maison de Reves  War  of 1812 Off Book the Musical Kidprovisors  Running in Stilts Fruitcake Flora and Fawna 3... 2... 1...

I only saw one show today, but I'm a little spent!  Of course, I also walked in the parade and worked all day, so maybe my tiredness has something to do with that.  The energy was celebratory at the Fringe site as we visited with the other performers waiting for the Parade to start and I think we were all glad that Fringe was finally here! Huzzah! My first show was the Plain Janes production of  It's a Bird! It's a Plane! It's Superman at the Varscona. I really enjoyed Little Fish last year at the Fringe and the offerings from Plain Janes during the season, so I thought this would be a great kick off to the Festival.  It was bubbly and snappy with great singing and dancing.  The script is light-hearted and the cast ran with that.  Sheldon Elter made a perfect Superman/Clark Kent - I loved the contrast to how he played each persona, and Elena Porter was a feisty no-nonsense Lois Lane.  I think my favorite was Ryan Parker as the narcissistic Max Men...

One of the things that you will notice about Fringe is there are A LOT of Solo Shows.  There's a good reason for this, particularly with regards to touring, but it's important to think about what show you want to see.  I have seen some fabulous Solo Shows over the years ( Jake's Gift, Shimmer ) and some I'd rather not name... I tend to like ones that feel more like a play than a story, but I also know that there are incredibly gifted story-tellers on the Fringe circuit. Anyhow, I took a trip through the Program and thought I would highlight some solo shows that look like they will be good to catch ( remember this is sight unseen, based on program descriptions and some research on my part ), so if you are a fan of the one-person show, here are some suggestions: No Tweed Too Tight: Another Grant Canyon Mystery by Vancouver based Ryan Gladstone at Walterdale Playhouse.  This show had a sold out run in 2012. He's also one half of the duo from last year's Hockey...

I couldn't wait to get my artist's package so I went and spent the $10 for the Fringe Program.  It's beautiful this year!  A real souvenir of the festival and very pretty!  What I flipped to first, of course, were the pages for our venue, Walterdale Playhouse. I wanted to see if I knew any of the companies that we were sharing the space with.  Having 2 shows we are going to be in the building every day of the festival and sometimes we have two shows in one day.  I was excited to see some familiar faces from the local arts scene and am looking forward to meeting those out-of-town performers! Here's who's in the neighborhood: From Near: One sick puppy theatricals presents Scrap Paper written and directed by Gerald Osborn. The ultimate stage mother, her reluctant playwright son, sparkling repartee, head-cracking slapstick, and a finale of EXPLOSIVE proportions! Fringe favourite Ruby Swekla reprises the role she created 25 years ago. I'm looking forwar...

I am not the only one in my family who is involved in a Fringe show.  My husband, Mark, is also part of a show that you should check out.  He's lucky in that although you can see him in the show, he doesn't have to be there every night.  How's that work? Well, a couple of months ago he shot a few scenes with Accidental Humour for their production, McCrackin 2: The Whackining .  I know little about his actual role, other than it's funny and he's a lumberjack.  I'm excited to see this show, as the first of the series, Happy Whackin Jim McCrackin was hilarious and I am always so impressed with how well this company merges film and theatre. You can check out the trailer here.  If you watch closely you will catch a glimpse of Mark at around 00:46!

Summer is interesting when you are producing a Fringe show.  July becomes all about prep and then when August hits it feels like an hour glass has been tipped over and started and away you go!  This is exaggerated even more when you are producing and directing TWO Fringe shows (one of which you are also Playwright for).  It's a Fringe show, so I am also set designer, props mistress, costume designer ( well, of a sort - they are both pull-shows, as is pull from your closets, but this is what I want... ), marketer and media rep. I'm so lucky to have a fabulous Sound Designer in Erin Foster-O'Riordan ( who is also acting in one of the shows)  because she always takes sound design as a challenge and gives me more than I can even imagine. I'm also blessed with fabulous Casts and wonderful Stage Management teams who work hard and bring their own special talents to the projects.  AND I am not only getting to see another one of my scripts realized onstage, but also a ...