Finster Finds

Today we had our 2nd SOLD OUT show for Double Double: The Musical.  It was so much fun.  It's weird because we still have 3 shows left but it also feels like Fringe is almost over! Three more for Double Double and only one more for Shout! (which is already almost Sold Out).  So, this has certainly been a terrific Fringe! And now for a little watching... Love Letters - This was a wonderful piece about two people corresponding from elementary school to late adulthood.  The correspondence between Melissa (Holly Turner) and Andy (Brian Dooley) is charming, funny and in some places heart-breaking.  It was a delightful piece of theatre with terrific acting.  You know they are good when you are completely captivated and they are just sitting there reading letters. That's all I could manage.  With the 2 show schedule I have to take it easy (and it's killing me a little bit!).

I had a great time talking to people lined up to see Shout!  today about what they would recommend for my Word of Mouth blog.  It's the halfway point so people have seen more shows and I am getting some variety.  One gentleman asked me to be sure to say that the shows recommended were well-done but that people should see read the descriptions, because not everyone likes musicals and not everyone likes Pinter.  So, if a descriptions interests you and it's on this list, this likely means it's well done and you can safely check it out! Edgar Allan (this has been mentioned A LOT) Kiss Around Pass Around Beau & Aero Loon Ordinary Days Assassins Fiddler on the Roof Bonnie & Clyde The Lover Gidion's Knot A New Brain I hope you can check some of these shows out!

Yesterday I snuck in a show between my two shows and I forgot to mention one from the earlier day (all that hairspray I am inhaling is affecting my memory I think!).  Life is a Musical! - It seems the only time I catch Improv is at Fringe and this is the 3rd time I have caught Grindstone Theatre's live improvised musical.  The story this time centered around a Barista from Starbucks named Sasha.  They cleverly tied it to West Side Story and it was a lot of fun. Highlights for me were the villans, Antonio (Neil Kuefler) and Banderas (Mark Vetsch) whose machismo was hysterical and the absolutely brilliant Mary Hulbert who played Sasha.  Hulbert sang a torchy long song (she's done this before) that I hope they recorded because it was so good. A sure-fire, super fun, hour of improv! Loris and Beaver Play BINGO - I caught this earlier in the week. It's a play about writing a play.  As a playwright there were things I connected to in terms of the struggle t...

Checked in with a few more Fringe Goers in the line-ups and beet tents and got some more Word of Mouth recommendations for shows you should try to see: 2 Ruby Knockers, 1 Jaded Dick Release the McCrackin Edgar Allan The Second Self Pacific Times Subway Stations of the Cross Allure Fear and Loathing Shout! (squee! from a stranger, so it's legitimate!) Miss Katelyn's Grade Threes Prepare for the Inevitable Tall Tales & the Tinkerbox presents: Beautiful Nonsense I'll be out scouting for more recommendations tomorrow after my 2:15 p.m. performance of Shout! If you see me, let me know what you recommend!

On Friday I had two Openings - Shout! and Double Double .  It's the tightest two show day in my Fringe schedule and all went terrifically well! With Shout! at 4 p.m. and Double Double at 8:45 p.m. I had a nice 2 hour turn around to change make-up and eat and refocus and it was enough.  It makes the other 2 double show days feel imminently manageable! Whew! Shout! kicked off the day.  We had a fabulous, receptive audience and despite some mic issues (mostly mic tape coming off due to our womanly glows...) we rolled with it and had a great time. So great to be singing these songs and playing these characters in front of an audience again.  We've since been reviewed by the Edmonton Journal (3 stars - and an exceptional write-up!) and VUE Weekly ( 4 Stars - YAY! and another great write-up). Our Saturday night show was even better and it was great to have so many people there for an 11 pm show! Tomorrow's show is selling incredibly well - I can't wait! Double Dou...

One of my regular Fringe Features is WORD OF MOUTH, where I ask people in line ups and the beer tent what they have seen that they would recommend. If they're artists I ask them to name something other than their own show... I try to talk to a variety of people because tastes are varied and these come with no qualifiers so I recommend you still read the Program to see what the show is about... rooms//apart The Famous Haydell Sisters Comeback Tour Nantucket Mama's Boy Gidion's Knot A New Brain Amish Project Folk Lordz Gordon's Big Bald Head No Belles Oh Manada! Shadows in Bloom Edgar Allen I did have one person say Shout! but it was a friend of mine.  He insisted that he was recommending it to people, but I think I will wait until a stranger mentions it to me before I add it to the list! I'll keep chatting and getting more input.  One thing is clear, there is a lot of good stuff to see!

Well, it's been a heck of a build-up for me.  That's what being in and directing two shows will do for you, never mind the myriad of other related tasks, but it's here! Tonight I walked in the parade dressed as the Orange Girl from SHOUT! and handing out materials for both it and DOUBLE DOUBLE! People seemed receptive to both and although the pavement was not kind to my go-go boots, it was a lot of fun.  Then I caught my first Fringe show.  This Fringe will be a little different as I seriously doubt I will hit my usual 20-30 shows due to my own performance schedule.  I am getting what I can in! My first show was AfterFat by Carlye Windsor which spoke to body image, particularly with regards to being heavy.  It was an autobiographical journey and was very honest and as a larger than average person with a lot of personal confidence I found a lot I could personally relate to.  Windsor is very charismatic and charming and is best when her natural humour co...

Fringe is almost upon us!  It's my favorite time of the year and I feel kind of bad that I have let my blogging slip (missing posting on the Mayfield's The Long Weekend - a fun show and a great date night with the husband!), but the fact is I have two shows on the go and I am onstage in both of them. Not only am I onstage, but they are both ensemble musicals so it's not like I'm popping in for a cameo. I am singing and dancing in both and while it is terrific fun, it has been taking up a lot of my time! What am I doing? you ask... Let me tell you! The first show is familiar, because it is a remount of Shout! The Mod Musical , which I directed and was in earlier this year.  We had a 4 show run in January at C103 with wonderful houses.  We were thrilled to get a Fringe spot because it meant we could re-visit and tighten the show and we've even added more choreography and changed up a few costumes!  It was a really solid show in January and I am pleased to say ...