Did a Show... Caught a Show! Love Letters...

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!).

And so we've started! Woo Hoo! Saw some shows too!

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 Double was also terrific fun.  Since it's a new work, we weren't sure how it would be received, but the laughs started off the top and we left the theatre floating. I can't wait until Tuesday when we get to do it again! We haven't been reviewed yet - but I found this fabulous tweet series on twitter and it made me feel pretty good!

I also got out to see a few more shows - not as many as usual, but I gave it a good shot!

Assassins - I'm a Sondheim fan so I was drawn to see this.  You don't get to see Assassins done very often, as it's challenging and hard for audiences to connect to because all the characters are, well, assassins.  I was frustrated by the lighting and the the pace, but it was a good show overall. Highlights for me were Jeff Page as Sam Bick, Nancy McAlear's comic timing as Sarah Jane Moore, and Chris W. Cook as Charles Guiteau. 

Self(ish) - This is simply a beautiful modern dance piece. It was humorous, strong, touching, and very complete.  I want to see more things like this throughout the season. I've been to a few dance shows, but some of them felt like they were still experimenting. This one feels like it is well developed and I was amazed by both the story-telling and the physical abilities of the dancers. 

No Belles - I don't usually go to Storytelling shows, but the topic was and is compelling.  This is the show to take you children - girls AND boys - from ages 10 and up to.  They need to be able to listen, but that's the age we need to reinforce the message of the show.  The stories of the Nobel prize winners (and should-have-been winners) are so inspiring and heart-breaking and we need to realize that we still have further to go.  It's not a theatrical piece - but it is delivered thoughtfully and artfully. I did feel that the standing ovation at the end was more for the women the play was about, than for the performance itself, but that's okay - those women deserved it. 

Release the McCrackin - the third installment in the McCrackin trilogy was SO MUCH FUN! We took the boys and they howled with laughter. Even if you haven't seen the first two, you will be familiar with the movie tropes they are playing with and they build in enough back story to keep everyone in the loop. Their merging of film and theatre is so good that the audience broke into spontaneous applause several times after particularly cool sequences. Here are the boys mini-reviews:

Gibson - "I get this! I really get this! I want to see that again! Oh, and my sides hurt from laughing so much!"

Oliver - "That was HILARIOUS! Oh, the references! They have, like, ALL the references! So good."

They are not that articulate, but you get the idea... 

See a show! 

Getting Ready for Fringe! Double Double and Shout! Twice the Fun!

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 it's even stronger now.  It's funny how learning choreography over again is actually a lot easier.  I don't even dread putting on the white go-go boots!  It's also been fun getting back together with the girls onstage and backstage, and the music is so great to sing.  For me, being able to sing these iconic songs, with 4 other women who can really handle the 4 and 5 parts, is something that I have truly missed. 

Featuring: Leslie Caffaro, Nicole English, Kristen Finlay, Erin Foster-O'Riordan, & Monica Roberts
Directed by Kristen Finlay
Music Direction by Sally Hunt

Choreography by Kelly Webber

The second show I am involved in is Double Double: The Musical. I am wearing many hats on this production as I am co-writer, co-director, co-producer and I am onstage performing in it.  It's been amazing to see and hear my second musical come together.  We are blessed with a terrific cast and team and that has made it all the better.  It really is a ridiculous little show - in a good way!  The songs are varied in style and are tuneful ear-worms.  I am so thrilled with the work our arranger, Matt Graham, has done to help bring our musical vision to life. I don't even think you need to like Tim Horton's to have fun at this show - if you have a favourite, you understand the addiction and brand loyalty, and whether you recognize yourself or other people in the characters of the show, I think there will be some connection. 

Featuring: Owen Bishop, Justin Deveau, Kristen M. Finlay, and Nadine Veroba
Written and Directed by Kristen Finlay & Anne Marie Szucs
Music Arrangement by Matt Graham
Music Direction by Arielle Ballance
Choreography by Leah Paterson
Sound Design by Erin Foster-O'Riordan
Stage Managed by Kirsten Jensen