Sad...

We received news today that a good friend of ours was in a car accident. Her two little girls (2 and 6) are gone and she and her 16 year old son are in critical condition. Her husband was not in the car. Mark went to school with the husband. This is the second of his close high school friends to have suffered a devastating loss of family. We loved her and those girls and her son and it is so sad to think about what has happened and what else might happen as she is still in hospital.

New Horizons...

Met with CK of Artstart today. I will be volunteer teaching/directing a drama class for youth in the inner city who might not have access to arts education otherwise. Today was an 'information' exchange... what the class would be... when was I available. It felt good. It will allow me to teach a bit (younger kids than I am used to, but that's alright) and direct and work with new people. I will also be volunteering in the arts, which I do already, but this feels like a little less self-interested volunteer. I am looking forward to it.

Trial Run...

Today I got the boys up and fed and dressed and out the door at the soon to be usual time and did a trial run of my Tuesday morning trip. Yes, it's Thursday, but on Tuesday we didn't get out the door early enough. In any case, we made it with time to spare. I circled the block so that I was leaving the bus stop at 8:06 AM and made it to the daycare by 8:27 AM and out of the daycare by 8:35 AM. I passed the Timm's at 8:40 AM. That would mean I would have 20 minutes to park and get to class. Completely doable. And if it turns out to be tighter (bus running late... etc...) then I should still have some buffer time. I will also ask the bus driver about whether or not I can put Ollie on the bus at an earlier (and closer to the University) stop. I feel better about the whole thing. And it will only be Tuesdays. On Thursday, I can take Gibson earlier and not have to wait for the bus.

Back to School Time...

I now have everything arranged for 'back to school'. I never heard back from the Before School Care place, despite going in twice and speaking to 2 different people. I also didn't get the best feeling about the place (noisy, disorganized, funny smell...) so I started to look for another option. I started to think about the bus for Oliver and I investigated and that is what we are doing. The benefits are a consistent start time in the morning (Mark will drop off on his days and he will get to work earlier), way cheaper (French Immersion is a 'special program' not offered at my community school so the bus rate is about 1/2 what you would regularly pay), and I can still pick Oliver up after school. I think Tuesdays will still be tight for travel time, but I will make it work (somehow!).

I am also lining up what I want to be doing this Fall. There seems to be so many opportunities and unfortunately talking about possibilities with friends has leaked things out to people who may want me (I was approached by an ELOPE Board member with an 'I heard you were interested...') and I am not sure exactly what I want to be doing. I wish all the offers came at the same time... but they trickle in and you have to decide on one before you get the next and then if that's what you'd rather be doing you are stuck unless you want to be super-busy. I have a few Boards to decide on, and I am waiting to hear about helping with an Independent Production and I am meeting to see about how I could contribute to ArtStart. I am also starting the University course and I really want to get in shape, eat better and WRITE (alone and with AM). The good thing is, I am planning it out. I have a weekly schedule started and I am looking at how it all fits together. Maybe it is a good thing that the boys are on wait lists for swimming at the YMCA... Two less things to worry about...

And in Conclusion...

So, now that I have seen everything I want to give my 'ratings'. Some of this is apples to oranges, but there it is. It is easier to assess now that I have seen more than one show. Some of the ratings are low because of script and direction (Quinn, Bellies and Daisies and to some degree Aloha and Bobby Gould) and some are low due to the actors/performers (Tap Attack, and to some degree Bellies). It is hard to compare because when you look at what they were supposed to be, some hit the mark but the mark wasn't that high. Some had a high mark to hit and failed to hit it. All in all I enjoyed the Fringe and none of the shows were a 'waste of time'. I got something out of all of them.

Diamond Dog (4 1/2*) note: I may have been tougher in my original rating. This is after seeing more shows. Clever script and wel-done production.
Aloha Pinafore (3*) note: Even with a 3* rating... I loved this fun little romp in the high seas. It is just hard to compare to the other more sophisticated scripts without being tougher.
Oleanna (3 1/2*) note: I debate on this... the first 1/2 got a 3* and the second half a 4 1/2*. I sort of split the difference. They just took a while to warm up and I think we should have hated the professor more after the first scene.
Don't Make Fun of Jesus (4*) note: a stand-out stand-up routine... not a play.
Bobby Gould in Hell (3*) note: The script was a little silly. I think it was well done, but the point was hard to get. I really liked the Devil and the girl-friend.
Tap Attack (2*) - note: dance recital...
A Body of Water (5*) - note: This was exactly what the show should have been. There was nothing more they could have done. Some people may have been unsatisfied with the script, but it is supposed to leave you hanging.
An Oak Tree (3 1/2*) - note: would have liked it more as a rehearsed production without the gimmick of the guest performer unfamiliar with the script.
Quinn's Death (2*) - note: I felt that the actors did the best they could with the material and direction that they were given. The script needed much more development and the production as a whole needed a concept.
Pagliacci (5*) - note: degree of difficulty was through the roof. The uncomfortable seats almost made me take 1/2 a * away, but it was just so good!
25 Plays About... Love (4*) - note: I debated on this. The script is not as strong as it could be, but the production as a whole was well put together. I almost gave it a 3 1/2,...
Pushin' Up Daisies (2 1/2*) - note: Cheesy, but not cheesy enough. Camp, but not camp enough. I do expect good things from these guys in the future.
Stars and Sons (4*) - note: I liked this. A stronger ending would have earned it a 4 1/2.
Bellies, Knees, and Ankles (2*) - note: The script was tres weak! The direction was heavy handed and misguided. Some of the actors were obvious and indicating.
Coffee Dad, Chicken Mom and the Fabulous Buddha Boi (4 1/2*) - note: Good script, GREAT actor.
Green Eggs and Kerouac (3 1/2*) - note: Clever script, well thought out production. Wanted a little more depth.
Sylvie (3 1/2*) - note: I liked this, but I thought that it could have been trimmed a bit and I am n into the narrated story as compared to the 'lived' scenes. I thought there could have been more choices by the actors explored.
Putting It Together (5*) - note: This show was EXACTLY what the show should have been. It was sophisticated and the level of difficulty such that to achieve what they did was amazing. It may not be for everyone (too sophisticated?), but it was phenomenal. The most polished and well-put together Fringe show I saw this year.

Wrapping Up....

Yesterday was our last show. It was a really good show, with a fun and involved audience. My parents were there along with my sister-in-law and niece. I could hear my folks laughing through most of it. I come from a family who are not shy about laughing and participating. My niece was decked out in full Cinderella dress. She looked gorgeous. She was too shy to come on stage but I went out after and we took a picture together and I gave her my wand. I hope she uses the magic for good.

I also saw a few more shows yesterday...

25 Plays About... Love - This show convinced me that Double, Double would work well at the Fringe. It was a series of sketches loosely around the theme of 'love'. I think that if the show is well performed, the sketch around a theme idea works really well. I was worried about that, but it is clear this one was well-received.

Pushin' Up Daisies - Very cute, if underdeveloped and under polished, musical. Some young talent that will do well when they gain some sophistication. A great song about always playing the character who dies. I don't know if it deserved the 4*s the Journal gave it, but it was cute.

Stars and Sons - I quite liked this. It was a real play and an interesting juxtaposition of character and story. I was unsatisfied with the ending as I felt it was just done and I don't know if was really as well-written as the rest of it. I thought it deserved more than the 3*s it got.

Bellies, Knees and Ankles - I went to see Linette. She was delightful onstage. She had a real lightness about her that the other three actresses lacked. The play was awkward and predictable and the directed underscored the already too predictable elements... too bad. I enjoyed parts of it and laughed a bit and I admired the actors commitment to the piece. Linette was clearly the most comfortable in her choices... nothing forced or contrived.

Today I shall go see 4 more shows and then I am done with Fringe this year.

Almost Done...

Well, my second Fringe as performer is drawing to a close. There is one more show tomorrow at 3 p.m. and then I retire the glitter for a while. I have a few shows to see and hopefully I can pick up a few more while I am there. It takes a bit of coordination. Tonight I am off to Pagliacci and I am toying with seeing something beforehand if Mark gets home in time, but I do feel dog tired so that may not happen!

This has been a fun Fringe for me. Last year I knew the show I was in was uneven so I was concerned. I gave it my all, but you can only do so much when you are in a big cast. This show I feel is much more even in tone and talent. I like the consistency of it. I like that everyone has expressed different 'favorites' so that no one was left out or felt bad about their performance. I also LOVE the fact that we have been so successful, selling out 6 of our 8 shows (and I know we were at least 90% full on the other 2). It will be gratifying to actually get a pay cheque for doing a show - tee hee! It was also so much fun to do a show that the boys could both come to. It is nice that they have an idea of what I am doing when I am out in the evenings and weekends.