Thursday, August 13, 2009

Revolutionary Fringe Picks!

The Fringe Festival is getting ready to Stage a Revolution! Get it? “Stage”?? Plays – on the stage??? Cool, eh…Anyways, here’s what you’ve been waiting for: your guide to the revolution. Man your barricades, let’s get busy with some serious theatre.

Since it is a revolutionary theme, one would expect to see some cutting edge works and topics, and this year should not disappoint. There are works about Louis Riel, a Canadian revolutionary if ever there was one (“The Seven Lives of Louis Riel”), as well as a musical telling the story of St Joan (“Saint Joan and Me”). There are works about George Orwell, who wrote on revolutionary themes (“George Orwell Is Not My Real Name”), and a new staging of the ancient play “Lysistrata”, which tells of a revolutionary approach to the end of war. We have early plays by the late Harold Pinter, who revolutionized modern English theatre (“Pinter’s Briefs”), and of course, a couple of interpretations of Shakespeare (“The Secret Love Life of Ophelia”; “Full of Sound and Fury”). We have Pulitzer-nominated drama from Jon Marans (“Old Wicked Songs”), and a unique collaboration from Pulitzer-winner Sam Shepard and Patti Smith (“Cowboy Mouth”).

Some of my favourite overseas performers have returned this year: Kevin Williamson, Marcus Fernando, and Erik deWaal are all masters at their craft. These men all show you how it should be done, Between them, they appear in 5 productions (“Pinter’s Briefs”, “George Orwell is Not My Real Name”, “Red Wine & Canvas”, “Full of Sound and Fury”, and “Blue is the Water”). Be sure to catch at least one.

For those of you longing for more B-Movie-style theatre, this is your year. We have not one but TWO zombie plays (“Captain Hook vs. The Zombies”; “For the Love of a Zombie”), Sci-fi sounding titles (“She Came From Planet X”, “Adventures in X-Ray Theatre”, and the grand-daddy of them all – “The Rocky Horror Show”. Cheese galore – fantastic!!!

Curiously, the human body seems to figures prominently in a number of this year’s offerings: “Tasha Diamant’s Human Body Project”, “Never Trust a Naked Marriage Counsellor”, "Full Frontal Nudity" , "Cadaver", and numerous others. Must be something in the water this year.

For all you hippies out there, we have a John Denver retrospective in “John Denver: Rocky Mountain Memories”, and “Transcanada ’69”, which pays homage to the music of Neil Young, Joni Mitchell, Leonard Cohen, et al. Bring your headband and your guitar.

This year is full of opportunities to see new works by local playwrights. From veterans such as Stewart Lemoine, Chris Craddock and David Belke, to playwrights you may never have heard of, but have talent oozing out of every pore, there is no excuse to not support our outstanding local talent. Edmonton is a hotbed of quality writing for the theatre – check it out. Go see something new.

For myself, my personal “don’t miss” list includes “Jack and Jill Deconstruct”, “The Year of Magical Thinking”, “Cabaret Terrarium” and “The Snow Queen”, among others. And who knows what the surprise find of the Fringe will be – we’ll find out sometime in the next week.

And, as you know, I offer this list only as a guide through the many offerings at the Fringe -- I don’t normally “plug” shows. I will make something of an exception this year, however. “From Something” will not appear in your guide, as it is a last-minute replacement for “The Particulars”. The show is written and directed by Kristen Finlay, and stars Joyce LaBriola, Julie Sinclair and Anne Marie Szucs. All are outstanding performers, but this show does not have the benefit of placement in the Fringe guide. Check it out, mention it to friends, and let’s give these artists the audience they deserve. (Remember, they are replacing “The Particulars” – so make the change in your program now – I’ll wait while you get a pen...)

So, go and see as many shows as you can. Ask other patrons what they recommend. If you see an artist whose show you enjoyed, tell them, and spread the word to others. Remind your friends and colleagues that going to the Fringe and not seeing a show is like going to taste of Edmonton and not eating, or going to the Folk Festival and leaving before the music starts. IT’S A THEATRE FESTIVAL – GO SEE A PLAY!!!

AND LET’S SELL MORE TICKETS THAN WINNIPEG THIS YEAR!!!! Honestly folks, it’s embarrassing that we’re being beaten by Winnipeg…. Do your part for the cause.See you at the Fringe!