Fringe 2009 - FFA 1 - A Dream Play

"I know it's disgusting because it's full of people's problems."

Tenth Muse

A Dream Play

Freud meets Nietzsche meets Alice in Wonderland (bondage a-go-go style)... as an angelic being descends to earth to bear witness to the sufferings and cruelty of everyday life.

I don't know exactly what rubbed me the wrong way about this one. It's Strindberg. I know I'm supposed to like it. I don't dislike Strindberg on principle or anything. The performers were all just fine. A woman in a (winter?) coat. A guy with red striped arm-warmers. A guy dressed like a refugee from an S&M dungeon, with a mask that had a pointy black beak where the nose should be.

I guess I just don't have much patience right now for the theater of "isn't life horrible? how do we survive it? aren't people the worst of living creatures?" Stop whining, August, and do something constructive with the hour you're requiring we give you out of our horrible little lives. Otherwise, shut up and move over. Your yellow light is turning red.

Maybe I should read the play. Maybe the excerpt doesn't give the best representation of the piece as a whole. All I remember of Strindberg's plays right now are "horny Miss Julie goes crazy and dies for screwing the hunky hired help" and "atheist father goes crazy and dies because mother wants more of a say in the child-rearing." Ouch. Some people are in the mood for Strindberg. Right now, I guess I'm not one of them.

Their facebook page

Their show page

Fringe 2009 - FFA 1 - Applesauce Fiction

"I cry apple juice instead of tears."

Jeffrey Shockley

Applesauce Fiction

A couple, Henri and Francoise, live on a planet which is undergoing a food shortage. Science (or whatever) has discovered a way to travel between different potential universes, and those in power invite Henri and Francoise to conceive of a universe in which they have everything they want. Upon being conceived, the universe exists, and Henri and Francoise receive everything they could ever want from their "newniverse" selves. However, when they realize their dream world necessitates oppression and slavery, Henri and Francoise must confront themselves and overthrow the newniverse government in a coup d'etat.

This was a weird one. But a good kind of weird. A male/female couple sit in matching inner tubes, sporting matching Fu Manchu moustaches on their faces (yes, the female, too). [An homage to the alternate universe episode of the original Star Trek? Isn't everything?]

They sloppily feed one another applesauce, try to kiss off some of the excess, and end up just leaving the rest of it hanging off their faces for the remainder of the preview. Oh-kaaay...

It turns out these two are the benevolent dictators of an alternate reality, addressing (I think) their counterparts in our reality. They trot out their happy slave who backs up their claim of benevolence. She wears water wings. Apparently she has to swim in the regular pool, with water. Our inner-tubing, bewhiskered dictators float in a pool of apple juice. (And they got out on the yellow light, perhaps to go with the apple juice theme.)

It's a new play, and a strangely inventive one. The performers are all very enthusiastic about throwing themselves into the deep end of the oddity pool. Can't put my finger on it but I am strangely drawn to this one. Perhaps you may be, too. It looks like fun.

Their show page

Fringe 2009 - FFA 1 - Crescendo

"All you've got is a moment. And that's not even close to a story."

Allegra Lingo

Crescendo

Through the eyes of a misfit joker, Allegra Lingo discovers that small beginnings can build into a powerful end. Inspired by the music of Aaron Copland, it's like Fantasia, except with words instead of dancing brooms and scary demons.

Allegra Lingo, creator of past Fringe hits Tipping the Bucket (2008, Fringe Encore Winner Rarig Arena), I Hate Kenny G (2007, Fringe Encore Winner Playwright's Center, A Heap of Broken Images (2006), and Hubcap Frisbee (2005), returns to the Fringe with her fifth, and final, solo show.

To be clear, the opening quote above is from the script, not my evaluation of it.

So, Allegra's hurdle this time is to compose a script that accompanies, and is accompanied by, various selections of classical music. As a sample, she trotted out her prologue. To the strains of "Fanfare for the Common Man," (which she kept telling the tech in the booth to crank up the volume on), Allegra battled with her inner critic to fashion a story of her joker hero. (And she did it all, getting out in the yellow light zone besides.)

I've got a bit of a leg up on some in the audience for this one, since I attended her full preview, and moderated the Q&A afterward. So I'll spill a bit more. Allegra weaves together her own re-imagined tale of Daedalus and Icarus (who, among other things, dealt with the half-man, half-bull Minotaur in the labyrinth and built wings and flew a little too close to the sun), and moments from her own daily life with her partner and her dog. She even uses props! The music stand's still in evidence, but just as in the shows that came before this, she continues to push herself to step away and, well, perform a little more. While I'm not fond of the whole "artists talking about their art" genre, I am fond of old tales told again, so they balance each other out nicely. Plus, Allegra's got quite a track record. It is best not to underestimate the woman.

Unless she's like Cher with repeated farewell concert tours, this is the final solo show in the Fringe for Allegra. I know Mom's not going to want to miss it. And I wouldn't disappoint my mother, now would I?

Allegra's website - www.allegralingo.com

Her show page

Fringe 2009 - FFA 1 - First Lady On Mars

"You are *not* talking about Mars again!"

Charlzik Theatre Company

First Lady On Mars

Losing the first election to a very popular president, she vows to win the rematch. How? Be the first woman to land on Mars! Audience gets to vote for the winner. Featuring plutonium, cheese curls and Tab.

So what if someone who is clearly supposed to be Hilary Clinton was not only obsessed with power, but also obsessed with journeying to Mars? Our Hilary stand-in has an assistant with hair as pink as her can of Tab. She also has an ex-husband who is a reporter on the trail of the Mars story (and who looks so good in a suit, you really wonder what possessed her to dump him). So this all coheres into a story involving politics and audience participation somehow. Not a lot to go on here. Maybe it needs a tap-dancing crackwhore. Or just more of the cute reporter guy. But they just squeezed in all they had, getting done, just as the yellow light was turning over to red.

Their website - www.charlzik.com

Their show page

Fringe 2009 - FFA 1 - Best Little Crackhouse In Philly

"We trade drugs for inappropriate hugs!"

Epic Arts Repertory Theater

Best Little Crackhouse In Philly (or Crackwhore - The Musical)

TAP-DANCING CRACKWHORES SING SHOWTUNES! Shenanigans abound as former Twin Cities theatre slut Stan Peal brings us his sick, twisted cabaret that won the top prize TWICE at New York's Bad Musicals Festival!

"Best Little Crackhouse in Philly" is a perverted satire with a not-so-subtle feminist message. Why stop at glamorizing prostitution with the likes of Dolly Parton and Julia Roberts? Why not sing about what really happens in a crackhouse? The addiction, the assault, the disease. Desperation, abuse and the occasional dead crack baby. Well... because that would be so very wrong.

And what better way to begin the second half of the Fringe-For-All evening than with tap-dancing crackwhores? Because really, doesn't the theater need more tap-dancing crackwhores?

I gotta hand it to this troupe. They gave it all they had. The crackwhores did indeed tap dance, and they managed to pull off looking both tired as hell, and musical number perky at the same time, don't ask me how. The guys managed to be both skanky and amiable at the same time, don't ask me how. The title number had that old time musical showtune bounce to it.

So if you're in the mood for lyrics like...

"Just bring your dick and stick it in a chick!"

or a musical that won top honors not once, but *twice* at the Bad Musicals Festival in New York...

then this is your show.

And if not, well, then you're me.

This one's gonna have no problem selling the seat I would have filled. Trust me.

Go with God, crackwhores and johns. I admire your pluck. And the fact that you did it all within the confines of the green light. Under 2-1/2 minutes to create a squalid little world. Well done.

Their website - www.stanpeal.com

Their show page

And of course, a musical trailer (now with 50% more projectile vomiting)...

Fringe 2009 - FFA 1 - The Tragedy of You

"This is called an Elizabethan aside, and you people in the front row better prepare yourselves."

Joseph Scrimshaw Productions

Tragedy of You

A one-man five-act Shakespearean tragedy! "Fringe Favorite" (Pioneer Press) Joseph Scrimshaw weaves the real life ambitions and tragic flaws of a random audience volunteer into a sophisticated mad-lib of murder, madness and comedy!

Featuring original music performed live by Dennis Curley!

Tragedy of You is a unique combination of storytelling, improvisation, audience interaction, music and traditional theater that celebrates and mocks the characters, conventions and plot structure of Shakespearean tragedies like Hamlet or Macbeth. The show examines what strengths and weaknesses connect all people by replacing the royal protagonist with the life of an actual audience member--what kingdom will they rule? Who do they love most in their life? Who will they ruthlessly murder? What tragic flaw will bring about their (probably) inevitable destruction?

What better way to round out the first half of the evening before intermission than a peek at Joseph Scrimshaw's latest solo comedy experiment? Back again, sans feather duster and French accent this time, he called his pre-selected audience volunteer (photographer, theater aficionado, and squirrel rescuer Scott Pakudaitis) to the stage. A couple of questions, mostly with answers involving squirrels, and Joseph was ready to regale us with The Most Lamentable Tragedy of Scott ("his purple hair extensions billowing the breeze behind him as he walked...")

It's a clever conceit, and I'm interested in seeing it played out over the full Fringe hour during the fest, with someone truly random serving up the bits of raw material that get slotted into the tragic framework. Should be fun.

And, naturally, he got out on the yellow light, plenty of time to spare. The man knows his stuff.

His website - josephscrimshaw.com

His show page

Fringe 2009 - FFA 1 - Silent Poetry 2

(I normally put a quote up front, but, well, this was mime)

Kirsten Stephens and Dean Hatton

Silent Poetry 2

Former students of Marcel Marceau share reflections of this great artist and visionary of the human spirit through their funniest and most thoughtful work, inspired by the man who gave poetry to silence.

That sounds hopelessly pretentious, doesn't it? Well, not to worry. These two are anything but pretentious. Skilled, yes. But also completely goofy. Their preview was a comedic chase scene with a bag of loot as the prize. Kirsten and Dean brought on their own low hanging curtain behind which they could disappear and from which reappear, something they did repeatedly. Down and up escalators, up and down in elevators, disappearing one place and reappearing another, struggling up an escalator going in the opposite direction, driving a car clattering down a set of steps. All to a jaunty piece of music.

I wrote something earlier about why I was looking forward to Dean's return with Kristen. All that still holds. They're definitely worth checking out. Put some variety in your Fringe schedule with a little silence. They got out on the yellow light, obscured behind their curtain as they carried it off on their shoulders. It was only when Robin Gillette started to introduce the next act that you were reminded that for 2-1/2 minutes or so, no one onstage had spoken a word.

Cool.

Their show page

Fringe 2009 - FFA 1 - Oops!

"Smoking shrinks the baby, and I've got to keep my body fit."

Warsh lut Productions

Oops!

(no really, that's the title)

He's gay. She's straight. And now they're having a baby. Oops.

I know what you're thinking. It *sounds* lame. But they take that premise and make a whole lot of comic hay out of it. And in a lot of ways you wouldn't expect. These two characters fight dirty in the way only best friends can, and there's a lot of humor there.

I was also amused by how the one actor turned into the baby-to-be about halfway through - tormenting his mother-to-be any way he could (just like his unintentional daddy). They went out on the red light, but they timed it down to the second, so it was kind of cool to watch them slide in safe at home, even with all the laugh lines.

The thing that sold me before I even saw the preview is that the writer is also one of the actors - Colin Waitt, the oversexed flamboyantly gay and murderous duke from
Bards, and the wandering AWOL soldier from
Baggage. That fact that he's in it would be enough. The fact that he wrote it, and he's spent several Fringe seasons working with
a couple of playwrights I greatly admire, no doubt soaking up some of their writing tricks in the process, has me thinking the odds are very much in favor of a good show here. All that, plus the preview at Fringe-For-All introduced me to his acting partner-in-crime Jasmine Rush - equally fabulous and naughty. That seals it. I'm there. (You should be, too, if you need a good laugh.)

Their show page

They've got their own video trailer up now, too...

Fringe 2009 - FFA 1 - Fearsome Critter

"The most melancholy of the fearsome critters, the swonk, refuses contact of any kind."

Mother/Destroyer

Fearsome Critter

After banjo music leads to a severed finger, a desperate Jack seeks help in splitting from town and his wife guilt free. Will a past friend's obsession with a dead woman thwart Jack's shot at deliverance?

Speaking of fearsome critters, the actor with an enormous walking stick and a wild untamed afro I could have sworn was a wig - but later indeed seemed to be the actor's true hair - just crowded Robin Gillette right off the stage as she read their introduction.

These guys were intense. And funny.

Mr. Afro-tastic held forth about many legendary forest creatures, while across the stage another fellow with a bandaged hand regaled us with the tale of how he lost a finger on the job. Meanwhile, in the background, the playwright/producer sat playing the banjo, in a world of his own.

(And unlike their first red light run in with last year's Fringe-For-All format, this year, out on the yellow. Well done.)

Any show that puts the words "banjo" and "deliverance" in the show description can't be all bad, right?

I was bummed to miss Mother/Destroyer's Skunkape Sexkult last year. (No, really. Don't just take my word for it. Audience reviews on the whole showed a great liking for the thing. 4-1/2 kitty average with over 20 reviews.)

This oddity looks like my chance to make up for that. I'm looking forward to it. One can never have too many fearsome critters, after all. Especially at Fringe time.

their show page

Fringe 2009 - FFA 1 - Nightmare Man

"It's been a while since I've been to White Castle."

Entropy Productions

The Nightmare Man

A hopelessly romantic serial killer reliving his past events in order to discover his one true love. Through this discovery he learns more about himself than he thought possible.

This is where visual juxtaposition gets me into trouble. Robin Gillette reads the above introduction as two actors get into place nearby. Two male actors.

"..in order to discover his one true love. Through this discovery he learns more about himself..."

And of course, gay blogger that I am, I immediately go to the homoerotic subtext place.

(Like we need another gay serial killer story, but that's another blog entry. In that second or two I was just caught up in the possibility.)

I was also scribbling down the note - "longest nose I've ever seen"

The actor playing the serial killer's sidekick, who burst into his own improvised series of cheers and song in praise of their run to White Castle, had the most fascinating face. Built for comedy really. He was like a human cartoon (and I mean that as a compliment). In fact, based on his performance alone, I'd want to see this show. He was that amusing.

(Plus, if his nose is big...)

(end of inappropriate aside)

The strange thing is, the Fringe has two, count 'em, two romantic serial killer shows this year (in addition, of course, to all the other murderers running around in various other shows). There's this one, The Nightmare Man, and then the peculiarly - and ominously - named Your Lithopedion.

Normally, the words "serial killer" are guaranteed to get me walking in the other direction, toward any other show on the schedule. But between this preview, and a friendly message of inquiry from the Lithopedion crew, I'm seriously considering going to see them both. It's the weirdest thing.

But this is what Fringe-For-All is good for - making me question my initial knee-jerk responses to things.

Of course that just throws another spanner in the personal scheduling works, but then Fringe was never easy that way anyway. Better to have too many shows to see, than too few to care about. Plus, they got out on the yellow light, the 2-1/2 minute warning, so they know how to get a preview to run on time. Good sign.

I'm not entirely sure what the heck the additional bit of show description is on about...

A nightmare world retold through a serial killers eyes. Acceptance and truth bring the audience to a level of beauty and terror, that only the mind of a NORMAL person can take you.

...but they have me intrigued, since there's apparently a lot of unusual laughs along with, you know, the serial killing.

Their show page

Fringe 2009 - FFA 1 - Death Camp Diaries

"Like many others, my show is not yet written."

Howard Lieberman

Death Camp Diaries

If there had been no Holocaust, would Israel exist today? If not, how, if at all, would the world be different today? In search of answers, this anti-religious, devoutly agnostic secular Jew visits some of Europe's most notorious former death camps. What I bring home (on July 28th, a mere two days before the show opens) is whatever I find buried beneath the ashes of hate. This raw piece will be interactive, and demand a level of honesty from both performer and audience seldom seen on stage, even in a Fringe show.

You know what? I'm going.

I'd pretty much decided that before, but after Howard's non-preview, I'm sold. He admitted that he struggled, as any good agnostic secular Jew would, against his friend the rabbi who wanted Howard to accompany him on a tour of the concentration camps of Europe. "It'll turn into my Fringe show. And I've *finally* got a good venue this year!"

But he couldn't resist. And I think I'll be glad that he gave in.

If anyone can make the well-trod artistic soil of the Holocaust as subject matter into something fresh, and compelling, and even funny - after everything we've seen over the last 60-plus years since that nightmare happened, then it's Howard.

He just dropped me a message saying he'd love to spend a few minutes chatting about his show.

I think I'd love that, too, Howard. (Note to self to make it happen)

He went out on the red light, but Howard was always going to take the full time allotted to plug his show, and good for him.

His show page

His blog - hlieberman.wordpress.com

Fringe 2009 - FFA 1 - Visions of Johanna

"If the cancer doesn't kill you, I will."

Pont Media (aka, Cole T. Walsh)

Visions of Johanna

Two strangers have a romantic encounter. A cancerous lump is discovered. What happens next? Explore the complexities of unexpected relationships and the challenges of a disease with drama, humor and innovation.

Someone laughed at the mention of "cancerous lump" in the introduction. The hell?

Oh my. I fear for this show. And it's because I actually love this script. I've seen it in various stages of development and it's probably one of the best scripts written for the Fringe this year. It's understated, tender, romantic, and sad - all in none of the ways you'd expect from a script dealing with a subject matter like this.

The challenge? The playwright Cole T. Walsh came shyly out on stage and proclaimed that he would be playing Johanna, as well as the male character in this two person drama, himself. As a one man show. At first I thought he was joking. Then I prayed he was joking. Then I realized he wasn't joking.

Oh my.

It's not that Cole isn't a good actor. He seemed a little nervous, but he pulled off a monologue from each character just fine. He even got done early enough, by the yellow light, that he thought he'd do an audience poll ("Should I shave one half of my face - you know, shaven Johanna, unshaven the guy?")

For the record, no. No you shouldn't.

Any improv comedian can tell you if you're convincing enough emotionally, the audience'll go with you and buy you as a woman, even if you look like a lumberjack or Rip Van Winkle. Facial hair isn't your hurdle here. He got some laughs, mostly pop-culture references (Skittles, the Bionic Woman, swine flu). It's the subtleties I'm concerned about getting through.

The thing I love about this script is the interaction between the two characters. The things that transpire between them that are unspoken. The things not even fully revealed in the words of the dialogue or stage directions.

And I'm not sure one person, no matter how good they are, can do that on their own.

I assumed Cole and his counterparts were going to go out, find an actor and actress, maybe even a director, and just let them dig into this rich little script. And it would be a real gem in this year's festival.

Now? I'm still going. And I'd still recommend you go.

The nervousness of Fringe-For-All is its own peculiar beast. In performance, Cole could knock it right out of the park.

That's what I'm hoping for. Because his script deserves it.

But I fear for this show.

His show page

Fringe 2009 - FFA 1 - Screams In The Dark

"There's always one smart twin, and one not so smart twin."

Good Evening Productions

Screams In The Dark

A family with issues is forced to spend an evening together during a power outage. Secrets are revealed, emotions are confronted and everyone is forced to realize the faults within themselves.

Oh wow. Where to begin? This is one of those things I might end up going to see anyway, but probably for the wrong reasons. The excerpt of the script teeters on the edge of exposition so blatant that the actors were almost saying things like, "You are my brother, and we are in conflict." When the two brunette actors walked out and started verbally going at one another, my first thought was, "Wow, they're dressed in identical blue shirts and white pants, and have almost exactly the same hair color." Then they mentioned they were supposed to be twins and I thought, "Oh! OK. Wow, they're still allowing themselves to be dressed the same. At that age. No wonder this family has issues."

The warnings say there will be violence, adult language, and loud noises/gunshots.

There may also be unintentional laughter. But that's not always a bad thing. It may even be an enticement.

And hey, they got out on the green light, so they've got their act more together than a lot of Fringe newbies.

Their show page

Fringe 2009 - FFA 1 - Boobs

"Big boobs like exercise, too"

Kari Kelly and Molly Dimba

Boobs

Triumphant, terrifying, touching (yes, we might touch ourselves) tales of boobs. Our boobs. Our big boobs.

I heard the word "boobs" uttered, and saw more ample bosom in a scant 2-1/2 minutes (they finished in the yellow) than I've heard and seen in quite a long time. These ladies embrace their physical gifts, even when they aren't always easy to carry through life. They approach the subject with good humor, rather than a "pity poor me" tack, which is smart. ("Oh, you have big breasts, how awful for you.") They're banking on the title, and the subject matter, and their, shall we say, "cast of characters" to get butts in the seats and sell that show. They're not shy about it. They're only as prurient as they need to be for publicity purposes. They may be shameless promoters, but they deliver the comedy.

If you enjoy the idea of an hour of laughs from attractive talented young ladies singing the praises (not literally, I don't think, but who knows, there might also be a song) of their boobs, then this is the show for you.

If not, well, then you're probably me (and you're looking for another show with cute guys in it). No offense intended, just my own particular weaknesses on display.

Their show page

Their website - www.myspace.com/boobs_2009

Fringe 2009 - FFA 1 - The Red Tureen

"No more leather in our pulpit, ladies."

(Which sounds completely naughty out of context, and only slightly less naughty in context.)

Doolin & Dingle

(I have an inexplicable fondness for a company with the word Dingle in its name. The person next to me, an inexplicable aversion. So it's a wash.)

The Red Tureen

In 1847, Father Padraig Bones returns to Kilkieran Valley, Ireland, to find that truth starves and food is a political weapon. Can he solve the mystery of the Night of the Burning House before time runs out?

Father Bones? There's also a character listed as Lieutenant Wiggins. Are they trying to make me chuckle? (Not that that's a bad thing.)

This was our first full-on musical preview of the evening. Backing track (nice music, which sometimes drowned out the soloists - Sing out, Louise!), nine cast members (and that's not all of them), some lovely voices. The lead, Father Bones, seemed to be singing mighty high up in his range, but he managed to pull it off.

You know the template - hard working Irish farming town, a young man returns to his old home town as the new priest, tries to better their way of life, runs into opposition, etc., etc. But I find this kind of familiarity comforting sometimes.

Plus, one of the actors not on display tonight is Alex Carlson, who invited me to the show because he was in my first post-Fringe production last year as the ill-fated Marine Jonas in Leave. I'm showing up to anything he's in - he's a good actor who does good work. It was nice to see it's going to be fun (and not a chore at all) supporting the show he's in.

Bonus points for the final sung "Amen" coming in right on the red light. I was worried they weren't gonna make it.

Their show page

Their website - theredtureen.blogspot.com

Fringe 2009 - FFA 1 - The Comedy Hypnosis Show

"You will find this hilarious."

("It was much better than CATS. I'll see it again and again.")

Katie Knutson

The Comedy Hypnosis Show

Go beyond "Look into my eyes." No barking or clucking here! Audience volunteers improvise each unique show, which could include a talent contest, knock-out kisses, or even missing body parts. And SLEEP!

The Comedy Hypnosis Show is a unique Fringe experience with the ultimate in audience participation - the stars of the show are actually audience volunteers!

Man, this is a hard one to preview. Because of course you can't hypnotize anyone inside of three minutes and also give a sample of the show, even if you go all the way to that red light. So Katie was at a huge disadvantage. Her pre-selected hypnosis volunteer was Laura Bidgood - a very smart choice - and they riffed off one another well, getting a few nice rounds of laughter off in their time of fake hypnosis together.

CORRECTION - This was, I learned after posting, not fake at all! Where is my generous suspension of disbelief, I ask you?

From Katie herself - For the record, Laura was actually in hypnosis, but I did a lot of work with her before and after the 3-min preview to bring her in and out of hypnosis. Because, you're right, no one could bring someone completely in and out of hypnosis in three mins and do anything worth seeing.

From Matthew Foster - Communications Director for the Fringe - I was just reading your reviews on the Planet and noticed you wrote Katie Knutson's hypnosis was fake last night and, uh, I don't think it was.

I do think when Katie said "sleep" and Laura went out like a light, that was 100% real. I don't know for sure - I didn't get a chance to talk to Katie last night - but I know that was the plan. Katie said that she was going to use Laura for previews because they've done hypnosis together (so Laura would trust Katie) and that Laura's very good at getting hypnotized.

Anyhow, you might just wanna check that out. Since it's published and everything.

Me, the disbelieving blogger - So, wow! Laura really did forget the number six existed. And then when counting her fingers, kept going to 11 and becoming increasingly perplexed by it. And Katie's instructions while Laura was under, that laughter and applause were wonderful supportive things all directed at Laura - and not laughing *at* her. How really cool and caring that was, since this person was under her sway, and could easily have been upset. Man, I'm super-impressed with this preview retroactively now. Kudos.

Katie even got in a quick plug for Laura's Fringe show, and I like that Fringey spirit of generosity.

In that spirit, I'm gonna kick this entry over to Katie's Fringe website show page, which provides a more accurate preview, and answers all the questions about hypnosis which would make me nervous in the audience of such a show, and just general things about hypnosis I didn't know. It all made me lean more toward her show as a possibility, and a source of comedy, so that's a good place to answer your own questions about whether it should be on your short list.

Fringe 2009 - FFA 1 - Mansion of Dust

"I come to America to make with the professional doost doost."

Sara Stevenson Scrimshaw

Mansion of Dust

European master cleaners clash in a creaking mansion full of filth and secrets. Who will live? Who will dance? Who is the best duster? Oui! Ja!

The husband and wife comedy/dance team of last year's popular Dance of the Whisky Faerie are back at it again, this time as two professional cleaners with dueling accents (French and Swedish) and dueling feather dusters. Verbal comedy, physical comedy (she's graceful, he's... less graceful - albeit often deliberately), prop comedy, what's not to like? Though a voice in the back of my head did perk up and ask, "50 minutes of dusting? Really?"

But these two dancer-comedians have a proven track record. They know what they're doing. This was funny. I trust the funny will continue.

And they got it all done inside the yellow light's 2-1/2 minute warning. Well done.

(I also enjoyed that host Robin Gillette came onstage after they wrapped up and said, "That was an example, to an extent, that there is dance in the Fringe." The audience chuckled and she responded, "Oh, you know how I meant that.")

Her show page

Their website - www.josephscrimshaw.com

Fringe 2009 - FFA 1 - The Twisted Grin

The actress entered wearing what appeared to be a large orange knitted tea cozy on her head.

Someone in the audience behind me muttered, "I think my mother made that hat."

It's a slippery slope when the audience response to a piece starts to be more entertaining that the piece itself.

Mindless Mirth Productions

The Twisted Grin-Assorted Tales to Amuse and Alarm

An elegant garden party/hanging, a toxic grammar school & a street run by rats; Adapted from works of the late writer Donald Barthelme, these tales and more will take you to interesting and unexpected places.

The Tales to be told are:

Sakrete
A City of Churches
I Bought A Little City
The New Owner
Wrote a Letter
Some Of Us Had Been Threatening Our Friend Colby
The School
Report

After an actor's introduction which covered a lot of the same ground as the introduction just given them by the Fringe-For-All host just seconds before, the actress in the previously mentioned hat sat down and broke bread to toss at some imaginary pigeons at her feet, and talked about her correspondence with the President of the Moon (where prices are outrageously low). The actress was likely cursing that secondary introduction because the applause kicked in with the red light at the three minute mark, and she cried out "No, I'm not done yet."

To which another audience member and I replied at the same time (spooky), "Yes. Yes, you are done. Goodbye."

It was pleasant and quirky enough. Adaptations of good prose are always a solid foundation. I wish them well.

Plus, Tom Cassidy's doing their art work and I'm all for any project he's involved in, even tangentially. The source material does have his sensibility about it, so it's a good fit.

Their show page

Fringe 2009 - FFA 1 - Sideway Stories from Wayside School

Favorite moment - Noah Bremer as the gym teacher dealing with the fact that his fake moustache is not adhering to his face during the climactic apple eating sequence.

Four Humors Theater

Sideways Stories from Wayside School

There is something you ought to know about Wayside School. It was accidentally built sideways. It was supposed to be only one story high, with thirty classrooms all in a row. Instead, it is thirty stories high, with one classroom in each story. The builder said he was very sorry. It has been said that the children at Wayside School are strange and silly. That is probably true. However, when I told stories about you to the children at Wayside, they thought you were strange and silly. That is probably also true."

The creators of hit shows "Mortem Capiendum", "Bards" and "Deviled Eggs" play in the sideways world of Louis Sachar's Wayside School Novels.

Adapted by John Olive from the Louis Sachar's Wayside School Novels.

So the Four Humors crowd is also going the teen/kids Fringe route this time out. Unexpected choice. But everyone's having fun up there onstage, and that travels out to the audience. The source stories are suitably odd, and they've been translated to the stage well. A teacher gets zapped by her own magic spell and ends up turning into an apple - just one of many subplots from the sound of it. As they say, hilarity and awkwardness will no doubt ensue. The preview took their full allotted time into red light/three-minute territory, but it timed out pretty much right on the money. Well-played.

Their show page

Their website - fourhumorstheater.com

Fringe 2009 - FFA 1 - The Mutant Squad!

"I love you."
"What?!"
"Nothing."

First on the Fringe-For-All 1 (FFA 1) hit parade,

Youth Performance Company's

The Mutant Squad!

Get your chainsaw and fight along side Axl, Walter, Winona, and Po as they crush mutant skulls with more style than Macaulay Culkin. Who knew the summer of '93 was so rad?!

This preview mostly consisted of a kind of adorably awkward rap about monsters and puberty. Lots of bravado from characters that folded like a house of cards at the slightest pushback. A last minute cameo by an brigt orange-skinned mutant. I'm a big fan of Youth Performance Company's work in general, so I'm willing to sit back and watch them be this weird. Among the Teen Fringe crowd, they're always a safe bet for quality product.

And they got it all done during the green light period of the first 2-1/2 minutes of their allotted three. Nice way to kick off the evening.

Their show page

Their website - youthperformanceco.com

Fringe 2009 - Returning Favorites - Laura Bidgood and Curt Lund

Rockstar Storytellers adjacent #5

It is a testament to how much I like Curt and Laura's storytelling that they are the (probably sole) exception to my theatergoing mantra, "Given the choice, rather than see another show about an artist's day jobs, I'd put a gun in my mouth and pull the trigger." I have two day jobs. I go to the theater to think about something else, anything else, something more substantial. Please. I beg of you.

However, it's Curt and Laura, so they get a pass on this one. They could make even this, my least favorite subject matter, entertaining.

Though they perform just fine on their own, they make some of their sweetest (and funniest) music when they perform together in the same show. It's two Rockstars in one handy Fringe package, as Laura Bidgood and Curt Lund bring us their latest storytelling duet

Slow Jobs - Serving America at $12 an Hour

Overworked and underwhelmed? Punch the clock with Fringe favorites Laura Bidgood and Curt Lund as they relive first jobs, creepy coworkers, minimum wage, office romances, and doing whatever it takes to pay the bills. What did you want to be when you grew up? And what the hell happened instead?

From the nerds that brought you the Fringe hits Boys Don't Make Passes at Girls Who Wear Glasses, Take a Left at the Giant Cow: A Beginner's Guide to North Dakota and Two Queers and a Chubby, Laura and Curt are proud to present the premiere of their new comedy storytelling dorkfest that will tickle you with real life observations from the nerd perspective.

These two are on a roll. The Fringe lottery has been mighty kind to them, four years running...

They delighted me with 2006's Two Queers and a Chubby, which guaranteed them a spot on the following year's Top 10 list, where 2007 brought us Take A Left At The Giant Cow - A Beginner's Guide to North Dakota. Last year, my Fringe show had the fun of sharing a venue with them and watching them pack the place yet again, this time with Boys Don't Make Passes At Girls Who Wear Glasses.

And now they have their own spiffy website - www.trueenough.com/curtandlaura/, full of glowing press and audience reviews that'd make anyone blush with pride. (I must say, I'm a bit envious.) I also must say that I'm flattered that Laura begins her bio on the Fringe site with...

"Brilliant and gorgeous and funny without ceasing."
(Matthew Everett, Twin Cities Daily Planet theatre columnist)

And I stand by that. Her first impression on me holds true today, bless her fabulous heart (You're fabulous, too, of course, Curt. Again, I'm envious. What great partners in crime they are. What fun they must have.)

Thankfully, they let the audience in on the fun every year at the Fringe. Mom's already gearing up for her third visit to one of their shows.

Fringe 2009 - Returning Favorites

Clearing the decks for a new Top 10 and Top 20 for 2009, here's a rundown of all the returning favorites from Top 10 and Top 20 lists of years past - 2008, 2007, 2006, 2005, 2004 and 2003 (phew) [there's a bunch, this list will continue to grow, check back]...

7/10/09 - Returning Favorites - Allison Broeren - Mumble Mumble Ink Productions [2007]
Twin Cities Daily Planet version
matthewaeverett.com version

7/9/09 - Returning Favorites - Empty S Productions & Tom Reed [2008]
Twin Cities Daily Planet version
matthewaeverett.com version

7/8/09 - Returning Favorites - Dean Hatton [2008]
Twin Cities Daily Planet version
matthewaeverett.com version

7/4/09 - Returning Favorites - Maximum Verbosity [2007]
Twin Cities Daily Planet version
matthewaeverett.com version

7/1/09 - Returning Favorites - Rockstar Storytellers (Rik Reppe [2003], Dave Mondy [2006])
Twin Cities Daily Planet version
matthewaeverett.com version

Fringe 2009 - Fringe-For-All preview recaps

The two-night, two-venue, 59-artist barrage of Fringe previews tried to give us the kind of good first impression that makes us what to see someone's show. Some succeeded. Others, not so much...

7/12/2009 - Fringe-For-All previews are upon us!
Twin Cities Daily Planet version
matthewaeverett.com version

Fringe 2009 - Fringe-For-All previews are upon us!

It's all downhill from here, folks.

There have been several smaller previews prior to this, of course, and there will be more. But this is the big one. Or rather, the big ones.

Monday, July 13th and Monday, July 20th

Fringe-For-All

3 minute previews from dozens of Fringe shows looking to grab your attention.

There are traffic lights at the front of the stage, where the audience can see, and at the back of the house, where the performers can see.

Green, you're fine on time

Yellow, you're down to the last 30 seconds

Red, you're done

This is the time when shows I've been looking forward to, based on a smattering of information, either live up to my expectations, or make me question my judgment.

This is the time when shows I've been curious but unsure about can win me over, or lose me.

This is the time when shows I thought I had absolutely no interest in seeing can wow me and change my mind, or confirm they're just not my cup of tea.

Three minutes.

First impressions can be lasting.

We'll see how things play out.

7pm, Gremlin Theater for the first (7/13) - 2400 University Avenue West (St. Paul), just off 94 between the Twin Cities.

$4, which is the price of your Fringe button, which you'll need for the festival anyway. 29 previews for four bucks, plus you're all set for next week's with your 2009 Fringe button.

7pm, Ritz Theater for the second (7/20) - 345 13th Avenue NE in Minneapolis (home of many a Fringe-For-All, and Fringe show, past)

Another 30 previews. Phew.

The lineups can be found on the Fringe website here, and there's a handy link from their front page there, too, just scroll down to the bottom.

The list has active links to all the previewing shows' pages on the Fringe site, for more info and some video trailers besides.

Plus, if last year's any indication, they'll be posting video clips of the Fringe-For-All previews later in the week, so keep an eye out.

Interregnum 2008-2009 - Blog of the Time Between - Reviews

Some non-Fringe theater got written up as well...

10/8/08 - Workhouse Theatre - 100 - 4 stars
Twin Cities Daily Planet version
matthewaeverett.com version

1/10/09 - The Acting Company - Henry V - 5 stars
Twin Cities Daily Planet version
matthewaeverett.com version

2/15/09 - Youth Performance Company - Little Rock 1957 - 5 stars
Twin Cities Daily Planet version
matthewaeverett.com version

3/8/09 - Workhouse & Hardcover Theaters - Beautiful Stories for Ugly Children - 4-1/2 stars
Twin Cities Daily Planet version
matthewaeverett.com version

5/2/09 - Starting Gate - The Miss Firecracker Contest - 3 stars
Twin Cities Daily Planet version
matthewaeverett.com version

5/11/09 - Workhouse Theatre - How I Learned To Drive - 5 stars
Twin Cities Daily Planet version
matthewaeverett.com version

5/20/09 - People Sittin' Around Doin' Theater - Angels In America - 4 stars
Twin Cities Daily Planet version
matthewaeverett.com version

5/22/09 - Skewed Visions - He Woke Up... - 4 stars
Twin Cities Daily Planet version
matthewaeverett.com version

Not exactly theater to be reviewed, but part of the Tony Kushner fest at the Guthrie...

5/27/09 - Kevin Cathcart, part 1 - 40 Years Since Stonewall, 7 Weeks Since Iowa
Twin Cities Daily Planet version
matthewaeverett.com version

5/28/09 - Kevin Cathcart, part 2 - Discussion
Twin Cities Daily Planet version
matthewaeverett.com version

Back to proper theater...

6/2/09 - Urban Samurai - Protection Program - 5 stars
Twin Cities Daily Planet version
matthewaeverett.com version

6/10/09 - Off-Leash Area - Ivan The Drunk and His Terrible Tale of Woe - 5 stars
Twin Cities Daily Planet version
matthewaeverett.com version

6/23/09 - Live Action Set - My Father's Bookshelf - 3 stars
Twin Cities Daily Planet version
matthewaeverett.com version

And some thoughts on Tony Kushner's new play, premiering at the Guthrie, "The Intelligent Homosexual's Guide to Capitalism and Socialism with a Key to the Scriptures"

6/24/09 - Some Reasons I'll Miss The Homo
Twin Cities Daily Planet version
matthewaeverett.com version

6/25/09 - More Reasons I'll Miss The Homo
Twin Cities Daily Planet version
matthewaeverett.com version

And a couple more reviews before the Fringe consumed my life again...

7/6/09 - Girl Friday Productions - The Skin of Our Teeth - 5 stars
Twin Cities Daily Planet version
matthewaeverett.com version

7/11/09 - The Flower Shop Project - Dawn's Inferno - 4 stars
Twin Cities Daily Planet version
matthewaeverett.com version

Review - Dawn’s Inferno - The Flower Shop Project - 4 stars

“It sucks, but it’s home.”

The sight of a woman in her old high school cheerleading outfit, ten years later, still screaming, is the horror and sadness of a high school reunion in one neat tidy little package. It doesn’t matter if she still looks good in the uniform. It’s what the image represents.

The Flower Shop Project has re-imagined Dante’s “Inferno” as the new play “Dawn’s Inferno,” in which a young woman must navigate the perils of a ten year high school reunion as her own journey through hell. Written by Brenna Jones and Ruth Virkus, and directed by Paul von Stoetzel, it is relentlessly funny (emphasis on the relentless), a little sad, and a little off-putting.

Here’s the thing about high school reunions - they only work for the people who actually miss high school. The people who had a lousy time in high school should just save themselves the heartache and not look back. Dawn (K. Marit Geston) is one of those people who shouldn’t have returned. The fact that this is hell for her makes perfect sense. Fortunately, like Dante had his Virgil, Dawn has her Virgie (Melissa Roy) to guide her through the minefield of backstory and exposition she needs to catch up on in order to understand what’s happening from one moment to the next. The parade of shame and wasted lives is led by Karen (Mame Pelletier), the reunion Nazi who insists that everyone get in line so the party remain perfect. Karen’s (shotgun wedding) husband Carl (Geoffrey Hofman-Frethem) has, to put it mildly, let himself go. The town tramp Phillippa (Amanda Hofman-Frethem) is still followed around by her little acolyte Caitlin (Alissa Shellito), now a Jesus freak married to a successful doctor. The homecoming queen Fran (Amber Barnett) had a rude awakening when her marriage to popular high school jock Johnny (Derek Meyer) dissolved in a mess of alcoholism and restraining orders. The fact that Fran then found real love with Johnny’s brother Paul (Shannon Troy Jones) just makes things that much more awkward, since most of the town still loves Johnny best (just ask Phillippa). There’s also Gerry (Brian J. Evans), the geek who made good (to the tune of millions of dollars in software development), and foolishly insists on coming back to visit the people who did nothing but torment him in school. Lurking around the edges is the creepy faculty advisor Mr. Carleton (Lawrence Levesque) who loves his students just a bit too much. Bruno (James Allen Gappa), the fabulous gay kid who came back to parade his new life in front of people he knows he will only make uncomfortable, seems to be the single person likely to emerge from the whole event unscathed.

If that seems like a lot to cram into an hour, you’re right, it is. von Stoetzel and the ensemble run through this thing like a well-oiled machine, so the pacing never flags. There are numerous moments that are so painful or embarrassing or both that you wish they would be over faster, but that’s just because of discomfort, not because the moments themselves are too long. In fact, I’d argue that nearly all the moments are too short. Exposition, jokes and stereotypes often fly by in an attempt to leapfrog through character development. This is probably a function of the fact that “Dawn’s Inferno” can’t be a two-act play. It lives in a one-act timeframe on the Bryant Lake Bowl schedule. But if there were ever a story and characters that needed, or deserved, more room to breathe, it’s the ones in “Dawn’s Inferno.” Because you can tell the writers and director and actors all want you to know and care about these people - enough so that you’d come back from an intermission, if there were one. But in order to truly do that, the audience needs a little more time to get to know them, not just be told about them. If more time isn’t an option, maybe a smaller, less populated canvas is the answer. The love, missed opportunities and abandonment issues between Dawn and Virgie alone at a table is its own one-act. Fran’s whole “torn between two brothers” saga often threatens to take over the play as it is - a writer could easily give them one of their own. Karen and Carl’s marriage is schadenfreude in human form. Bruno and Gerry could be their own musical.

Right now, everyone’s crammed so closely together on top of one another, it’s hard for any one of them to get a good solid grasp on the audience’s attention. Even Dante took nine different circles of hell to tell his story. The Flower Shop Project has had this play in development for several years. I didn’t re-read “The Inferno” before attending because I wanted to see if the play stood up whether I had an intimate knowledge of the original or not. It does. But looking back now at Dante and skimming over the basics, I realize that’s a bit of what the script was doing, too. “Dawn’s Inferno” makes sure to hit all the points on the journey, but it has to do them in such hurried fashion that nothing ever really lands. I know Dante didn’t tell an entire story about Phillippa or Mr. Carleton, but they’re both examples of characters who, just like the others, could be rich territory for character study. Right now, they’re just jokes. Funny jokes, but jokes all the same. Plus, the script doesn't seem to like many of its characters all that much. I realize this is an allegory for hell, and thus a lack of sympathy in the point of view may be appropriate, but at times it seems almost gleefully mean-spirited to the point of being petty and dismissive of people who are, with all their failings, still human beings.

The writers and actors, the whole creative team, is clearly capable of more. It feels much of the time in “Dawn’s Inferno” like they’re being held back. By the concept? By the time slot? Hard to say. I’ve fallen a little too in love with the gimmicks my scripts were built on myself, so I understand the tempting hazards of it all. Those scripts only started to really work when I’d let go and let the characters take me to the story they were supposed to tell, in the way it was supposed to be told.

The underlying theme of “Dawn’s Inferno” right now is that wherever you come from is hell. Those that escape should never come back. Those that stayed are either stupid or pathetic or both. That may work for a comedy, but it’s in danger of being just a one joke comedy. It’s cheap, and easy, and, to use a word frequently flung at artists, elitist. The difference between “Dawn’s Inferno” now and “Dawn’s Inferno” with one more draft of rewrites behind it is the difference between the current production, and an episode of the TV show “Friday Night Lights.” In the latter, you understand the people who choose to live in a small town, or perhaps have (or think they have) no choice but to do so. Guys between jobs, girls desperately trying not to turn into their mothers, people reliving glory days long gone. That TV show doesn’t make those people noble, but it does allow them the respect of actually being people. Screwed up, but still people. That’s what “Dawn’s Inferno” kept teetering on the edge of doing. That’s what I kept waiting for.

(Side note - Probably not a good idea for a character to invite the audience to negatively assess the play by saying things like, “I’m pretty sure that was the highlight of the evening, but it was kind of anticlimactic when you think about it.”)

But you know what? “Dawn’s Inferno” is smart, and it’s funny, as is. The audience was laughing themselves silly from start to finish. The Flower Shop Project knows how to put on a show. The attention to detail is staggering. Karen the reunion Nazi is there to slap name tags on each and every audience member as they come in and engage them in polite shallow conversation. A red secondary program is the program for the reunion itself, with details on every member of the class, and a couple of sly in-jokes (Judy Iscariot, Johnny Bocca). Looking back at the red reunion program after spending time with the characters is very illuminating. The second the curtain call was over, the cast was tearing down Brian Hesser’s extremely portable set and tucking it away for the night, making way for the Bryant Lake Bowl’s next production of the evening. I admire any group that’s devoted to producing new plays. The Flower Shop Project has its act down. Now I’m waiting for them to take it to the next level.

(Oh, and I have Britney Spears’ “(Hit Me) Baby, One More Time” stuck in my head now. Thanks.)

For the laughs, the acting marathon, and yes, the pain, “Dawn’s Inferno” is...

Highly Recommended

“Dawn’s Inferno” plays Thursdays and Saturdays at the Bryant Lake Bowl - July 11, 16, 18 and 25, 2009. Curtain at 7pm, doors at 6pm (so you can eat and drink just like the characters onstage). Tickets are $12-$15, pay what you can, or $10 for students, seniors and Fringe button holders. Reservations by calling 612-825-8949, or visit brownpapertickets.com. The Bryant Lake Bowl is at 810 West Lake Street in Minneapolis - www.bryantlakebowl.com. Further information can be found at
www.theflowershopproject.com

Fringe 2009 - Returning Favorites - Mumble Mumble Inc

Rockstar Storytellers adjacent #4

speaking of Allison Broeren (aka Mumble Mumble, Ink Productions)...

Another from the Rockstar roster, she's back again with a new solo spoken word show...

My Sinking Ship

Promised to be the best spoken word in a raft ever! Stuck at sea in a raft, Rockstar Storyteller and SlamMistress of Poetry SlamMN!, Allison Broeren, passes the time by spitting stories about ridiculous situations involving beer faeries, scuba diving with Santa, and more!

Allison is returning to the Minnesota Fringe for the third year in a row after successful runs of "All the Things I Never Told My Mother," and "I'll Marry You for Health Insurance." Full of irreverence and hope, probably a shark, and possibly a Salty Salty Seaman. Will she get rescued before it's too late?

(Since she has to get through at least five performances, I'd say the odds are good)

Allison was one of those Fringe-For-All previews that came out of left field and really wowed me. So she quickly found her way onto my Top 20 list for the 2007 Fringe with her first solo show All The Things I Never Told My Mother

I was bummed to have missed 2008's offering from Allison - I'll Marry You For Health Insurance and other shocking revelations, since it went over so well with audiences (4-1/2 out of 5 kitties doesn't happen by accident, after all). I did get to catch her doing her thing in one of the Rockstar Storytellers showcases earlier in '08 at least.

And as further evidence that if I just blog long enough, my Fringey world will just fold back in on itself, Allison has a couple of quotes from happy critics on her show page on the Fringe site this year whose names may sound familiar...

"Her words come out at such a dazzling rate...it's a flurry of clever turns, comical juxtapositions, and the occasional random pop cultural reference that elevates everyday conversation to an art form."
-Matthew Everett, Twin Cities Daily Planet

"A one woman verbal opera."
-phillip low, Twin Cities Daily Planet

Allison sent me an email not long ago with some amusing details on her work in progress...

"...It will be me sitting in a raft telling happy stories to pass the time as my raft is sinking.

It’s a one woman show with no one woman issues."

[Blogger's note - That sounds like it calls from an "Amen" from somebody]

"I’m going to experiment more with sets and my stage manager really wants to throw a lot of water on me, but we’ll see.

I think with the economy and everything people have had a rough year. Artists have had a rough year, I can attest to that. My gift back is a show about hope, happiness, and ridiculously funny situations. It’ll be a writing challenge to me which I’m excited about. I’ve been asking a lot of people what stories they’ve held onto to get them through tough times and I am going to be retelling some of them in one form or another.

That and I really want a raft to use on the lakes this summer and this way I can write it off."

Ah, inflatable rafts in the Fringe. How I've missed them...

Fringe 2009 - Returning Favorites - Empty S Productions/Tom Reed

Rockstar Storytellers adjacent #3, by way of Maximum Verbosity (and Allison Broeren)

Empty S Productions & Tom Reed

Parry Hotter and the Half-Drunk Twins

One man. Seven books. No rules. An irreverent solo reenactment of the eccentric tale of Harry Potter, mixing in pop culture and song, this parody will delight most Potter fans, but not uptight fun-haters or centaurs.

This one's sort of a combo platter/two-in-one deal. Empty S (Michael Shaeffer) was on my Top 20 list in 2008, and Tom Reed is one half of the improv duo Rampleseed, who were #1 on my Top 10 list last year. I also spotlighted Rampleseed a bit in my coverage of the 2008 Twin Cities Improv Festival.

I loved both Empty S's Roofies In The Moccachino and Rampleseed's Reincarnation - Another Chance At Failure a whole lot, just like I thought I would. (I saw Reincarnation twice - no, that's not a reincarnation joke.)

Tom Reed's improv partner Tyler Samples moved to Chicago to try his fortunes in the improv scene there, shortly after last year's Fringe.

Tom, a spoken word as well as improv guy, continued experimenting with all manner of comedy, including a new lounge lizard nightclub act Lounge-asaurus Rex. (Despite the goofiness of the pretext, I was surprised to find Tom has a damn nice voice, too.)

Empty S got in the Fringe through the lottery on the first try. Tom languished near the bottom of the wait list. Michael teamed up with Tom to give him a chance to perform. Ah, community!

Tom's Potter mash-up is perfect for Mom's visit, since she's read all the Rowling books and I have yet to read even one of them. I basically catch up by watching the movies with her once every year or so. So if any of the jokes fly by me, she can catch them and act as my Muggle translator. (Wow, I think that's the first time I've ever used Muggle in a sentence - and I may have used it wrong. See, I need Mom to come help me out.)

Tom Reed is guaranteed laughs in my book, and in a Fringe of uncertainty, it's nice to do one or two things to stack the deck.

Check out Tom Reed's YouTube page, you know, just for fun, while we wait for the Fringe to start. It has nothing to do with Harry Potter, but Tom's a funny guy.