Fringe Snapshot, Day 8

Sorry for the delay, folks. I spent the better part of my morning writing thank you cards to hand out to the cast of both of my shows, since one closes today and the other tomorrow. Figured it was one of the last chances I'd have to get in some uninterrupted time since my Fringe days are both quite full.

Some much needed laughs, some unexpected time in the spotlight. A brief overview. More complete reviews to follow...

Before Dark - 4-1/2 stars - Unfortunately, they're closed now. I saw their last performance and it was just what I was hoping for. The troupe from last year's Exposure have done it again. And they're forming a new company to continue their work - The Live Action Set - so be on the lookout for them in the coming year between Fringes. The dangerous thing about knowing several members of the cast - if they see you, you're drafted. So I became a performer in the Fringe as a rather bewildered secondary pirate for about five minutes. There's a reason I stay offstage, people. Let the professionals handle the acting. I have to admit it wasn't nearly as terrifying as I'd feared. They're very good sports, in addition to being amazing dancers and physical comedians. This is a group to watch.

Agog - 3-1/2 stars - Always good to get in a little spoken word, and there's much to choose from, so I encourage you to do a search on the site for your remaining spoken word options. The standouts in this group were Eli Weintraub and Allegra Lingo (Allegra's three part wedding saga was particularly funny and moving and, in my mind, worth the price of admission all by itself). They have one more show, today, Saturday at 10pm. Visit their Fringe page and add it to your schedule.

Lokasenna - 3-1/2 stars - Here's a group using the Fringe as an incubator for new work. The play is still very much a work in progress, in fact only a series of disconnected scenes involving the same characters, but the cast and musicians are a hard-working bunch, putting their all into it to see which material works in front of an audience and which does not. I think it's great to see a group taking a chance like this. I've seen more polished productions that annoyed me because I felt they were wasting my time. Here, the final gloss may not be on the product, but the commitment to the process of this bunch is everywhere evident, and it's clear they've even learned a lot and improved since they opened. Not for every taste, but I found it a refreshing change of pace. They have one more show, tomorrow, Sunday at 5:30pm. If you have a taste for theatre in its formative stages, visit their Fringe page and add it to your schedule.

Jack & Ben's 10th Annual Bar Crawl and Moveable Feast - 5 stars - I stand in awe of Mr. Scrimshaw. Not only does he play seven characters, seamlessly, all by himself - but they are more than funny (hilariously so), they are almost heartbreakingly human. There is a layer of sadness running just below the surface of this wildly amusing script that gives it an extra punch, and makes us root for the characters all the more. It's brilliant work. He has one more show, today, Saturday at 10:00pm. Visit his Fringe page and add it to your schedule.

Punk Rock Awesome - 5 stars - There's a reason this is one of the most popular shows in the Fringe, and that the Punk Rock trilogy and Ferrari McSpeedy have gained an ever-growing following. They're amazingly good and the laughs never stop. This show is great fun. An action movie set on the tiny Brave New Workshop stage. The action sequences, particularly the arial battle toward the end, need to be seen to be believed. It's a hoot. They have one more show, today, Saturday at 5:30pm. Visit their Fringe page and add it to your schedule.

Dandelion Snow - 4-1/2 stars - Had between 60 and 70 people in the house. Great crowd. The cast was, as ever, wonderful. Just one performance left now - today, Saturday, at 4pm. Come join us and give these hardworking actors a proper sendoff.

I should know better than to schedule a show after one of the Dandelion Snow performances. I never make it. This time, instead of Good Clown/Bad Clown - which still has two more shows, today, Saturday at 5:30pm, and tomorrow, Sunday at 2:30pm. Visit their Fringe page and add it to your schedule...

Anyway, instead of that, I ended up going to Fringe Central with my cast. OK, note to self: Don't drink alchohol, even to be social because all the other kids are doing it. I'm a lightweight. A couple of beers and I become quite pathetic. When your cast says things like, "You need to hang around me more often. You make me look better. You're even more bitter than I am" or "You're starting to sound as needy as (so and so)" or "Are you feeling all right?" - it's time to stop. So basically I should have stopped before I started. The young, energetic and stunningly talented guys and gals of Buckets and Tap Shoes were great entertainment, but in my state at the time, God, they made me feel so old.

By the way, they have one show left - today, Saturday at 7:00pm, which will very likely sell out so get there early. If you can get in the door and get a chance to see them, you'll be very glad you did. Amazing. Check them out.

I can't even flirt properly when drunk. Things that don't bother me sober - being single, fast approaching my 40th birthday, still being at the same damn day job - are intensely depressing when I'm drunk. I'm a mopey drunk, the worst kind. I've learned my lesson. No more. If you want to buy me a drink, make it a soda, or better yet, water.

Now I'm going to try and elaborate on all of that - well, all but that last bit.

(For more of my writing - plays, past blog entries and more - visit www.matthewaeverett.com)