The Fringe 2005 Ping Pong Ball Awards

The "I've A Feeling We're Not In Kansas Anymore" Award, Part 1

Aggravated Assault Ensemble

This is not the Oz of Dorothy and Toto, but the Oz of HBO's prison drama. Not for the squeamish.

This troupe from Iowa is back again with more naked guys and more violence. For some, that should be enough to insure hefty audience numbers.

In fact, if I'd had my act together, they would have been listed as one of my pre-Fringe Guilty Pleasures last year, a show I probably shouldn't be drawn to, but I can't help myself. There's a little of the masochist in all of us around Fringe time, I guess. If I hadn't had two shows in Fast Fringe that I had to help tend to, plus my own script Dandelion Snow on the boards as well just down the block, I probably would have had enough wiggle room in my schedule to see Aggravated Assault in action.

Many did, however, and they were all pretty impressed - 4-plus stars, and words like "excellent," "brilliant" and "wow" were bandied about in audience reviews. For a refresher, here's what last year's offering was about:

"Axis Mundi - This rough-and-tumble physical theater piece is based upon what appears to be a simple story: two men (one dark, one fair) fight for a prize, and what happens when one wins. It proves more complicated. Time is fluid; the place has its own story, buried like old bones, an ancient, violent story that reaches up from its grave to seize the human narrative by the throat."

The short description of this year's offering promises more of the same:

"Mustapha's Bride - There is a violent struggle as two hardened prisoners bedevil a third as they prepare him to meet an unwelcome fate."

So, not light family fare to be sure, but if you're looking for the Fringe equivalent of rough trade, the Aggravated Assault crew are your boys.

You can see pictures (got your attention, didn't it?), schedule and reviews of the pre-Fringe productions of Mustapha's Bride as it makes its way toward Minnesota at the company's webiste www.aaensemble.org

Warning - the site, like the company and their productions, is not for the faint of heart.

[To see the rest of the Ping Pong Ball Awards, click here.]

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