Fringe Shows I'm Seeing With Mom - Thursday 8/2 Edition

Mom arrived yesterday afternoon, in time for some dinner and her annual tradition of catching the Fringe Out of Towners' showcase on Fringe Eve (more on that in a bit). She realized that she'd been so preoccupied packing and traveling that she'd pretty much forgotten to eat most of the day, and the day before. Quick! Pizza at Green Mill! Ah, that's better.

I also had done literally no scheduling for her week here yet, so over dinner we sat down and mapped it out.  I'd done my homework, of course.  I could talk knowledgeably about all our options.  And Mom has a number of favorites she's gathered in her years of Fringing.  So between the two of us, we made short order of our scheduling challenge.  "Oh, I don't want to miss that person."  "When else are they playing, I want to be sure we see that one." "Can we do that commute in just a half hour?" As every year, there are still some things Mom's not going to get to see that bum her out, but everything we are seeing she's very excited about.  And after she heads home to Pennsylvania, I'll still have five days left of Fringe to catch more of the things we were talking about.

We'll make sure she's well-fed and fully energized today. A good night's sleep also helped. And we're starting our Fringing slow. No running back and forth all over town on the first day (we'll save that for the weekend :)

 Opening day, we're sticking to the Rarig Center.

5:30 - The Gay Banditos - The Mechanical Division - Rarig Thrust

I described this to mom and she started laughing almost immediately so that's a good sign.  Their Fringe-For-All preview was more foul-mouthed incentive, of course.





7:00 - Christopher Street: A New Musical (like the Fringe does old musicals) - Silver Slipper Productions - Rarig Proscenium

I know a few people in the cast of this one, as well as the director.  And of course "gay musical" is kind of redundant but after all the random bits of backstage information I've gotten on this one, I have to admit, I'm intrigued.  Plus, it's a gay historical musical, so see?  Totally highbrow.  Oh, if the phrase "orgy scene" is an enticement, you're welcome.  And yes, I'm going to see this with my mother.

8:30 - The Music Box - Graber & Napolitano Productions - Rarig Thrust

This partly a "Hey, we're here anyway" reason.  But also, after a super gay start to the evening, we'd like to bring it back to heteronormative reality with a slightly less edgy musical offering.  But also, I just got an email from these folks the other day and have you seen their trailer?  (Click on the Video tab of their show page) It's only 33 seconds long but what the hell was their budget?  It makes me feel sorry for everyone who just turned on their cell phone camera and shot their video trailer in their bathroom.  The two people in this thing are so pretty, it's practically a perfume commercial (except they have clothes on).  That's a damn good trailer.  I was already curious about this one, but now I'm really glad it happened to slot right in on the schedule.

10:00 - Ash Land - Transatlantic Love Affair - Rarig Thrust

Friends keep asking me for recommendations, and I could rattle off a list but if you ask me to keep it simple, I'll say "If you only see two Fringe shows this year, see Ash Land and Sin Eater."  (Need convincing?  Here's two preview writeups with handy extra links.)

Fringe Top 20 2012 Edition - If You Removed The Gun From My Head...

So, if you removed that hypothetical gun from my head and I could see ten more Fringe shows, what would they be and why?

11 - Studio Alethea Productions - Kafkaesque: A Musical Metamorphosis - Mixed Blood

A musical version of Kafka's Metamorphosis by a writer friend of mine.  It was in development during the year in our writing group and I'm really curious to see how it turned out.  Writer Nathan Schilz has some of the sharpest dramaturgical instincts I've run across in a while.  If anyone can make this freaky hybrid work, he's your guy.

12 - Snikt! Bamf! Thwip! - The Complete Works of William Shatner (abridged) - Rarig Thrust

I could pretend I'm too high brow to admit to wanting to see this, but I'd be telling a huge lie.  Enjoyed their Fringe-For-All preview too much not to see the whole thing.





13 - Rebecca Kling - Storms Beneath Her Skin - Patrick's Cabaret

Her story fascinates me.  That's my reason.   (Update, just saw her at the Out of Towner's showcase.  She's great.  Looks like this show's going to be even better than I originally suspected.)




14 - Michael Venske Presents - Thumbs Up! - Patrick's Cabaret

When this popped up as a last minute addition, I said to myself, "Hey!  I know that guy.  And that script.  I helped dramaturg that script right before he headed off to the DC Fringe with it."  Looks like it did well, and now he's bringing it home.  I never saw how it turned out, so I'm very curious.  The idea behind the odyssey, a man honoring his father's wish to hitchhike cross-country and plant a little tree at the site where his parents first met, is lovely, and the journey itself kind of quirky.

15 - Billy Willy - The Billy Willy Show - HUGE Improv Theater

Here's an example of persistence paying off.  Billy Willy has sent me a couple of emails following up his original email to me and while I've been too swamped to answer all my Fringe emails this year, his resurfacing in my mailbox kept him in my mind.  Plus, gay stand-up comedian/country music fellow?  That combo's just enough to lure me into the theater to see what that looks like in performance.

16 - The Peanut Butter Factory - Joe Dowling’s William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet on the Moon, etc. - Theatre In The Round

For all the reasons I unexpectedly loved their wacky Fringe-For-All preview







17 - Freshwater Theatre - Going Down on the Queen of Minneapolis - Rarig Thrust

For all the reasons I like Freshwater and Ruth Virkus and company and what they do which I mentioned writing up their Fringe-For-All preview.





18 - Jay Gabler - Ivory Tower Burning - Bryant Lake Bowl

His Fringe-For-All preview wasn't necessarily the best advertising, but I'm still really looking forward to seeing how Jay dramatizes his subject. (Oh, and don't confuse this with the Fringe show Ivory Tower - I know, what are the odds, right?)



19 - ITO Productions - Love Labour Loss - Bryant Lake Bowl

Because I read another script recently by the writer Kyle Orf and it was really great - for the first 75 percent of the play.  It fell apart, spectacularly, in the home stretch but man, when it was good, It was really good.  This is a more personal tale, with a beginning middle and end based in reality, so I'm banking on him shaping it very differently from the other script I read, while still having his really distinctive style.

20 - Eat Street Players - Broken Memories - Gremlin Theatre

A young playwright, a scrappy community theater company supporting new writers instead of just rehashing some musty old script by a dead playwright.  I am frequently an easy mark for a pitch like this.  I got fed some background info on this and I wish they'd posted it on the Fringe site so everyone could see it.  Oh heck, I'll post it...

"LaDarrion Williams, a young writer from Arizona, finally had his play selected to be performed.  This is his story about himself and people he knew.  It is difficult to tell your darkest secrets to the whole world, but Ladarrion beautifully described in this Choreopoem all of the details of his Broken Memories.  He seems stronger and more mature after facing his past and writing it for us to perform.  He has so much support and love at home and they will be having a showing of Broken Memories as performed by Eat Street in his home town for everyone to watch.

More generally, about the true struggles teenagers have.  They are not small issues and can lead to death if not talked about and helped.  Broken Memories tells three different sides of a teenage life based on real stories and where no one stepped in to help these teens, but if they would have maybe there would have been a different ending to their stories.  People need to listen to their stories, stand up to make change and "start a riot" so everyone knows about it.

High school is difficult, but these three kids are dealing with their darkest Broken Memories of life at home, with boys, or the treatment they receive daily.  Kevin, Porcia  and Claudine's lives are falling down around them and they starting to spiral out of control.  Their inner furies have physically manifested themselves to push each student to the limits and in the end someone may be pushed over the edge.

A dramatic play with music, Broken Memories weaves instrumental and vocal music underneath movement and words to express the stories of its three protagonists.  An evocative journey.  Originally produced in the Eat Street Players Fresh Bites One Act Festival."

Fringe Top 10 2012 Edition - If You Put A Gun To My Head...

Every year at Fringe time, I clear out last year's pre-Fringe Top 10 list and make way for ten new names.  If you put a gun to my head and I could only see ten Fringe shows, what would they be and why...

1 - Katherine Glover - Dead Wrong - Patrick's Cabaret

I enjoyed her one of her previous Fringe shows, A Cynic Tells Love Stories, so much I've been waiting expectantly for whatever she did next.  While this show is the polar opposite of that other one in terms of content and style, it's still Katherine Glover, so she still tops my list.  As noted in the Fringe-For-All coverage, she's also part of the group of storytellers putting on Chorus: Voices After The Silence

2 - Dovetail Theatre Productions - Rip - Minneapolis Theatre Garage

For all the reasons I raved about Dovetail when I wrote up their Fringe-For-All preview







3 - Mainly Me Productions - Class of 98 - Theatre In The Round

For all the reasons I raved about Mainly Me when I wrote up their Fringe-For-All preview






4 - Segue Productions - Steel Kiss - Rarig Thrust

There were two things I worried about before I saw their Fringe-For-All preview, and they both had to do with a failure of nerve.  If there was violence would it be realistic (and if it was realistic, would I be able to bring myself to watch it)?  If there was intimacy, would they shy away from it?  The answers were yes (yes) and no.  Not only was the violence disturbing (and compelling viewing), the physical intimacy that contrasted it had real heat and not a hint of hesitation.  And while nudity's not always a plus, in this case it's certainly not a minus.

5 - Cities Classical Dance Ensemble - Isabella and The Lost Heart Adventure - Southern Theater

Because I enjoyed their dancing so much last year they ended up on my post-Fringe Top 10.  This time it's more a full narrative story than a collection of short pieces, but I'm just as intrigued with how they'll attack it.




6 - 20% Theatre Company Twin Cities - The Naked I: Wide Open (abridged) - Playwrights Center

Because I saw the unabridged version earlier this year in a sold-out run and it really enchanted me.







7 - The Winding Sheet Outfit - Birds of Passage - Rarig Xperimental

Because Amber Bjork, who heads up the Winding Sheet Outfit, has been a key part of why Carin Bratlie's company Theatre Pro Rata is as consistently great as it is (apart from Carin, of course.  Can't beat Carin).  If Amber's heading up a project, I'm anxiously looking forward to seeing it.


8 - ORL Productions - The Love Show! - Brave New Workshop

For all the reasons I enjoyed their Fringe-For-All preview so much.







9 - Yellow Bird Productions - Silence - Rarig Proscenium

Because it's a deaf musical.  A deaf.  musical.








10 - The Theater of Public Policy - Big Thinkers, Serious Issues, Improv Comedy - Brave New Workshop

Because I've been super curious how their mix of actual discussion of serious issues then turns into fodder for improv comedy.

Candide - Four Humors Theater

"Go where glory awaits you!"

A comedy concerning floggings, rape, justifiable homicide, ship travel, Jews, Christians, mass murder, death, desire, and the general joy and suffering one finds within this, the best of all possible worlds.

Playwrighting wunderkind Nick Ryan adapts the Voltaire classic, slimming it down to 45 minutes. Brant Miller surfaces for the second time in the evening, this time as the hapless victim of two newfound drinking buddies who then enlist him in their army. This ends up getting him flogged repeatedly when he's unable to deal with the noise from artillery practice. The comical flogging here took up about as much of the preview time as the gay-bashing in the Steel Kiss preview, prompting host Robin Gillette to remark at the end of the evening, "Thank you for attending this surprisingly violent Fringe-For-All." There's a reason that Fringe hits follow Four Humors around wherever they go. They're good at what they do, and what they do is smart comedy. Bonus points for now insuring that the most unlikely people will be added to the list of those who know the basic plot of Candide.

A few more in the "Not My Thing" category

Room For Cream - Emily Schmidt Productions

"Grace, what's your spirit animal?  It tells about how you threaten when provoked."

How do you like your coffee? Generibou barista Grace prefers a shot of sugar-free romance, a half pump of 5am and no creepy customers. She's not always so lucky. Hey, economy - thanks a latte!

She's so good with the satire of a dead-end service industry job at a coffeehouse chain that it was painful to watch. In the same way the British version of The Office was so deeply painful to watch that I literally let it play on the TV at the other end of the apartment while I did things like cleaning, so I could hear it, but didn't have to sit still and allow it to assault me head-on. Funny? Yes. The last thing I'd willingly make myself sit through. Unfortunately also yes. But if day job comedy is your thing, you probably won't find a funnier one at the Fringe this year.



Behind The Big Top - Travnastic Travesties

"Your breath smells like whiskey and shame."

A funny yet tragic play about an aging clown in the circus struggling to manage both his crumbling life and his insane co-workers.

The name makes you think it might be about transvestites. But it's about clowns. Washed up, alcoholic, manic depressive clowns. Two schlubby clowns taunt a third pretty boy clown. There's some good lines here, but just like the zombies and day job comedy, clowns kind of freak me out. And clowns acting as if theirs is a dead-end profession, like any other day job, depresses me, too. I'm feeling it more than just letting the comedy roll off my back, so enjoyment here escapes me. Again, if day job comedy is your thing, the clowns put a twist on it.



Aesop's Musical Foibles - Laughter Supplement

"I asked you to call me Lightning Jack!"

Poor Aesop can hardly think straight! His mind is crowded with stories and hysterical characters. Accompanied by rock and roll music, Aesop's fables are shared with the world, with a few twists along the way.

Oh dear. The costume bits for the animals are cute. The concept is clever. The small army of young performers in tie-dye T-shirts emblazoned with the show's logo dove in with all the energy and enthusiasm they could muster. But they were relying on a microphone that was either dead, or which they didn't know how to operate, and thus failed to project their voices much at all in the big musical number. Some of them musically were also really flat. All this will doubtless get worked out in the rehearsals they have left. It'll probably turn into a nice little family show when they're done. But I'm not their audience.



Hans The Obscure - Mindless Mirth Productions

"It seems to me like there's an awful lot of doofuses wandering the countryside."

Three little-known tales by Hans Christian Andersen. Witty suitors! Undersea kingdoms! The love that dare not cluck its name! Delightful, devilish, decadent fun!

I like Mahmoud Hakima as a performer a whole lot, so his involvement here makes me inclined to like the show. Also a big Hans Christian Andersen fan. It'll probably make for another fine family show. It got a lot of laughs, particularly when stuffed animal horses were tossed at the actors when it was time to go horseback riding. Personally, though, this style of storytelling isn't my thing.



Sneak Thief - International League of Diamond Thieves

"There's no such thing as two weeks' notice when you're being fired."

Two diamond-hungry thieves plan to steal the big kahuna. Starring Tim Hellendrung (MN Middle Finger 2011, Speech 2010) and Brant Miller (Mortem Capiendum 2008, Traveling Musicians 2009, Bards 2007)

Nothing at all wrong here. Brant Miller, Tim Hellendrung, both extremely funny guys, and both extremely funny here. However, watching a guy get fired, no matter how funny, is still painful for me to watch. Like the "Room for Cream" coffeehouse day job satire earlier in the evening, well-executed comedy of the humiliations of daily life can be enormously entertaining. I'm personally just a little too close to going under myself these days to get much enjoyment out of it. These men deliver the funny, however, so if you're looking for a laugh, this is your duo.



Coach - Charlzik Theatre Company

"Why do we keep having this discussion?"

He wants to coach. She won't let him. A hard-working father of three boys works with a Harvard fry-brain drop-out at a power plant about to close. It's about finding your life's passion at any cost.

A man wants to coach football. His wife won't let him. Gee, did a guy write this? Yup. I have a hard time having patience with a set up like this because it's clearly just convenient for things the writer wants to say, rather than looking like it's based in something like reality or character development. I have even less patience when no one onstage outside of the wife can bother to speak up so I can hear what they're saying. Meet me halfway, people. The problem here is I'm siding with the woman over the schlubs she has to deal with and want it to be her play, but we're supposed to think she's the obstacle. Sigh. Nobody keeps you from doing what you want to do, unless you let them. Pass.

Nightmare Without Pants - Joking Envelope

"All that matters is that you did your taxes wrong, and now scary things have to happen."

You're invited to Tracy's nightmare. She has 45 minutes to fall in love with a stranger in front of a live audience. If she fails, even scarier things will happen. A comedy about fear and pants.

Joseph Scrimshaw. All you need to know, right? This is also on my Top 5 list of returning acts I'm most looking forward to this year. I've been hard on Joseph Scrimshaw (maybe not so much in print, but in my mind) and I've been trying to figure out why.

Certainly some of it must be envy. The guy's ridiculously talented, enormously popular, and ceaselessly funny. All of his friends and family are equally talented and hilarious. He's making his living as an artist while I'm, well, blogging about other people's Fringe shows. But it's not easy, even if he makes it look that way. He is successful because he is relentless and hardworking and never settles for giving the audience less than his best. He's even got popular holiday and children's shows in his repertoire. Every year, every six months, heck, it seems like every other week, he's coming up with something new and entertaining and sharing it with the rest of us. It's exhausting finding new good things to say about him.

I took a couple of years off from seeing his stuff in Fringe because, honestly, he doesn't need me in the audience to sell more tickets. But just like he's a favorite of mine, he's also a favorite of Mom's, and he's got a cast so chock full of talent it's almost not fair to anyone else - Shana Custer, John Middleton, John Riedlinger, Anna Sundberg, and of course Joseph. Plus, that one thing I tend to carp about, this show actually looks like it's about something other than art or laughs. Taxes, love and fear.

Scrimshaw came out solo to pimp for his show in the preview. His character will be tormenting Custer's character who screwed up her taxes - and now she must pay, by falling in love with a stranger in front of a live audience in only 45 minutes' time. Scrimshaw knows how to work a crowd, even a reluctant audience participant, and he worked it here. I don't know where he gets this stuff, or how he pulls it off, but man, I'm glad he does. The Fringe would be a lot less funny without it. So yeah, see this one.

Steampunk Apocalypse - Far From The Tree

"You put our return address on my evil ultimatum?!"

Vampire Sorority Girls! Zombie Rats! Cat Ladies! NERDS! Captain Jessie and Sparks leap into the 21st Century to save the past and the future from Mad Prof. Zero and his Evil Minions in a wild comedy adventure!

I was going to try and write this one off in my initial scheduling, but the preview was so fun I'm torn. It was the zombie rats that did it. More high-minded insults, too, as the hero and villain traded barbs. It's all completely nonsensical, but that's the point. It's just meant to be fun and based on the preview it looks like it very much will be. Old school melodramatic adventure with a modern sensibility - and leading ladies instead of leading men in the roles of hero and sidekick. The fact that they don't take themselves too seriously is also a bonus. They didn't have a clear end to the scene, just the hoard of zombie rats chanting "Brains! Brains!" After that went on for a while the hero turned to the audience with a shrug stating, "That's all the lines they have." Laughter, the end. Nicely done.

Evil Dicks - Mumble Mumble Productions

"I didn't want to help change society.  I wanted to take it down."

Penetrate the minds of the wicked with this Rockstar Storyteller. Biographical truths about our vile side. Bombers. Killers. Children's literary heroes. Hoarders. Lovers. Can you relate? Are you an evil dick?

I love how I'm now encouraged to type the word "dicks" into the Fringe website search function, and this show is the only one that pops up. Handy. It's Allison Broeren, another storytelling favorite of mine (and mom's), so of course I'm going to be trying to fit this one into my schedule. I love this lady's way with language. She's doing something a little different this year (I know, risk taking as a theme at the Fringe, big surprise). Rather than it being all about Allison this time, she's trying to get inside the minds of some very twisted individuals. In the preview we got a little sampling of the Unabomber. Because it's Allison, and she's naturally very winning and approachable and fun to watch as a performer, it provides us with a way into these characters that we wouldn't otherwise have. It's a little unsettling to actually see things through the eyes of these messed up people, and start to think "Well, that doesn't sound so crazy…"

Jamaica Me Crazy - Tyehimba Leadership Center

"Uh oh, I think I hear a monologue coming."

Diane and Jade are opposites. A vacation in Jamaica seems the perfect way to warm their relationship. Or is it? While Jade waits at the airport, Diane is in bed. Will they make their flight? Or will they fight?

Sisters going at each other as only sisters can. This group was part of my pre-Fringe Top 20 list back in 2010 so it's nice to see them back. Completely different show than their last outing. More family friction than larger issues of faith, race and politics. Each sister does represent a certain type of success (or lack thereof) so there's still an exploration of the society in which they play a part. The thing that stuck out here was the use of music to comic effect. One sister's rant is overdubbed with an opera aria. A final catfight gets the accompaniment of the song "Everybody Was Kung Fu Fighting." So there's a welcome sense of playfulness here. Not sure it's top of my list this time around, but it looks like it might be fun.

The Complete Works of William Shatner (abridged) - Snikt! Bamf! Thwip!

"I've read the script and that is amazing for two reasons - there's a script, and I read it."

The Shat, greatest of all living actors, must reconcile all of his roles as he fights a battle to save the most important man in the universe - himself!

In a Fringe drowning in horrible show titles and theater company names just begging to be used against them in reviews (restraint has been very difficult), here we have a title that makes me giggle every time. Tim Uren, god bless him, never met a Shat joke he didn't like, and he also gets to be the Priceline Negotiator. Windy Bowlsby enjoys playing with her phaser and doing her best Captain Kirk impression. Plus, not in this preview, they have Brandon Ewald as Young William Shatner, and Duck Washington gets to be TJ Hooker.  I was looking for a reason to rule this one out and I just can't do it. I grew up with re-runs of the original Star Trek on TV, before all the movies and next generations (yes, I'm horribly old). So my resistance to a concept like this is pitiably low. This will provide the kind of silliness I'm looking for to recharge my batteries after seeing more serious fare. I'm looking forward to it.

Their Century - Lucky Break Productions

"Being the youngest, I got everything hand-me-down.  If there was anything to hand down."

In 1906, a Russian teen left his home and settled in North Dakota, where he later got married and raised 11 children. David Schlosser brings you the story of this family's journey through 20th century America.

I'm torn here because David Schlosser, the writer/performer, is a friend of mine, and I've read the script in earlier drafts. I'm not sure I can be entirely objective about this three minute excerpt. The death of David's father got him thinking about family history, and all the things he never talked about with his father. Thankfully, his father had almost a dozen siblings (farm families were mighty big in those days), and so there were all kinds of brothers and sisters to speak with and try and reconstruct the family story. Any family spanning several generations is bound to bump up against the major currents of history, and this family is no different. David is playing all the roles here so part of the challenge is to make the characters distinct. Here in the preview we meet one of them. I'm planning to see the show, but I'm still wondering what it all adds up to. David's done his homework. The details are all there. It's the final shaping of the details into a larger narrative with a payoff that I'm looking for. But that's part of what Fringe is for, working through material in front of an audience and making it better. I'm rooting for this one.

An Answer For The Unknown - New Plastic Theatre

"Those dreams are not for you."

Dane, a man in mourning, accepts an online ad for a tour of hell. With the help and direction of a guide, he meets famous ghosts who make him understand important truths about death, dying, and the afterlife.

I suppose we should get all the "theater is hell" jokes out of the way now, right? You go ahead and think 'em up, get 'em out of your system. I'll wait. OK, on we go. The thing that was distinctive about this preview is the use of shadow work. Quick simple set-up with a sheet hung in front of lights, and then the use of body parts and cardboard cut-outs and even changes in color of light to play with our sense of perspective and reality. Considering all the ways this could have gone off the rails, this was a really impressive preview. Also, the skeleton face makeup on most of the actors was damn creepy. It's too bad we didn't get to see more of it now. But there's 45 more minutes in the show for that to happen. If you like your Fringe with a couple of shades of dark to it, this might be your ticket. I'm intrigued.

A Comedy of Edits - Callahan and Lingo

"I'm sorry, I thought I'd heard you say you've written a play."

Two writers enter the arena, but only one will emerge as the real artist. Rockstar Storyteller Allegra Lingo and Fringe newcomer Taylor Brorby battle it out in a game of wits and literary one-upsmanship.

Actually this time it's Brorby and Lingo. Taylor Brorby is stepping into Rob Callahan's half of the storytelling/comedy duo this time out, and Allegra Lingo wrote a play for them to perform. So everyone's stepping way outside their comfort zone on this one. Mom's a devoted Allegra fan, as am I, so of course we're going. But artists writing about art has never been a huge favorite of mine as a genre. Still, if anyone can make it work, it's Allegra. And Taylor looks like he's going to provide able backup. We'll see how this scripted battle of wits plays out.

All's Fair - Synapse Theater

"He's pretty harmless, really."
"She's not."

Find love at the Fringe! After her husband's death, Carol returns to the carnival where it all began, where past and present commingle to help her find her future. A heartwarming and touching world premiere.

This was sweet. A couple later in life looks back on the time they met while a younger couple reenacts that meeting. The whole "if we knew then what we know now" idea is in full effect here. It's funny and romantic. The only danger, of course, is since we know (or think we know) how the whole thing's going to turn out, it kind of sucks any suspense out of the proceedings. Of course, it's possible for a good script to still do that, and I don't see any evidence of this being a bad script. You're reading the blog of someone who always gets worried halfway through the musical 1776 because he's just not sure these guys will ever get that Declaration of Independence thing signed - even though he's clearly watching the musical in the country that was formed from the signing of that document. So I can be bamboozled even though I know better. And time spent with a pleasant romantic comedy has its charms. (And on further research, it turns out I know both the playwright and the director [some people are so shy], so that makes me even more inclined to trust the preview.)

Fruit Fly: The Musical - Jansonowicz Players

(Because Fag Hag: The Musical is so 1970s. And Queer Peer, let's face, was never going to catch on.)

"An autobiographical tale about a gay man and a straight woman."
"Can you tell which one is which?"

Can a gay guy and a straight girl - a fruit and a fly - "quit each other" to find true love? Find out in this brand-new musical filled with laughter, Sondheim references, and enough boxed wine to kill us all!

The performers here, Sheena Janson and Max Wojtanowicz (there he is again), are so relentlessly cute I find it hard to resist either them or their show. So I won't try. The "Two Peas In A Pod" number should have made me more than a little crazy (but see note above on cuteness). Also, the lyrics here are pretty darn clever. Cole Porter would feel right at home. You might even make Sondheim smile. Is this autobiographical musical pastiche going to amount to much? Hard to say. But I'd give them an hour to make their case, and try not to overthink it too much.

Going Down On The Queen of Minneapolis - Freshwater Theatre

"How's your cat?"
"Incontinent."

Or: The Final Voyage of Nokomis Construction. The employees of a failing construction company are trapped on a party boat. Forced to face their ridiculous demons, together they decide whether to sink or swim.

The Queen of Minneapolis is a charter ship. A ship going down, that can be figurative as well as literal. A forced company outing to foster "togetherness" quickly devolves into the usual office politics. A large number of characters are swiftly introduced in this preview.  I enjoy the work of a lot of people in the cast, and also like Ruth Virkus' work as a playwright. In addition, I'm fond of Freshwater Theatre's mission in general, nurturing new work of all stripes.  So while this kind of thing normally might not be my cup of tea, I trust the artists involved to put an original spin on it. They're not even asking for "a three hour tour" just one hour. What could go wrong?

Ms. Luisa Eats - Sunset Gun Productions

"Do you think he'd like some of my banana?"

Ms. Luisa—chanteuse, gourmand and globetrotter—is on a hilarious quest to discover the world's most delightful songs, delicacies and beefcake. Come taste her saucy mélange of romance, cabaret and pasta.

This one was a lot more oddly charming than I thought it would be. The performer's look was unsettling - the makeup (especially the lips) reminiscent of a blow-up sex doll, the cleavage ample, and the banana eating was, well, a reminder that sometimes a banana is not just a banana. Yet her affect was more the innocent sexpot. She knows she's cute, but she also knows she doesn't have to work to flaunt it. She flaunts it by just being present. Her wandering into the audience and her rendition of "Home On The Range" as she tried to figure out how to get the guitarist to notice her were both cute, but still kind of bizarre. I'm wondering where the idea goes from here. Guess there's only one way to find out.

Happy Hour - Sara Stevenson Scrimshaw

"I have whiskey, and my ukulele."

Join us at the bar for five dances, each inspired by a different drink. See whiskey swirl, watch an absinthe striptease, raise a glass to marriage equality and more in a show full of booze and celebration.

She not only dances, she sings, jokes and plays the ukulele as well. Another fun, accessible and easygoing dance showcase from the dancing member of the Scrimshaw tribe. This time, it's dances inspired by alcoholic beverages - that also somehow manages to loop in gay marriage for one segment (told ya).

A different kind of girl on girl action

Casual Encounters - Golden Ork Productions

A woman places an ad on Craigslist because she has a unique desire: to be in a fight, the ultimate loss of control. Another woman replies and agrees, begging the question: can violence be used as therapy?

Violence against women? Try violence between women instead. This isn't the only female fight club scenario in the Fringe this year. This spin is a modern take. Two women find each other when searching for another soul to fight. Don't know where exactly it goes from here, but the preview was kind of fun. A matter of fact entry into an escalating slap fight that ends with someone getting socked in the nose, all to comic effect. Nice work by both ladies.

On The Difference Between Two Ladies and the Resolution Thereof - Fell Down The Stairs

Two women of nobility use courtesy as shields and wit as swords until a dispute over flowers incites them to defend their honor with steel. An original comedy based on the first emancipated duel between women.

Here's another variation on female fight club. The first two ladies to challenge one another to a duel. It was kind of fun watching ladies in period costume insult each other while never stooping to coarse language. Of course, those were the standards of the time. But there's something satisfying about people insulting each other using complete sentences that don't include the words "F*** you." It's part of the reason Shakespeare's insults are so much fun. I wasn't sure this was going to be interesting to me, but the preview got me thinking otherwise. And we haven't even seen the duel yet.

The Gay Banditos - The Mechanical Division

"We don't usually get gay things here."

Based on actual events: The Miller family shares the shocking details of how their lives were destroyed forever by extreme gayness. Educational and haunting. A story you can't un-see.

All the net proceeds from this one go to Minnesotans United For All Families, fighting the marriage amendment on the ballot this fall (Vote No In November, people). Would a good cause alone be enough to lure me into a show? Maybe. (It's going to be challenging this year, since you can't swing a dead cat in the 2012 Fringe without hitting someone whose show has some material dealing with the gay marriage issue.) Thankfully, here I don't need to worry. Mechanical Division's tale of a simple suburban family terrorized by "the gays" is hilariously obscene, and deliciously politically incorrect. The danger, of course, is that someone might take this satire seriously, but most Fringe audiences can be counted on to know the difference. Still, if excerpts from this thing show up on Fox News, we'll have only ourselves to blame. Naturally, I look forward to taking mom to see this one.

Prophecy - New West Productions

"The three bitter truths that are left to us - sacrifice, slavery, submission."

A woman proclaiming the Second Coming becomes the subject of an intense government interrogation. But as riots in the street rage, protocols quickly crumble, ushering in a new God, a God of Chaos.

This is the reverse of the high stakes gambit Moonshine Madness and Murder has going on. It, too, tackles religion but goes for the full-on drama, perhaps melodrama. A woman's prophecy of the end times lights the match that starts to make modern civilization come unglued. An intriguing premise. Unfortunately, it feels in this preview like it's a gimmick. Just an excuse to get a bunch of people talking about things like belief and reality and the end of the world, but not really showing us anything. It's probably not fair to put so much pressure on three minutes in this instance, but I was hoping for more. Maybe the tyranny of high expectations at the Fringe is a good thing, but it's just as likely to make me overlook something with potential, and I hate thinking I might psych myself out that way.

Moonshine Madness and Murder - Christy Marie Kent

"I've done a lot of things in my life.  Writing vampire non-porn isn't one of them."

In Quacker Holler, Tennessee, the Lake Wobegon of the south, erotica-writing nun Sister Candace is murdered. Emily must use her investigative skills, fainting goats, and mental illness to solve the crime.

More "Minnesota stereotype" humor, which can get on my nerves. Here, though, it's in the context of a story with an intriguing bent to it. A detective listens to the voices in her head that could be mental illness just as well as they could be angels and devils. Will they steer her right (to solve the case) or wrong (and who knows what the consequences will be)? The interesting thing is the concept isn't being played for drama, but for laughs, while still respecting the legitimacy of belief. The delivery in the preview was so laid back and humorous, it was easy to forget (in a good way) just how extreme the stakes were. This is a sneaky one.

Even Yours - BOOM! Theater

"She introduced us, like it's the most normal thing in the world that she's married to a f**king Adonis."

An intimate portrait of what it takes to rebuild a life destroyed by betrayal. It's about what drives us to follow through on our darker impulses, but also about choosing light over darkness.

This one nearly snuck by me, and I'd kick myself if it did. (Thanks for the email, Gemma!) It's written (and this time also performed) by Gemma Irish, who was behind Fringe 2010's Yvette, which Mom and I enjoyed a whole lot and was in my pre-Fringe Top 10 that year. This script is a very different thing. More drama than comedy (though Gemma can't help herself, there's a lot of welcome humor here). It's about personal betrayal, which isn't always my thing. But if Gemma's exploring the topic, then I'm interested. Also, John Bennett, the man in this love triangle, was really great in the production of Naomi Wallace's The Inland Sea at Macalester last year, so he's more than just another pretty face. This one's definitely finding its way onto my schedule.

Steel Kiss - Segue Productions

"In 1985, there was no internet.  Sometimes you had to go to the park to meet guys."

In 1986 four teenage boys encountered a gay man in a Toronto park. The results were not pretty. Neither is this story. It is about the influence that a community has on the development of the next generation.

If I tell you the preview involved three guys kicking the crap out of another guy, then some unrestrained guy-on-guy kissing, a simulated blow job, and the special guest appearance of a young man's bare butt, would that be enough of an enticement to get you to show up (or perhaps repel you entirely)? Well, done, done, done and done. I wasn't the only one who was a little worried that the entire preview here would consist of those three guys wailing on the other guy for the full three minutes. As it was, it felt like it gobbled up the first two minutes. But that was probably just because the longer it went on, the more uncomfortable the audience got. Still, I think that's the point. I was already curious about this one, given the subject matter (gay-bashing) and the concept (all four actors take turns trading roles, as both the victim and his assailants, giving us multiple perspectives, and no easy hero or villain to follow all the way through). My reservations about how the violence would be handled (very convincingly) and the male intimacy would be handled (also very convincingly) are both rendered moot by this preview. I'm more intrigued to see it now than I was before (and I was pretty intrigued before). Plus, it's fun to watch how much more nudity throws people for a loop than foul language. (That might have been a Fringe For All first - I'm wracking my brain and coming up with no previous instances of nudity - feel free to chime in, remind us and prove me wrong.) Congrats on having the balls to do this preview right, guys (no pun intended). I'm there.