Monday, July 18, 2022

Fringe 2022 - Returning Favorites - EnCompass Theatre


Shoe Night - EnCompass Theatre

For years, Norah has repeatedly imagined what she might say to her ex who cruelly ghosted her. A quick stop for new shoes, therefore, becomes an opportune moment when she spots him across the aisle.

EnCompass Theatre is one of those outliers on my pre-Fringe Top 20 lists where I was intrigued by what their show was about and the way they marketed it, fully intended to go, and then the vagaries of Fringe scheduling were such that I ultimately ended up missing it.  Now, this was back in 2019 (the last pre-pandemic Fringe, and my first without Mom), so I was a bit distracted, and frankly a little surprised I made it all the way from the beginning to the end of the festival.  Shock and numbness can be useful defenses that the brain and body deploy for one’s benefit.

At any rate, I’m sorry I didn’t link up with this theater the first time around, so I’m going to see if I can rectify that this Fringe.  I do enjoy a new play at Fringe time.  Their More Information tab offers some further elaboration about the story:

"In the modern dating world, ghosting has become a regular occurrence for early relationships. But what happens when a partner of significance disappears without explanation? New Twin Cities playwright Kelsey Norton brings to the stage the lasting consequences of this behavior and to offer us the closure few are rarely given.
 
Brought to you by EnCompass Theatre, winner of Arts Reader’s 2019 Fringe Editor’s Pick Award"

(And just in case we need a definition, they offer that as well:)
"Ghost-ing: the practice of ending a personal relationship with someone by suddenly and without explanation withdrawing from all communication."


(You can click on the following links to see a set of links to the full Top 10 list, the Top 11-20 list, a list of returning favorites, and the full coverage of the 2022 Fringe on this blog.) 

(Side note: Also during Fringe season, Minnesota has a primary election coming up on August 9th.  Early voting options are currently available.  You can also check out what's on your ballot ahead of time on the Minnesota Secretary of State website, as well as other voting services and information.  In Minneapolis, not only do we have the Governor and Lt. Governor on the ballot, but there's our U.S. Congressional Rep., our MN State Senator, the MN Secretary of State and MN Attorney General, as well as our County Sheriff and County Attorney, and two members of the Minneapolis School Board.  These are the people who decide what laws we live under and how they get enforced.  These are the people who decide whether or not we have voting rights.  These are the people who decide how our kids learn.  This is how we change things.  Personally, I'm alternately furious and despairing that my goddaughter and her little sister now have fewer rights over their own bodies than they did a month ago - there are things we can do, voting in the primary (and the general election) is one of them - here's a place you can go to do more.)

 

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