Fringe 2023 - Returning Favorites - The Shrieking Harpies

The Shrieking Harpies

The Shrieking Harpies are a musical improv trio featuring Lizzie Gardner, Taj Ruler, Hannah Wydeven, & with Justin Nellis on the keys. Our show blends musical genres into an improvised story!

Venue: Rarig Center Arena
Tagged for: Comedy, Improv, Musical Theater, Audience Participation
Content Warnings: Adult Language

When I think about The Shrieking Harpies as a different genre of improvisers, I’m reminded of that old quote assessing the talents of the dancer Ginger Rogers.  The dancing duo of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers made their mark in old movie musicals of the 1930s.  They both had long and varied careers in the movie business, together and separately, but as the man in the duo Fred Astaire got more than his share of the good press.  This led someone to remark that Ginger Rogers did everything that Fred Astaire did - and she also did it backwards and in heels.

Yes, The Shrieking Harpies are another group of improvisers that take a suggestion from the audience and then spin that into an entire 45-minute comedy that didn’t exist before and will never exist again.  The added degree of difficulty here is the story is also a musical comedy.  Lizzie Gardner, Taj Ruler, and Hannah Wydeven don’t just create characters and situations, they create songs. Keyboardist Justin Nellis creates a soundtrack behind them to underpin the whole thing and then follows the musical instincts of the trio to meet them where they’re at and add something more.  As someone who can barely create music on a guitar when I have sheet music in front of me, my mind boggles at the idea of creating something like this out of thin air.  (Also, their improvised musicals are sometimes more entertaining than some of the other Fringe musicals that people write out and rehearse ahead of time.  They’re that good.)

Mom and I saw them in the Fringe back in 2017 (when they first landed on my pre-Fringe Top 20 list) and again when they returned in 2018.  We got a kick out of the show both times.  I missed them last year, but they’re back again this year so I’ve got another shot if I’m feeling in the need of a musical comedy fix.  I can rely on The Shrieking Harpies to deliver.

Here's some handy links to this year's Top 10, and Top 11-20 Lists, plus the full list of all returning favorites at this year's Fringe, plus a link to all the 2023 Minnesota Fringe Festival coverage.