Fringe 2024 - Day 2 In Brief

The day in Threads

Over to Uptown to spend the evening at the Phoenix

Threads review, mnfringe show 5: Francis Grey and the Case of his Dead Boyfriend - inspired lunacy, Dickensian murder plot full of wigs, blowup dolls, video, and even puppets; a one man ensemble piece - 4.5 stars (my fringe Top 10 write-up)

 

Threads review, mnfringe show 6: Gasthaus - Cold War border between East and West Germany runs right through the middle of a family’s home; good cast but too much plot/characters to cram in a hour, more outline than story - 3 stars

 

 

Threads review, mnfringe mind f**k part 1, show 7, A Horse Walks Out Onto the Stage and Dies: honestly don't have fully coherent thoughts about this yet; hilarious, touching, weird, because it is very much the title, and very much not, just the Fringiest f**king thing I've seen in quite some time - 5 stars (my Fringe Top 20 write-up) (my full review)

 

 

Threads review, mnfringe mind f**k part 2, show 8: A Number - a father is confronted by the multiple clones he made of his son; some of the encounters go better than others; some of them go very, very wrong; a meditation on life and identity, offspring and parenting; funny and haunting in equal measure - 5 stars

 

 

Here's some handy links to coverage of shows I've seen in the Fringe this year getting 5 and 4.5 Stars (Very Highly Recommended), 4 and 3.5 Stars (Highly Recommended) as well as the shows ranking 3 stars or less; also links to this year's Top 10 list and Top 11-20 list, also a full list of all returning favorites to this year's Fringe, plus a link to ALL the 2024 Minnesota Fringe Festival coverage.

While I have your attention, please VOTE :) 

Minnesota is currently in the early voting period for our Congressional and local primaries (I had the U.S. Senate, Congress, and the Minneapolis school board on my ballot) - final day to vote in the primary is Tuesday, August 13th, but you don't have to wait until Fringe is over, go vote right now :)

Early voting for the Presidential Election itself in Minnesota starts on Friday, September 20th. We're lucky to have a lot of time to get our voices heard, so cast your vote, and then make sure everyone you know and love is registered and gets to the polls to vote. Election Day, your final date to vote, is Tuesday, November 5th.

As a queer playwright and theater maker, I want a government that's compassionate and competent enough to keep us all safe and healthy, keep theaters open and running, and personally, I'd just like to be legal myself and keep the weirdos out of government and out of my personal business (and the things I post on this blog, for instance). We all have our reasons, so let's make sure we get the leaders we need and deserve, and get our friends, family and co-workers to raise their voices, too.

Find where to vote and what's on your ballot (with links to candidate websites) and other resources at the Minnesota Secretary of State's website.

For other resources on how to register, volunteer or donate, locally or nationally, check out Vote Save America.

Vote.  Raise your voice. We're not going back.