Fringe 2026 - Returning Favorites - Mahmoud Hakima (1 of 3)

Fringe is the time of year many artists decide to run themselves completely into the ground for 11 days by not just doing one show and seeing as many other shows as they can and hanging out with their fellow artists at the end of the night.  No, some artists don’t content themselves with just one show, they do at least two, maybe three, and hence there’s a lot of overlap and it’s hard to assign a show to any one person because often, as in the case of a number of posts I’ve done already, there’s just a lot of crossover.

For example, Mahmoud Hakima.  I was first introduced to his work as a storyteller back in 2009 with his solo show “Two Bowls of Cereal and Some Bacon” (which he recently remounted to stellar effect in 2024’s Fringe), and so in 2010 he was on my pre-Fringe Top 10 list with his next solo show “Can Michael Come Out and Play?”

But Mahmoud is also an improv comedian, so he’s been in countless improv shows as well (so many in and out of the Fringe that it was possible for anyone to catch them all, if they wanted to see anything else.)

So this Fringe we have Mahmoud the producer, and Mahmoud the storyteller, and Mahmoud the improviser.

Producing under the name The House in the Woods, we have a game show fundraiser for a good cause

Quadrilogy: a Sabathani Benefit Game Show Extravaganza!

Description
A game show in three rounds with audience participation. Answer questions, build Lego, have fun, win prizes! A different theme every night. Artist proceeds go to benefit the Sabathani Community Center.
Venue – Theatre in the Round (TRP)
Content Warnings – Loud Noises
Genre and Content – Comedy, Audience Participation
Ages 7 to 11 and Up

(Side note: I had a play reading done as a fundraiser for the Minnesota AIDS Project quite literally three decades ago now, and it was held at the Sabathani Center.  It was nice to see the Center’s name pop up again unexpectedly at this year’s Fringe.)

Four audience volunteer to be each night’s winner, each performance has a different theme, and there’s additional fun promised for the rest of the audience as well.

About Sabathani:

“Our artist proceeds for this show will be donated to the Sabathani Community Center. Located in the heart of South Minneapolis, Sabathani provides assistance for fifty-thousand local residents every year. That’s nearly an eighth of the population of Minneapolis! From helping new americans find sustainable jobs, to providing maternal health care resources, to running violence prevention programs, and coordinating events with an emphasis on fostering community and education, Sabathani is a shining example of the connection and togetherness that makes Minneapolis, the Twin Cities, and the state of Minnesota such a special place. We could not be more thrilled to support such a wonderful organization in their mission. A very special thanks must be given to Scott Redd, CEO of Sabathani, and Sherri Green, Sabathani’s Director of Critical Services, for giving us the go ahead to do this silly show for them. If you would like to donate further to Sabathani, you can click the “tip artist” icon on our show page to be taken directly to the donation page of their website, or you can follow the link here.”

About the Game Show:

“Quadrilogy is a game show where four players from the audience will compete in three games for a chance to win a grand prize. Each performance will be centered around a different theme celebrating the Twin Cities and the performing arts:
 
Thursday August 6 at 10 pm - MN History and Folklore
Sunday August 9 at 7 pm - MN Sports
Tuesday August 11 at 5:30 pm - Shakespeare
Friday August 14 at 8:30 pm - Musical Theatre
Sunday August 16 at 2:30 pm - MN Fringe Festival 2026
 
But it’s not all just fun and games…well, actually, it is. I mean, it is a game show after all. But to get things back on track, we’ll also be having a lot of surprises and silliness in store for the audience. And the best part is that our artist proceeds for this show will be going to benefit the Sabathani Community Center in South Minneapolis! Audiences for this show can expect to have a good time for a good cause.”

How is the game played?

“Four players from the audience will advance through a series of three elimination style rounds.

Round #1: Storytime!
The first game is a test of memory. The host will read a story related to that night’s theme, and the players will then be quizzed on the details of the story that they just heard. The first three players to answer four questions correctly will proceed to the next round.

Round #2: Legorama!
For this game, the three players will be given a prompt from which to construct a scene out of Lego. Once their building time is up, each player will be given the spotlight to show off their Lego creation to the audience. The audience will then vote to decide which two players will then advance to the final round.

Round #3: Trivia Lightning!
The two remaining players will then be quizzed one at a time in a game of rapid fire trivia. Each contestant will be given one minute to see how many questions they are able to answer correctly. Once both contestants have played, the player with the most corresct answers will be crowned the winner for the night.
 
One more thing!
Earlier I mentioned that each of our performances will be centered around a specific theme. While our structure and rules for each performance will stay the same, the content of each show will be determined by the theme listed for that particular day. So for example if you are interested in playing and you also happen to be an expert on Shakespeare, or someone who loves Minnesota Sports, check out our show schedule to see what topic you think will give you the best shot at winning.”

Did you say prizes were involved?

“So much cool stuff! We are putting together a grand prize package for our final contestant each night containing the following items:
2 Passes to the MN Children’s Museum courtesy of Mahmoud Hakima
2 Passes to the MN Science Museum
2 Passes to the American Swedish Institute
1 $25.00 Gift Card to Pizza Luce
1 $20.00 Gift Card to the Namaste Café
1 Chai Growler courtesy of the Namaste Café
…And even more!

In addition to these fabulous prizes, we are also still reaching out to different local groups around the Twin Cities to make our prize package for each night even more spectacular, so keep an eye on this space in the weeks to come for more updates. 

We will also have consolation prizes awarded to each player, including candy and passes to other Fringe shows, so no one playing will be going home empty handed. To each and every one who has been able to donate to our prize pool so far, we wish to extend a warm and heartfelt thanks for making this show possible.”

Change of pace show raising money for a good cause?  I’m in.

 

 

Fringe 2026 - Returning Favorites - JimJam Media - The Local Music Scene

I saw the previous Fringe outing for this improv comedy concept back in 2022 over at the Bryant Lake Bowl, so I’m happy it’s back again and on the West Bank this time so hopefully more folks will give it a shot.

Description: 
Improv inspired by local music. Local musicians perform original songs live. Between songs the Local Music Scene cast improvise scenes inspired by the lyrics. LOCAL MUSIC; improvised SCENEs
Venue - Rarig Xperimental
Content Warnings - Adult Language
Genre and Content - Comedy, Improv, Original Music
Ages 16 and Up

JimJam Media is producers/improvisers Sarah Arnold-Simondet, Holly Brooks, Eric Heiberg, and Philip Simondet,  Philip created the show concept for The Local Music Scene and Eric serves as director.

Phillip and company ended up in the #3 spot on my pre-Fringe Top 10 list for their show “Demo Tape” and then wowed me again with both the comedy and the music of “Self-Titled Debut Album” in 2018, then brought the long-running improv show “The Local Music Scene” to the Fringe in 2022, and just last year Philip mixed music with a solo show and served up the intense, funny and very compelling “Fall of the High School Valedictorian” (which he’s taking to the Green Bay Fringe this weekend).

So, scripted or unscripted, if Philip and his collaborators are involved, I’m there.

Here’s how they describe the concept:

“In each show, a local musical guest is featured. They perform 4 original songs and, inbetween the improvisers create scenes inspired by the lyrics/vibe/etc.

The first Local Music Scene show was 2/1/2014, and we've featured nearly 100 local musicians over the last 12 years.

The first shows were a summer-long 11 am residency at an art gallery, which was the living/dning room of a 2 bedroom apartment above an italian restaurant. Our "green room" was the host artists' kids' room. There were only 6 seats in the house, and they were never full.

The Local Music Scene was a monthly staple at the Bryant Lake Bowl Theater until Covid shut everything down.

After Fringe, we will be begin a recurring run at The Others Workshop Collective (1729 N 2nd St, Minneapolis, MN 55411)”

Bonus tracks:

“Every musical guest is tasked to create their own version of The Local Music Scene Theme Song. Some suggested lyrics are offered, but the musical guests are encouraged to "make it their own" as much as possible.”

Here’s the playlist of past theme songs from their guest musicians

The musicians lined up for each performance are as follows:

Aug. 7th at 10:00pm: Robyn Jamner
Aug. 8th at 7:00 pm: Larry Wish
Aug. 10th at 8:30 pm: Dogpile
Aug. 15th at 1:00 pm: Brendan Wells
Aug. 16th at 5:30 pm: Boobless

Additional improvisers in the line-up include Karyn Alissa, Danica McDonald, Adam Mellerup, Linc Owens, and the legendary Jill Bernard (of HUGE theater fame - I know, I buried the lead there, didn’t I?)

If you want some new local music and some imrprov comedy, this show has both.

I’ve very highly recommended all of Philip’s Fringe shows - and I already know this one works so… absolutely slotting into my schedule again.  You should, too.

 

 

Fringe 2026 - Returning Favorites - Mermaid Productions - The Importance of Living

There’s another Fringe show making its debut at the Green Bay Fringe this coming weekend before heading back home to be part of the Minnesota Fringe Festival next month - “The Importance of Living” from Mermaid Productions.

This one actually has a trio of artists involved who have shown up on pre-Fringe Top 10 lists of mine, all of whom had shows in last year’s Fringe as well, though this year’s show is a very different one than what any of them were offering up last year - producer Ariel Pinkerton, heading up Mermaid Productions, and also one of the performers in this two person show; writer Tim Uren, also one of the performers; and director Duck Washington.  These three know how to put together a Fringe show.  Now, about that Fringe show…

Description: 
Samuel and Louise really know how to live; no morals, no regrets, no limits, no future. It's the night before their reckoning day and they've come to crack a bottle of wine, swap tales, and have a little fun.
Venue - Open Eye Theater
Content Warnings - Adult Language, Crude Humor, Violence
Genre and Content - Comedy, Drama, Horror
Ages 12 to 15 and Up

The press packet materials mention that the characters of Samuel and Louise are “based on actual historical murderers” (yikes).  Tim does love to spin a good horror yarn, both on the page and in performance.  I can imagine that he, Ariel and Duck had way too much fun in rehearsals with what I’m sure will be more than a little gallows humor.

Don’t believe me, just check out their bios:

“Ariel Pinkerton is the head, tail, and only member of Mermaid Productions, which is the handle she uses at any and all Fringe Festivals. She is also an actress, lighting designer, director and storyteller. She is Co-Artistic Director of Fortune’s Fool Theatre, Artistic Director of Mermaid Productions, Company Member of Ghoulish Delights and Community Liaison for the Minnesota Fringe. To keep herself out of trouble she is also the Co-owner of the Hard Times Cafe, a mother and step mother to three amazing children, and constant comfort to her neurotic cat.

Duck Washington has been working as a theatre artist in the Twin Cities area for over twenty five years. He is an actor, director, playwright, audio designer, educator, improvisor, and arts leader. Duck is the Executive Director for the Twin Cities Horror Festival, and is company member of Blackout Improv, Theatre Pro Rata, Dangerboat Productions and Villification Tennis. Duck is co producer of The Encyclopedia Show Minneapolis and also produces under his own company, Rouges Galley Arts.

For over 25 years, Tim Uren has been performing, writing, and directing theater at festivals and small venues in the Twin Cities. Along the way, has worked with companies such as Theatre Pro Rata, the Brave New Workshop, and Theatre in the Round. He is the founder and "Chief Ghoul" of the Ghoulish Delights theatrical company and a co-host of the Mysterious Old Radio Listening Society podcast.”

Now tell me you’re not curious to see what they’ve cooked up together?

 

 

Fringe 2026 - Returning Favorites - Kyle B. Dekker - Witness Loudly

Kyle B. Dekker is another returning Fringe storyteller that makes Strike Theater a venue worthy of multiple visits this Fringe.

Kyle’s currently at the Green Bay Fringe this coming weekend debuting his new show “Witness Loudly” that he’ll bring home to us here in the Twin Cities for our Fringe next month.  The show is (given the recent killings in broad daylight on city streets in Texas and Maine in the span of less than a week by ICE agents) sadly even more timely and relevant that it already was before the latest grim news dropped.

Description
Operation Metro Surge pitted armed ICE agents against the residents of Minnesota. Kyle B. Dekker recreates a live rapid response call on stage based on his own experiences as a constitutional observer, also  discussing the impact of the event on him and his neighbors.  
Venue – Strike Theater
Content Warnings – Adult Language, Gun/Weapon Usage, Loud Noises, Violence
Genre and Content – Solo Show, Drama, Political Content, Historical Content, Spoken Word, Storytelling
Ages 12 to 15 and Up

While Kyle was out there with his fellow citizens doing the work that needed to be done - keeping an eye on ICE patrols, making sure kids got to school and home again safely when their parents couldn’t leave the house, providing groceries and meals to people who couldn’t go outside and do their jobs to earn the paycheck to keep food on the table - Kyle was also regularly reporting on conditions during the occupation by posting updates online.  He has a hell of a lot more stories to tell than could fit in any one-hour Fringe Festival slot so I’m very curious to see how he’s crafted this tale.

One of many things I appreciate about Kyle as a Fringe performer (apart from the fact that he’s also so supportive of his fellow Fringe artists and their shows), is that he finds the humanity and ways to connect an audience to subjects he cares about and wants to share. That’s just as true of the solo show about his upbringing in a religious community (“He-Man is the Devil: A Satanic Panic Tale”) as it is when he creates a show with his son about the science of flatulence (“A Completely Serious and Not At All Comedic Review of Fart, Flatus and Flatulence, aka The Fart Show”).  “Witness Loudly” is obviously more on the serious side of that spectrum but when Kyle’s got a tale to tell, he does it well.

Bonus points if you attend (according to the More Information tab on the show page): “All proceeds from Witness Loudly will be donated to Indigenous Roots - an arts and community activism organization on the East Side of St. Paul, MN. They were essential in mutual aid and community support during Operation Metro Surge and continue to be an anchor of the East Side Community. Please consider making a donation to help them continue their mission and tell them Kyle sent you!”

[And if you want another angle on the occupation, there’s an ensemble storyteller show in this year’s Fringe as well called “Who We Are: Stories from the Surge” from the group Three Second Memory (headed up by Bruce D. Manning) that got some behind the scenes support from Fringe vet and rockstar storyteller Allison Broeren - so that also makes me curious.]

 

 

Fringe 2026 - Returning Favorites - Maximum Verbosity - A Revolution Highly Favorable

Maximum Verbosity (aka phillip andrew bennett low)'s latest production, "A Revolution Highly Favorable," is one of several good reasons to get my butt over the independent venue of Strike Theater and see some shows there again this year.

I’ve been following phillip’s storytelling ventures around the Minnesota Fringe for (yikes) over 20 year now, since his appearance at #2 on my pre-Fringe Top 10 list back in 2007 (for “Descendant of Dragons”) happened after I’d already seen two other previous Fringe outings from Maximum Verbosity - intrigued by the enjoyable but slightly messy experiment of the first in 2004 and unexpectedly blown away by the storytelling achievement of the second in 2005.

When phillip was last on the Minnesota Fringe schedule back in 2023 with “Too Many Notes,” revisiting a different story from years past in each performance - I rearranged my Fringe schedule so I could catch four out of the five (almost saw ‘em all).  If phillip’s got a story to tell, I want to hear it.

Here again, we’re getting a different part of a larger canvas with each of this year’s performances:

Description: 
On the 250th anniversary of American Independence, listen to the words of those who were there! Adapting for the first time 18th-century combat medic, historian, and POW David Ramsay, this fully AI-illustrated show features a different collection of readings each night.
Venue - Strike Theater
Content Warnings - Abuse/Physical Violence, Adult language, Gun/Weapon Usage, Loud Noises, Sexual Violence, Violence (Some evenings may contain gunshots and/or racial slurs.)
Genre and Content - Drama, Solo Show, Spoken Word, Storytelling, Historical Content, Political Content
Ages 12 to 15 and Up

The rundown:

Saturday, August 8th at 4pm: A Revolution Highly Favorable: Peaceably to Assemble. When a distant autocrat imposes a series of crippling tariffs, a peaceful protest movement is met with overwhelming force.

Sunday, August 9th at 7pm: A Revolution Highly Favorable: To Keep and Bear Arms. The first shots of the war are fired as the government attempts to seize a stockpile of contraband weapons.

Monday, August 10th at 7pm: A Revolution Highly Favorable: To Dissolve the Political Bands. Differences become irreconcilable and thirteen new states are born, achieving their first victory on a stealth mission across the Delaware.

Wednesday, August 12th at 8:30pm: A Revolution Highly Favorable: To Compleat the Works of Death. In the war's darkest hour, a southern capitol falls, and a highly-placed general betrays his commission. (NOTA BENE: this late-night show is focused on the horrors of war, and is not for the faint of heart or stomach. Seriously. I'm not kidding.)

Saturday, August 15th at 2:30pm: A Revolution Highly Favorable: To Form a More Perfect Union. The war is won, and a new nation's citizens wrestle with who will be represented in their new government.


So, depending on your mood, or historical area of interest, there’s a slice of the story for everyone.

The press packet had some thoughts on the genesis of the show:

“I'm an internationally-touring storyteller who's been out of the game for a couple of years, but couldn't resist the opportunity to produce something for the semiquincentennial. This is a weird passion project that started long before the recent political madness that threw our city into the national spotlight, but our founding myth is a story of massacres, government gone mad, and ordinary people trapped in extraordinary circumstances that became far more relevant than I ever hoped they would. We're a traumatized people trying to find a response, and mine is to plunge forward into the past.”

Now, as for the AI of it all…

You’ll be unsurprised to find that phillip has a thoughtful and amusing essay on the topic of the creative use of generative AI - that would be the link on his More Information tab entitled Confessions of a Slopaholic.

You can see an example of how he’s using the artwork in the trailer for the production:



As for the source material for the performances, “David Ramsay was a physician, legislator, and early American historian. Born in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, he graduated from Princeton and earned a medical degree from the University of Pennsylvania before settling in Charleston, South Carolina, where he introduced vaccination and served in the state legislature. During the Siege of Charleston he worked as a field surgeon and was captured when the British occupied the city, spending nearly a year imprisoned in St. Augustine, Florida. After the war he became one of the nation's first historians, while his outspoken abolitionism cost him a U.S. Senate nomination. In 1815, he was murdered by a former patient.”

And since you’ve got Ramsay’s bio, here’s phillip’s: “phillip andrew bennett low is a Chinese-American playwright and poet, storyteller and mime, theatre critic and libertarian activist. His solo performances have won acclaim from Minneapolis to Atlanta, New York to LA - even as far as Melbourne, Australia. He was the co-founder of the Rockstar Storytellers (a supergroup of bestselling Twin Cities spoken-word artists), founder and producer of the touring theatre troupe Maximum Verbosity, and founder and host of the country's only open-mic dedicated to speculative fiction, The Not-So-Silent Planet, and its associated podcast.  He has published collections of political humor, comic fantasy, and horror.

 

 

Review - The Cottage - Gremlin Theatre - Putting the Comedy Back in Romantic Comedy - 5 stars

Gremlin Theatre’s production of Sandy Rustin’s play “The Cottage” is putting the comedy back in romantic comedy.  Or perhaps it’s putting the farce back in sex farce.  The audience gets a lot of both (love and sex) but laughter is the order of the day.

“It seems we’ve all been lonely with Sylvia or without Sylvia.”

Perhaps the trickiest thing about “The Cottage” (and no, it’s not that other recent cottage of note, calm down - though that is also lovely), the tricky thing about discussing the plot of “The Cottage” is that it’s SO easy to spoil some of its funniest surprises and biggest laughs if you aren’t very careful.  So I’m going to stick quite closely to the synopsis the theater, and the playwright’s own website, use to say just enough but not too much.

“I love it when you smoke.  You look like the picture of health.”

“A romantic getaway. Multiple affairs. One tiny English cottage. What could possibly go wrong?
With a tip of the hat to Noël Coward and sex comedies of the past, this side-splitting romp is an outrageous tale of sex, betrayal, and desire set in 1920s Britain. The true meaning of fate and faith, identity and infidelity, love and marriage are all called into question as a surprising and hilarious web of secrets unravels in this ridiculously funny, potentially murderous, uncharacteristically feminist romantic comedy.  Sylvia Van Kipness (here played by Sarah Malaria) sets the whole thing in motion when she decides to expose her love affair to her husband Clarke (Corey DiNardo) and her lover Beau (Sasha Andreev)’s wife Marjorie (Shana Eisenberg).”

Rounding out the mismatched couples are two other visitors to the cottage, arriving for reasons I won’t spoil, Dierdre (Mira Davis) and her jealous husband Richard (Chance Carroll).

“It’s impossible to rip a man’s heart out with a teaspoon.”
“You said it was serrated!”

Half the fun of watching the antics of “The Cottage” unfold is the almost dizzying way in which all the characters become increasingly interconnected throughout the whole of the first act and on into the second act as one new person after another comes knocking at the cottage’s front door.  Even though the play is new and only just recently had its run on Broadway back in 2023, the style of dialogue and performance is very of the period reminding me not only of Noel Coward, but also screwball comedies of the early 20th century like “Bringing Up Baby” or the wisecracking detective couple Nick and Nora Charles in “The Thin Man” movie series.  Kudos to dialect coach Keely Wolter for helping everyone achieve that arch, old-timey comedy style.  Everyone’s got a sharp wit here and is willing to use it, though the production is also not above drunken escapades or unexpected farts.  High brow and low brow humor live in harmony in “The Cottage” and they’re both equally entertaining.

“Just as a left you… gorgeous.”

Director Brian Balcom puts his clever, very funny cast through their paces, running in and out of all corners of Carl Schoenborn’s multi-level set with its many doorways and windows (and window seats), not to mention the larger Gremlin Theatre itself.  It’a a great use of the space.  Schoenborn also took on the lighting design, making sure everything’s just as bright and sparkling as the dialogue.  The whole design team is populated with Gremlin Theatre regulars so the period feel of the piece is reinforced by Aaron Newman’s sound design choices as well as A. Emily Heaney having a ball with the costume design outfitting everyone in period threads (and lingerie). Prop designer Sarah Bauer outdoes herself with everything from the doilies to the candlestick phone and the old Victrola record player.  My theatergoing companion also outdid themselves by noting a framed picture of Emily Dickinson hung on the cottage wall and then later noting, as we took stock prior to the performance beginning of all the clothes strewn about the floor and the “delicates” draped over the staircase railing, “Well, Dickinson did once say that ‘Hope is a thong with feathers.’”  Stage manager Kathryn Fritz is new to the Gremlin but keeps all these plates spinning as they need to in order to keep the comedy on track from start to finish.

“Funny how the brink of death brings out the sentimental side of men.”

One of the many things I enjoyed about “The Cottage” is that it’s not at all what it first appears to be.  Given my unconscious cultural conditioning, my brain was expecting for the play to revolve around Beau, the husband cheating on his wife.  And I was surprised to realize I had been expecting this when I found that expectation thwarted, over and over again, by the reality that the play, and all its characters, actually revolve around Sylvia instead.  And in the rare moments when it’s not revolving around Sylvia, the story leans more toward Marjorie or Dierdre than it ever does to Beau, Clarke or Richard (who are, each in their own way, quite ridiculous men).  When the playwright describes her own play as “uncharacteristically feminist,” she’s not kidding.  That said, it’s not a play that beats you over a head with a message.  It’s too silly for that.  It’s just the lens through which the story is framed, which continues to fascinate me as I type this.

“I’ve dreamt of this moment.  Well, not this moment exactly…”

“The Cottage” is just a really fun time.  I don’t want to spoil any of the fun so just go see it for yourselves.  But make your reservations. They were completely sold out opening night, which is a rare thing to see at a theater these days, but a most welcome sight.  If you need a break from… well, everything going on right now… Gremlin Theatre is a place where you can dependably find a whole evening full of laughs.

“You said last night you love it when I take charge.”
“Context, darling.”

Sandy Rustin’s “The Cottage” runs now through August 2, 2026 at Gremlin Theatre (550 Vandalia Street, Suite 177, St. Paul, MN 55114), Wednesdays through Saturdays at 7:30pm, Sundays at 3pm.  Wednesday, July 15th is a Pay What You Wish performance.  Tickets available at www.gremlintheatre.org

5 stars - Very Highly Recommended

(Photo courtesy of Gremlin Theater.  Photography by Alyssa Kristine Photography. Left to right, Sasha Andreev as Beau, and Sarah Malfara as Sylvia in “The Cottage”)

 

 

Fringe 2026 - Returning Favorites – Button Productions - Buckeroohaiku’s Reverse Armando

Last year, improvisor (and apparently relentless organizer) Ryan Klima was in the #11 spot on my pre-Fringe Top 20 for a pair of improv comedy shows, one with his duo Comfort Zone called “Chemistry” and another 5-star show centered around the improv game of “Ping Prov.” 

This year he’s back again, this time pairing up with storyteller Kate Button and an army of improvisors for another experiment based on the practice of taking the raw material of someone else’s story and then putting it through an improv blender to create comedy.  Per the press packet and the show pages More Information tab on the Fringe site: 

“A unique storytelling/improv mash-up! A wild and crazy life paired with amazing improvisors.

Button Productions is proud to announce the debut of Buckeroohaiku's Reverse Armando, a unique performance series that blends raw, personal storytelling with the Twin Cities’ premier improv comedy. In each performance, local storyteller Kate Button shares snapshots from a life that spans six continents and dozens of roles: from railroad worker to co-parent of nine (including five children adopted from China, Liberia, and Florida). With refreshing honesty, Kate navigates themes of world travel, "disastrous" marriages, and living with ADHD and chronic depression. Following each story, a rotating cast of the Twin Cities' finest improvisors will take the stage to riff on Kate's experiences, transforming personal history into spontaneous, high-stakes comedy. Because every show features a new theme and a different ensemble of performers, no two adventures are ever the same."I consider myself to be a citizen of the world and of time," Kate says. "This show is an invitation to join that journey. It will be hilarious, thoughtful, and deeply human."

Description
True stories. Masterful improvisation. Kate Button spills the stories, while the Twin Cities top improvisors weave them into comedy gold! Brace yourself for an evening of raw, unfiltered hilarity! 
Venue – Southern Theater
Content Warnings – Abuse/Physical Violence, Adult Language, Drug Content, Gun/Weapon Usage, Mental Illness, Sexual Content, Suicidal Ideation/Self-Harm, Other Divisive Content, No Late Seating Allowed
Genre and Content – LGBTQIA+ Content, Improv, Storytelling, Comedy, Political Content
Ages 16 and up

They’ve gathered improvisors from groups like Adorable, Local News, The Mess, The Neighborhood, One Act Survivor, and The TZ Crew, which include artists that have their own separate shows in the Fringe this year such as Jenn Scott (Sound and Noise and Bodies), Philip Simondet (The Local Music Scene) and Mike Fotis (Tech), alongside other folks who’ve created memorable Fringe shows in the past like Rita Boersma, Butch Roy, Jake Scott and James Rone, just to name a few.  The full impressive roster is on the Cast and Crew tab of their show page.

There’s just too many good artists associated with "Buckeroohaiku’s Reverse Armando" for the end result not to be good.  I’m looking forward to seeing it, and given that improv comedy is never the same twice (particularly with the way they’re switching out both content and performers), I’m probably going to end up feeling bummed out that I can’t manage to schedule myself to see it more than once.

 

 

Fringe 2026 - Returning Favorites - American School of Storytelling

 

 

 

Speaking of the American School of Storytelling venue, they’re also producing their own show with a rotating roster of storytellers, collectively called “More Better Stories” - the folks behind this venue are some of the best storytellers in town and created some very enjoyable storytelling shows in Fringes past, so whatever they’ve got on the schedule is always a returning favorite

Description: 
Storytellers Jon Carlson, Vianna Isbister, Bernadine Joselyn, Hank Roubicek - each tell three times, and Erin Ferdinand, Kory May, Christopher Nelson, Laura Packer, and Anne Wiborg do "one off's" with stories for adults.
Venue - American School of Storytelling
Content Warnings - Adult Language, Sexual Content
Genre and Content - Comedy, Drama, Solo Show, Storytelling, LGBTQIA+ Content, Political Content, Religious Content
Ages 16 and up

The press packet materials have the following extra detail:

“The American School of Storytelling is the most intimate venue in the Twin Cities and for the third year as an Independent Producer on the "fringe of the Fringe" we are offering eight storytellers from around the country sharing adult tales of love, obsession, adventure, humor and horror on our 8'x8' stage.  Railroad engineer Jon Carlson, Tennessee based Vianna Isbister, Bernadine Joselyn coming from Grand Rapids (MN) and Houston based Hank Roubicek each tell three times while Erin Ferdinand, Christopher Nelson, Laura Packer, and Anne Wiborg will do “one off’s” for this year’s More Better Stories.”

If you check out their Cast and Crew tab on their show page on the Fringe website, you can find a rundown of who’s doing what when.  Here’s a quick summary of the titles on offer:

Three performances for:
Jon Carlson - Oz-America - The contrasting energies of my work and my polity inspire me, artistically, to alchemize both MAGA rage and the rage that animates The Resistance. Not only can Imagination and Humor dance with Rage, they desire to do so for the sake of the soul's liberation and human solidarity.
Vianna Isbister - Leaking (The Wolves are Everywhere) - invites audiences into liminal spaces where shadows stir, voices linger, and imagination takes on a life of its own.
Bernadine Joselyn - War & Peace in My 20th Century Life - What’s Worth Fighting For? - Imagination and longing led her from her childhood home in a first-ring Minneapolis suburb to India, the Soviet Union (later Russia), New York City and rural Itasca County, giving up building civil society for tree planting and tending along the way.
Hank Roubicek - Learning What? - With over 4 decades of teaching, he reveals emotional truths about education, learning, and the stuff that matters most.

One shots for:
Erin Ferdinand - My Dog Died (and All I Got was This Lousy Miracle) - author of "The Ghost Dog Diaries", a collection of essays and advice about life after death and our life, in general; debuting supernatural stories
Kory May - The Exact Moment I Became Someone Else - Kory May tells stories to make sense of the world—and since the world refuses to make sense, he keeps telling them - a Moth Mainstage performer and two-time Moth GrandSlam winner.
Christopher Nelson - Growing Up Small in a Mid-Sized Town - Come learn how balled-up socks, radishes and cow eyeballs are about the same size, but which one is good for throwing in self defense?
Laura Packer - Mermaids, Monsters, and Mysterious Strangers: Stories of the Unknown and Unexpected - Not everything can be explained. Not all strangers are who they seem. Not every monster is what you expect.
Annie Wiborg - Tell Me Again - Her days are full of reading, friends, family, volunteering, walking the dog, camping, working out – while frequently eavesdropping - at the gym.


One of the things I regret not doing in last year’s festival is getting out to the American School of Storytelling and taking in a show in this new-ish venue.  I’ll be trying to rectify that error this year - and there are even more promising presentations out there this time to make it worth a trip.

 

 

Fringe 2026 - Returning Favorites - Ben San Del - Apologies for the Late Reply

Ben has a video short that makes the case for his comedy in less than a minute much better than I could by just typing the words “Trust me, Ben is a very funny guy” so just quick watch that here.

Ben took his new show “Apologies for the Late Reply” out for a test run at the Kansas City Fringe last year and ended up winning the Best of Venue encore performance there, and now he’s bringing the show back home to Minneapolis.

Description: 
Stand-up comedy about salvaging sanity in our age of crazy presented by four-time Minnesota Fringe encore winning producer and Acme Comedy Co.'s Funniest Person in the Twin Cities title holder Ben San Del.
Venue - American School of Storytelling
Content Warnings - Adult language, Crude Humor, Mental Illness, Suicidal ideation/Self-harm
Genre and Content - Comedy, Solo Show
Ages 16 and Up

According to the press materials, Ben’s been on a bit of a journey since we last saw him at the Minnesota Fringe Festival back in 2017 (haven’t we all? and if you haven’t, good for you I guess :)  As usual, Ben makes a better, more amusing, case for himself than I ever could, so I’ll just step aside:

“Floundering to hold himself together as the world falls apart, a four-time Minnesota Fringe Festival encore winner returns to the Minnesota Fringe Festival for the first time in nine years with a stand-up comedy show about maintaining mental health as so much chaos closing in.

After 12 years in the scene, Ben San Del walked away from stand-up comedy in 2018. Untreated anxiety, ADHD, and depression had taken their toll. Touring as a stand-up comedian was only making things worse. After quitting comedy to salvage his sanity, Ben found a job that provided health insurance and got himself some therapy and medications and started to get better. During the 2024 election season, Ben recognized the same signs of anxiety, executive dysfunction, and depression that he had been experiencing becoming increasingly common among the general population, particularly people whose mental health had been perfectly stable up to that point.

After seven years away, he decided to return to stand-up comedy and focus specifically on making people laugh about and amid the exhausting chaos and dark absurdity of post-Covid life. But with fart jokes. For Ben, for the first time ever, stand-up comedy became a salve for poor mental health, not a contributor to it. With this new mindset, Ben built an hour of material that he felt would be perfect for a Fringe Festival audience at this moment in time, and was determined to produce a show even if the Fringe lottery did not smile upon him. 

This will be Ben San Del's 10th MN Fringe show, the first in nearly decade, and very first show produced as an independent producer. San Del is a past winner of Acme Comedy Co.’s Funniest Person in the Twin Cities contest. He has opened for Tig Notaro, Maria Bamford, Emo Phillips, and Ali Wong, among dozens of other national headliners. His one-person show "Spec" won "Best Storytelling Performance" by audience vote at the 2017 Victoria, Canada, Fringe Festival, and he's a four-time winner of a bonus encore performance at the Minnesota Fringe Festival, where he has previously produced and directed three plays and three stand-up comedy performances. For the last two years, he has taught "Stand-up Comedy for Beginners" for Minneapolis Community Education.

Oh, also, Ben's very sorry it took him so long to respond to your email and/or text and/or Teams message and/or Signal chat, and/or social media outreach, and/or all of the above. He foolishly allowed himself to get distracted by the impending collapse of civilization. It won't happen again. Until it does.”

If you really need more convincing to get out to the American School of Storytelling and see a show at an independent venue, here’s a link to a post with links to all my five-star reviews of all of Ben’s previous Fringe shows, whether he was doing stand-up himself or writing a hilarious play for other people to perform.

Ben was on my pre-Fringe Top 10 list all the way back in 2006 with his very first stand-up show at the Fringe, “Mittens for Fat Kids” and I’ve returned to his Fringe shows every year since because Ben’a an astute observer of the absurdity of every day life, and there’s a lot of that to go around these days.  Might as well take a break for an hour, sit down and laugh about it all.  Ben’s got you covered.  I’m very glad he’s back.

 

 

Fringe 2026 - Returning Favorites - Third Space Theater - Be Not Afraid

Third Space Theater is yet another example of why it’s so important to find the right collaborators.

When Alex Church (pre theater company name) landed at #3 on my pre-Fringe Top 10 List back in 2023, the mix of artists he was working with was… problematic, shall we say.  A lot of behind the scenes upheaval, leading to a performer leaving in the middle of the run during the festival so… yikes.  Really the less said the better for all concerned.  But what a wild upward trajectory from there over the next two Minnesota Fringe Festival seasons.

Alex bounced right back the next year with “Dutch: Made In America,” the darkest of absurdist comedies meditating on the forces that shaped the young actor who would one day grow up to be President Ronald Reagan.  It was a great gathering of fellow artists bringing the new script to life.

And then last year, under the banner of Third Space Theater, the right group of folks came together and created the unsettling seafaring adventure “Breach,” packing in the crowds through enthusiastic word of mouth around the Fringe, and getting both the Venue Pick and Artists Pick at the Golden Lanyard Awards at the end of the festival for their efforts.  At the time I wrote: “fantastic use of TRP space, all its levels and corners, light, shadow and sound, to create a fishing vessel on a high pressure job, with weather and tempers threatening to undo the crew; great script, cast, direction; plus a giant hallucinatory monster crab - 5 stars”

Then that same group of collaborators started my 2026 theater year off right with a stellar 5-star production of Will Arbery’s wild new play “Plano.”

And now they’re back again with a new script penned by Mariabella Sorini and Alex Church, both of whom also co-wrote last year’s “Breach.”  This time it’s a land-based tale of misfortune called “Be Not Afraid” (so, of course, you should be afraid - besides, it has nearly all the content warnings so…)

Description: 
2012. A struggling farm in a northwestern North Dakota town transformed by the oil boom is given a warning. A savior is coming.
Venue - Southern Theater
Content Warnings - Abuse/Physical Violence, Adult Language, Blood, Crude Humor, Drug Content, Flashing Lights, Gun/Weapon Usage, Loud Noises, Mental Illness, Sexual Violence, Violence, Other Divisive Content
Genre and Content - Comedy, Drama, Horror, Mystery, Original Music, Physical Theater, Storytelling
Ages 16 and Up

A portion of proceeds will be donated to the Minnesota Indian Women's Resource Center - learn more about them and their essential work here, https://www.miwrc.org/

The press packet also includes these nuggets of info:

“The oil boom turns a North Dakota town into a modern Sodom & Gomorra.”

Well, okay then…

“North Dakota, 2012. A struggling farm in a town transformed by the oil boom is given a warning: a savior is coming. TST's newest original work places audiences at the edge of a nightmare on the plains. A motley crew of listless men, irate locals, and desperate neighbors fight for security and autonomy in a midwestern gothic of biblical proportions. As the heat rises and hope dries up. ‘Be Not Afraid’ explores what holds us together when the world is falling apart. “

They got the band back together from “Breach” adding on some folks from “Plano” and some additional new artists of promise for this go-round.  Building on the good that has come before.

Am I a fan of horror and violence in the my entertainment diet?  Not normally.

Would I trust these people to take me there for an hour?  Absolutely.  I can balance it all out with something funny and uplifting afterward.  The Fringe has everything.  Also, “Be Not Afraid” doesn’t open until Saturday on opening weekend, so I have some time to fortify myself for a good jolt.

Third Space Theater has found its Fringe audience, so they hardly need my help, but I’m recommending them anyway.

 

 

Fringe 2026 - Returning Favorites - One T Productions - After The End

Scot Froelich (he of the one T in Scot) has been spinning ingenious and affecting tales of heartbreak both before and after I flagged him back in 2013 as #5 on my pre-Fringe Top 10 list that year.

The end of the world and/or humanity, one could argue, is just a different kind of heartbreak.  So while I’m not much for dystopian scenarios, if Scot’s telling the story and playing the guitar, I’ll go.

After The End
Description: 
Following a devastating global pandemic, Jeff is left to fend for himself. Twelve years later, he’s built a farm, a solar array, and – to pass the time - a hobby of playing guitar for the audience in his head.
Venue - Mixed Blood
Content Warnings - Adult language, Suicidal ideation/self-harm, No late seating allowed
Genre and Content - Comedy, Drama, Musical Theater, Solo Show
Ages 12 to 15 and Up

No late seating allowed.  
Don’t want to disrupt the vibe of the end of the world by showing up late :)

The More Information tab and press packet provide additional context:

“We've all contemplated questions like, "What's your desert island playlist?" or "If you only had one day to live, what would you do?" and considered the decisions around finality and isolation. Luckily for Jeff, he doesn't have to think of answers. He's had twelve years to live them. There's a meticulous garden, a glorious solar array, the world's most magnificent vinyl collection, and a wide variety of canine companions.

As time stretched on, though, he had to find a true hobby. A way to express himself. Enter: YOU. Thank you for being Jeff's imaginary audience. The solar generator only has enough juice for 60 minutes of performance, though, so make sure to get there early.

The human population has been reduced to... Jeff. He’s learned guitar, but who is his audience?

25-season Fringe veteran Scot Froelich returns to the stage with a question: If you were the last person on earth, what would you do? How would you grieve the loss? How would you remain joyful? How many dogs would you keep? And what keeps you going? After a global pandemic reduces the population to... Jeff, he is left to ponder these questions while learning gardening, hunting, and guitar. But why is he still here and what does he intend to do with his time?”

I do also appreciate that they hired a human (Hannah Boehme) to do the artwork for the show’s publicity.  (In a dystopia, we humans need to stick together and not just submit fully to the computers, which if of course harder and harder to do every day, he says, typing on a laptop and posting to the internet…)

The show has Mike Mellas as director, Nicole Wilder as Music Director, and Sheree Froelich (who helmed recent Fringe shows I quite enjoyed - The Wind Phone in 2024 and My Empty Arms in 2022) as stage manager on this one so we’re in good hands all around here.

 

 

Fringe 2026 - Returning Favorites - SUPERMOON - the statue of liberty is nora in a doll’s house by henrik ibsen

This should be one of the shorter blog posts.

Partly because the group SUPERMOON (collaborators Caleb Matthew Byers, Claudia Errickson, Mads Plonski, and Michael Torsch) is deliberately cagey about the details of their shows, so you go in as blind as possible and just experience the performance without a preconceived notion of what you’re walking into.

Partly because, well, they kind of blew the doors off the place in last year’s Fringe with their production “All Your Shimmering Gold” (a mash-up of a weapons contractor client presentation and the opera “Das Rheingold”).  Anyone who saw that doesn’t need any additional convincing from me.  (Honestly, it’s a little embarrassing in hindsight that they were only #14 on my pre-Fringe Top 20 list last year, but there was little detail, as there is this time, so it was hard to do anything more than go with my gut feeling.)

My review of their Fringe show last year is i believe the first time I’ve ever used the phrase “This show f*cks so hard.”

Some less colorful commentary included: 
“Like a lot of the best live theater, All Your Shimmering Gold is fairly resistant to being summarized.  You really have to see it for yourself… [The show] is spectacle meant to be seen with your own eyes, felt personally in real time, not constrained or limited by someone else’s words.  But words are all I have so, I’m going to use them to best of my ability to give you some reasons to go see the show in the theater.

[It’s] is big, both in literal size, and in its ambitions.  It takes some really big swings creatively… It’s exactly the kind of crazy risk a framework like the Minnesota Fringe Festival was created to support.

The quiet genius of [the show] is that it doesn’t hold your hand and walk you through what everything means.  It merely places all the elements before you, and trusts the brains of the audience to work it all out for themselves… It’s a stunning, surprising, mesmerizing, unsettling, really wild piece of live performance.”

Having seen a couple of their productions now, the above is not a bad attempt at me fumbling toward an understanding of SUPERMOON’s mission statement.

SUPERMOON is doing a new Fringe show.  It should be on your list.

The title is almost all we’re getting but it does lay down some markers:

“the statue of liberty is nora in a doll’s house by henrik ibsen”

When I first checked the Fringe site, the show description said: 

"the statue of liberty prepares for and performs a doll's house."

When I check more recently it had changed to:

“The title describes exactly what happens (obviously other things happen too).”

The press packet serves up the following:

“This is a performance about doors, lies, and the American meaning of liberty.

The Statue of Liberty prepares for and performs Nora in A Doll's House by Henrik Ibsen. This performance is about doors, lies, and the morphed American definition/concept of liberty. It's an Americana kaleidoscopic ritual praying for a miracle.”

Venue - Rarig Thrust
Content Warnings - Flashing Lights
Genre and Content - Comedy, Drama, Musical Theater, Physical Theater
Ages 12 to 15 and Up

I just saw SUPERMOON’s production over the 4th of July weekend “In The Backroom” - another genre-busting meditation on the meaning and identity of America through the lens of deconstructing the life and reputation of “American Sniper” Chris Kyle (and also, tangentially, Land Del Rey’s song “There’s a Tunnel Under Ocean Boulevard”) - a spectacle of sound, projected dialogue, video, microphone and lip syncing work, and stunning images of (fake) assault rifles, American flags, and 160 boxes - while skewering and exploiting every theatrical convention they can get their hands on.  So I’m all primed for another dose of Americana when the Statue of Liberty tackles Ibsen.

 

 

Fringe 2026 - Returning Favorites - Tyler West - Small Minded

Back in 2018, when Tyler West’s traveling mime show “Abeyance” landed on my pre-Fringe Top 20 list at #13, we were only his third Fringe appearance, about which I wrote:

“Tyler West's combination of mime, comedy, self-generated live sound FX, and interaction with audience members on and off stage is a delight - 5 stars”

But that was a whole pandemic and two ancient presidents ago so, it’s been a minute, and I was very happy to see he was returning with a new show, Small Minded.

The Minnesota Fringe website being a living, breathing, evolving organism throughout the month of July, the first time I culled information on the show, its description said this:

“When Tyler was a little boy he wanted to grow up and be a clown. Come to find out it was a lot harder to achieve the former, than the latter. 'Small Minded' features magic, juggling, clowning, and much more!”

When I went back to double check and see if more information had been posted, I found this new description:

“Is being a dwarf clown REALLY half the size, but double the fun? Or is Tyler West just Small Minded? Either way, this show features juggling, magic, Shakespeare, story-telling, and some Ha-Ha's! from the heart.”

Both these descriptions are part of the press packet for the show, so it seems OK to post them both.  More context is always helpful.

Small Minded
Created by Tyler West
Directed by Cleo DeOrio
Venue - Southern Theater
Content Warnings - Adult Language 
Genre and Content - Clowning, Magic, Solo Show, Comedy, Physical Theater, Audience Participation, Storytelling, Shakespearian Elements
Ages 12 to 15 and Up

There’s not a lot else on the show’s Fringe website page, but there is a video trailer:



And Tyler has a YouTube page with other samples of his work to watch.

Also, I noticed that back in the day an anonymous poster actually took the time to post a comment on my pre-Fringe blog post on Tyler’s show “Abeyance” to share:

“Fun fact: Minnesota is only Tyler's third fringe, but at his second, San Diego, Tyler won one of the two cultural exchanges that SD Fringe has with other festivals. As as result, he has been offered a slot at Sydney Fringe. (Full disclosure: I am the logistics coordinator for San Diego and I'm a house manager at MinnFringe.)”

It’s weird to find a post on a blog entry that isn’t spam, and also pretty cool that Tyler’s show inspired someone to share more information.  I shouldn’t be surprised, really.  It was a fun show.

And I expect no less from this one.

So if Tyler’s last show was before your time, or you missed him back in 2018, now’s your chance.  I feel very safe in promising you will be entertained.  Small Minded is on my schedule so perhaps I’ll see you there.  

In fact, if you want to start your Fringe on a fun note, Tyler’s show is the first slot, 5:30pm, on the first day of the festival, Thursday 8/6. Can’t go wrong with that.  Trust me. (And it’s a Bring a Friend to Fringe (BFF) performance, too, so you can buy a ticket and get an extra for free to bring someone with you.) 

 

 

Fringe 2026 - Returning Favorites - Dolly Who - Doozy

An embarrassing pattern has developed.  When I tagged Destiny Davison (aka, Dolly Who) as #7 on my Top 10 list back in 2023 for her show “DollyWho,” my Fringe-going schedule that year jumbled things around so that I ended up catching Destiny’s very last performance, which was also the very last slot in the festival on closing night.  So it was right from there to the closing night party and I never even typed so much as a mini-review online on the fly, like I try to do, even for the last show.  Fell down on the job there.

Last year, when she returned with “Dolly Who’s Holiday Horror Show” I did a little better.  This time it was the next to last day of the festival when I finally caught the show, and at least managed to post the following:

“MN Fringe show #44: Dolly Who’s Holiday Horror Show - Destiny Davison’s cartoons are adorably goofy, and creating a new holiday improv-style as a crowd amidst her established bits was a great communal experience; joy is in short supply so this was a real tonic :) - 5 stars”

So the goal this year is to see her new show “Doozy” sometime opening weekend(?) and actually write a proper review finally.

Description: 
A good friend never forgets. Too bad, Dolly did. But no worries, it's her day off! No agenda, no script, no work...and all the time in the world for a little sweet, sweet revenge.
Venue - Open Eye Theatre
Content Warnings - Flashing Lights, Loud Noises
Genre and Content - Puppetry, Improv, Comedy, Original Music, Physical Theater, Kid Friendly
Ages 12 to 15 and Up

Destiny Davison is both a talented improv comedian (part of the roster at Blackout Improv, among other improviser gigs) and a talented cartoonist, and as Dolly Who she blends the two into delightfully quirky shows with both comedy and cartoons conjured up on the spot with the help of some audience suggestion.

It’s hard to adequately describe the look and feel of a Dolly Who show.

The video trailer for Doozy helps:


As does Destiny/Dolly Who’s website

And Instagram account.

So check out all that art and performance archiving to get a sampling of what’s in store for this year’s Fringe.

And maybe I’ll finally write more than fifty words about it this time :)

Whether I manage to write or not, trust that if Destiny Davison’s Dolly Who is in the Fringe, I will find a way to see it.

We’re woefully low on whimsy these days, so Doozy is much needed.

If you need more convincing, here’s a bit more background from the Fringe show page for Doozy:

“DOLLY WHO? (cartoonist, perpetually exhausted millennial, and part-time, semi-professional “Learner”) is taking the day off! But nobody's resting easy, no siree, Bob. Things are about to get real. Featuring puppets, a giant remote, improvised chaos, and a Best Friend Forever hell-bent on revenge, DOOZY is an equal parts heartwarming and heart-wrenching story of friendship for the whole family, but mostly made for the friend (s) in your life that could use a reminder on how to be better one.

Featuring Britt Johnson as DOOZY, Cody Madison as DOOZY, Destiny Davison as DOOZY, Deanna Pistono as DOOZY, Alsa Bruno as DOOZY, Ross Flores as DOOZY, Jill Bernard as DOOZY, Alexandria Davison as DOOZY, Xylophone as DOOZY, Big Remote as DOOZY, Father Time as DOOZY, and DOOZY as DOOZY.

About DOLLY WHO?
DOLLY WHO? is Destiny Davison (she/they) a Minneapolis-based multi-media artist, cartoonist, and performer. Her work explores the real, the unreal, and the in-between. Right now, she is most concerned with how to stay human in a world of chaos and hurt, being a friend, and snails with fragile, bottomless hearts. Destiny has appeared on stages across Minnesota, including The Ordway, The Jungle Theater, Pangea World Theatre, Strike Theater, the Brave New Workshop, and more. Destiny's first appearance as DOLLY WHO? was at the 2023 Minnesota Fringe Festival. And in 2026, Destiny premiered their first ever puppet show “DOLLY WHO?'S FOR DINNER” at Open Eye Theatre’s Puppet Lab Festival. Destiny's artwork has been commissioned by Apple TV, Planned Parenthood, the Minnesota Star Tribune, TPT Almanac, the Northeast Minneapolis Arts Association (NEMAA), and the Minnesota Billboard Project.”

 

 

Fringe 2026 - Returning Favorites - Chris Davis - Road Trip!

Chris Davis was last here (his first Minnesota Fringe) in 2023.  He was #4 on my Top 10 list that year and he lived up to the much deserved hype he got from friend and Minnesota Fringe favorite Sam Landman.  I’m very happy to see he wanted to make a return trip to Minneapolis with more of his comedy.

Some things I said in my 5-star review about his combination stand-up and improv comedy show that year:

“Skewering stereotypes and semantics, banning books improv-style, deconstructing which lives matter and the unfortunate naming of buildings, Davis' comedy may be laid back but it still hits all its targets…

Good stand-up comedy is rare.  Good stand-up comedy that deals with thorny topics like race relations or sexuality is even rarer.  So I’m very glad that comedian Chris Davis made the trip up from Alabama to do a couple of his shows for us...

The two “Chris Davis Does Stuff” shows (Just Black Enough, and Seriously, I’m Not Gay) are sort of a cross between a stand-up routine and a solo show.  Basically a much funnier than usual solo show.  And a much more thoughtful stand-up routine, with a larger, overarching theme behind it.  I appreciate comedy that requires that my brain still be turned on and not off.  Chris Davis delivers the laughs I need, and the insight I wasn’t expecting.  Can’t ask for more than that from a good Fringe show.”

This time around, Chris is bringing his friend Rich Mansfield with him and they’re going full improv comedy this time.  As the poster for their show “Road Trip!” says, “Improv Comedy Goes on the Road.  You Choose the Destinations.  We Take You on the Journey.”

Description: 
Too expensive to go on a road trip? Then join two improv comedians as they take a ROAD TRIP without ever leaving the theater! You don’t need to pitch in for gas, just pitch in suggestions for destinations and leave the “driving” and comedy to them. Where will there journey take them? That’s for you to know and us to find out!
Venue - Bryant Lake Bowl
Content Warnings - None
Genre and Content - Comedy, Musical Theater, Audience Participation
Ages 16 and Up

Whatever Chris has in mind for this return trip, I’m happy to check it out.

If you need more convincing, here are Chris and Rich’s bios:

“Chris Davis started doing improv comedy in 2000 and stand up comedy in 2003. He is a member of Ugly Baby Improv, ETC Improv, and hosts Fresh Ground Comics, Birmingham's longest running local comedy showcase. Chris performs comedy, theater, appears in commercials, corporate videos, print ads and hosts many different events around town, including the Birmingham Moth StorySlam. He’s been fortunate enough to have opened for Janeane Garofalo, Al Madrigal, Michael Ian Black, Hannibal Buress, Brian Posehn, Jen Kirkman and performed comedy sets at two TEDX Birminhgam events in Birminhgam, Alabama.

Raised in the windswept cornfields of Illinois, Rich spent a decade performing standup throughout the MidWest , as well as a five year layover in Minnesota performing on stage in scripted and improvised productions all over the upper Midwest. Rich now performs regularly with two separate improv teams as well as producing and hosting his own comedy stage shows in Birmingham, AL.” 

 

 

Fringe 2026 - Returning Favorites - Small Waves - Cyrano

This is the first of many folks I’ll be posting about returning from my Top 20 list for last year’s festival to the 2026 Fringe.  A lot of artists on my list last year returned again this summer for more fun and entertainment.

Last year, the Small Waves artists were lampooning reality TV dating shows with their all-lesbian (plus one drag queen) extravaganza “Cabin Fever,” for which my 5 start mini-review online included both the phrase “so many lesbians, so little time” and “just as funny as it is bawdy and unexpected”

This year, they’re going in a completely different, but still very queer, direction and adapting the Edmond Rostand romantic classic “Cyrano de Bergerac” which they described for the Fringe’s Instagram account as “a modern, sapphic presentation of a time-honored classic that stays true to the story, even if it lacks any big noses.”

Description: 
A queer heroic comedy in five acts. The story you never knew you already know, like you've never seen it before. An adaptation of Edmond Rostand's "Cyrano de Bergerac."
Venue - Theatre in the Round (TRP)
Content Warnings - Abuse/physical violence, Adult language, Blood, Crude Humor
Genre and Content - LGBTQIA+ Content, Comedy, Drama, Literary Adaptation, Religious Content, Shakespearian Elements
Ages 12 to 15 and Up

In their press packet pitch, Small Waves adds the following:

“Minneapolis-based and queer-owned, theatre production company Small Waves seeks to celebrate theatre for theatre’s sake. This latest celebration - Katie Christ’s adaptation of the 1897 play “Cyrano de Bergerac” by Edmond Rostand - presents a classic story that you never knew you already knew, like you’ve never seen it before. This production brings together a diverse group of Twin Cities artists, swapping swords for boxing, and long noses for queerness. Audiences can expect to laugh, to cry, and to wonder just what might take them to the moon.”

They call it “a queer heroic comedy, in a new ‘old’ adaptation of Edmond Rostand's "Cyrano de Bergerac." We've added sapphic flavor while retaining the period language and emphasizing the poetry of the original play.”

All of which I am very much down for.  After watching Small Wave assemble a great group of improvisers and set them loose on a well-constructed and hilarious satirical concept, I’m extremely interested in watching them take a classic, swoony old love triangle and make it queer.

If you’re looking for a good queer show this Fringe, “Cyrano” should be on your list. 

 

 

Fringe 2026 - Returning Favorites - Gabriel Mata - Latin Papi

It takes a bit of digging sometimes to realize who's actually performing a show (this will be a common theme in a subset of the posts this year).  For instance, I thought I'd already caught all the returning favorite artists from the list of shows, but then I was perusing the Dance category (since Fringe is the one time of year I can catch a lot of dance all concentrated in one place), and in clicking through to the main page on "Latin Papi" I discovered, "Oh, wait a minute, this is a new Gabriel Mata show!  How delightful!"

It just says "CuerpoxCuerpo" in the main listings under the title, but then when you open the show page right under that unfamiliar company name is "Created by Gabriel Mata and Armani Colón"

Description
Latin Papi is a bold, playful, and provocative contemporary dance performance blending sensual movement, voice, humor, and theatrical flair created by Armani Rey Colón and Gabriel Mata of CuerpoxCuerpo.

Venue – Rarig Xperimental
Content Warnings – Crude Humor, Flashing Lights, Short Show (less than 45 minutes)
Genre and Content – Dance (Modern)
Ages 18 and Up Only

Anyone who saw any of his previous Fringe outings here, Out of the Shadows (2017), Dreaming (2018), or Joteria: Our Untold Stories (2022), doesn't need me to tell them they should be getting this one on their Fringe schedule.  But it's been a minute since he was last here in 2022 so for the uninitiated, go see this, you're in for a treat.

I normally go see Gabriel's shows two, even three times in a festival and that is unusual behavior for me.  They're just that good.  Mata creates work that's funny and thoughtful and full of graceful, beautiful movement across whatever space he's in.

This show seems like it's another departure from the shows that came before (a bit more adult - crude humor, 18 and up only? color me curious), but whatever this dancer/choreographer is up to with his new collaborator, I'm excited to see it early on and then come back later for more.  That may be harder this year since the Rarig X space can easily sell out with a popular show.  But I would love to have that problem because that means this show is getting the audiences it deserves.

UPDATE: here’s some additional information on the content of the show from my press packet that I just discovered:

“Latin Papi is a contemporary dance performance with movement and surprise from the Latinx body.

Latin Papi is a bold, playful, and provocative contemporary dance performance created by Armani Rey Colón and Gabriel Mata of CuerpoxCuerpo. Blending sensual movement, voice, humor, and theatrical flair, the work reclaims the Latinx body from stereotype and spectacle while inviting audiences into a 40-minute whirlwind of charm, vulnerability, and unexpected twists. Infused with contemporary Latin sabor, Latin Papi explores how bodies of color are desired, consumed, fetishized, and misunderstood, while also honoring their tenderness, complexity, and power.

Through a series of vibrant and intimate vignettes, Colón and Mata navigate ideas of masculinity, jotería, and performance itself. Seduction and comedy intertwine with moments of raw physicality and reflection, revealing the tension between visibility and objectification. The performers shift between fantasy and authenticity, humor and intimacy, asking audiences to reconsider what it means to look at, desire, and define the Latinx body.

Rooted in collaboration and contemporary performance practice, Latin Papi seeks to create an experience that is immersive, disarming, and deeply human, opening space for connection, recognition, and dialogue with audiences.” 

There's not a lot of information posted about his collaborator Armani Colón as yet, but if you need more convincing, here's Gabriel's bio:

"Gabriel Mata (pronounced: gah-bryehl mah-tah) is a Mexican American dance choreographer, educator, and performer based in Washington DC. Brown Baby is his project based performance company and he is the director of the Latinx Movement Festival in Washington DC. Growing up as an undocumented immigrant from Mexico who assimilated to a white and Eurocentric notion of the US for a goal of citizenship, he has cultivated his own choreographic form and movement language as an act of de-centering his concert dance training. He has cultivated dance performance work under the name motion memoirs and teaching of contemporary sabor. Mata’s research is on jotería, Meximalismo, immigration, Latinidad / brownness, and community based movement forms. Mata's dance works have been performed in California, New York, Minnesota, North Carolina, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Texas, New Jersey, Washington DC, and the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. His work has been presented at Stanford University, San José State University, Georgian Court University, Howard Community College, Salisbury University, Howard Community College, Santa Ana College, and American University. His dances have been commissioned by David Herrera Performance Company, Jane Franklin Dance, Atlas Performing Arts Center, Dance Loft on 14, sjDANCEco, the Minnesota Fringe Festival, the Festival of Latin American Contemporary Choreographers - SF, Moveius Contemporary Ballet, Dance Place, Silicon Valley Pride, the Hispanic National Bar Association, Latino/a/x Contemporary Dance Festival, and Corazón Folklórico DC. He is part of the Artists Advisory Council at Dance Place - Thresholds, the Latinx Hispanic Dancers United, and the Latinx Dance Educators Association. Mata is the inaugural Social Justice Commissioned Dance Artist at Dance Loft on 14th as well as the inaugural Arts Lab Fellow at the Atlas Performing Arts Center. He has received the S&R Evermay Washington Award and the Foundation for Contemporary Arts Research Grant. Additionally, he has been a current recipient of DC Commission for the Arts and Humanities Grants for cultural production."

If that's not enough for you, check out any one of my 5-star reviews of his previous Fringe shows: Out of the Shadows, Dreaming, and Joteria.  I'm a big fan of this artist and will recommend their shows to anyone who will listen so, let the recommendations begin, sight unseen.

It's in the 10pm slot on the first day of the festival, so I may already know how I'm ending my Thursday night on August 6th.