The Great Galvani promises "the highest of high-quality acts," so it opens with the Bearded Lady (Kevlyn Hayes) and her ruminations on appearance, then shifts to Galvani (H. B. Ward), who proceeds to conjure up some high-quality feces (out of his ass, naturally). It's a giant misdirect, as is the way he summons P. T. Barnum into his own body for a monologue, and if the show were longer than a half-hour, the clever philosophical "edutainment" that writer/director Shawn Reddy sneaks in under that hammy cover might really pack a punch. Even still, it calls to mind the rich minimalism of Will Eno's Thom Pain, what with the wry romanticism, the unavoidable habit to "love what will not last."
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Tuesday, August 24, 2010
Fringe: The Secretaries
Over 16 years have passed since the Five Lesbian Brothers (Maureen Angelos, Babs Davy, Dominique Dibbell, Peg Healey, and Lisa Kron) first presented the Secretaries. The role of women in the workplace has changed drastically. The position of secretary has pretty much vanished, with managers writing casual emails rather than dictating formal letters. In the 1950s, the brilliant Hillary Clinton would have had few options other than being a secretary; today she is Secretary of State. Because of these changes, in some ways the cheerfully vicious Secretaries is dated. However, in many other ways, its satire still hits hard as it plays with society's ideas of feminism, jealousy between women, predatory lesbians, non-thin females, and sex. Patty, the new secretary at Cooney Lumber, wants to fit in with her Slim Fast-quaffing, fashion-conscious, gossipy coworkers, all of whom near-worship their thin, elegant boss Susan. Patty manages to work her way into Susan's good graces (winning "employee of the month" after only a week on the job), and by the time she finds out that the women kill one of the lumberjacks each month, she is part of the gang, happily brandishing the bloody sawn-off arm of her own lover. Due to the talent and intelligence of the Five Lesbian Brothers--and the perfectly stylized acting of Virginia Baeta, Elizabeth A. Bell, Jamie Heinlein, Karen Stanion, and Elizabeth Whitney--watching female empowerment through violence is a fabulous way to spend time.
Fringe: Ground to Cloud
MAN SHADOW
I wish I could figure out how to shadow light
this shadow lightbulb.
WOMAN SHADOW
I have a socket shadow.
MAN SHADOW
Can I shadow screw into it with my shadow
lightbulb?
WOMAN SHADOW
Shadow yes!
MAN SHADOW
Heh. Heh heh heh heh heh...
The shadow lightbulb represents my shadow--
WOMAN SHADOW
I KNOW WHAT IT REPRESENTS.
SHADOW.
[Read full review]
FRINGE: Terms of Dismemberment
WACKY CAST MEMBER 1
Let's sing about gun nuts, wont that be funny?
WACKY CAST MEMBER 2
Let's sing about drinking pee, that should be hysterical
right?
WACKY CAST MEMBER 3
Hey everyone, you should join me in a song about selling
a 14 year old's ovaries, that'd be CCCRRRRRAAAZZZZYYYY!
ANY PEOPLE IN AUDIENCE
WHO ARE ACTUALLY LAUGHING
Ha ha, my friends in this show are so hysterical.
Especially when they gave me free pot before the show
began.
[Read full review]
Monday, August 23, 2010
Fringe: Veritas
There is no doubt that Stan Richardson's Veritas, which sold out its entire run before the Fringe Festival even began, is the hit of the festival. So, is it worth the hype? Well, it needs some work, but mostly, the answer is yes.
In 1920, Cyril Wilcox, a student at Harvard University, committed suicide at his home. His brother, Lester (an intense Doug Kreeger), discovered letters sent to Cyril implicating his classmates in homosexual activities. "The Court" was formed by the president and dean of the university to interrogate the students. The play offers its version of these events. This disturbing period in Harvard's history was only uncovered in 2002. It's an important story that deserves to be told. The writing is quite powerful, effectively using repetition and greek chorus style where the actors often speak at once. The use of music and Shakespeare monologues make this a lovely production (directed by Ryan J. Davis), but the downside is that the play is a little too artsy and it would be hard to connect to the characters were it not for the cast of talented up-and-comers. Sam Underwood deserves particular recognition as the shy and awkward Joseph Lumbard, one of only two to be deemed not guilty and allowed to return to the school, but Justin Blanchard, Paul Downs Colaizzo, Mitch Dean, Morgan Karr, Eric Nelsen, Matt Steiner, Jesse Swenson, Joseph Yeargain, and Kreeger deserve recognition for their fine work humanizing the play.
[Read full review]
In 1920, Cyril Wilcox, a student at Harvard University, committed suicide at his home. His brother, Lester (an intense Doug Kreeger), discovered letters sent to Cyril implicating his classmates in homosexual activities. "The Court" was formed by the president and dean of the university to interrogate the students. The play offers its version of these events. This disturbing period in Harvard's history was only uncovered in 2002. It's an important story that deserves to be told. The writing is quite powerful, effectively using repetition and greek chorus style where the actors often speak at once. The use of music and Shakespeare monologues make this a lovely production (directed by Ryan J. Davis), but the downside is that the play is a little too artsy and it would be hard to connect to the characters were it not for the cast of talented up-and-comers. Sam Underwood deserves particular recognition as the shy and awkward Joseph Lumbard, one of only two to be deemed not guilty and allowed to return to the school, but Justin Blanchard, Paul Downs Colaizzo, Mitch Dean, Morgan Karr, Eric Nelsen, Matt Steiner, Jesse Swenson, Joseph Yeargain, and Kreeger deserve recognition for their fine work humanizing the play.
[Read full review]
Fringe: I Don < 3 U Ne Mor
If you see one musical at Fringe this year, make it the endlessly fun I Don < 3 U NE Mor, with music by Frank Grullon and Cathy Thomas and lyrics by Daren Taylor. With its tight book (also Taylor) and John Hurley's fast-paced direction that never drags, this fully realized production could transfer with very little editing, a rarity for Fringe.
The musical begins with "Out of Service/Out of Touch," a number with colorful costumes and dance moves (courtesy of choreographer Curtis LeMoine) that look like a parody of High School Musical. The dancers repeatedly stop mid-song to answer their cell phones, which is a smart set-up to a show about the dangers of technology. Ron (Dewy Caddell) and Sam (Elise Link) are about to lose their jobs as archivists for an Internet company after a merger leads to the creation of Verizon Micronet unless they can come up with a new job position. In the midst of trying to save his job, Ron is also trying to win over the girl of his dreams, Daliya (Felicia Hudson), who doesn't know he is alive until Ron's roommate Nic (Cameron Leighton Kirkpatrick) introduces him to the power of cell phones, texting, and My Facester.
[Read full review]
The musical begins with "Out of Service/Out of Touch," a number with colorful costumes and dance moves (courtesy of choreographer Curtis LeMoine) that look like a parody of High School Musical. The dancers repeatedly stop mid-song to answer their cell phones, which is a smart set-up to a show about the dangers of technology. Ron (Dewy Caddell) and Sam (Elise Link) are about to lose their jobs as archivists for an Internet company after a merger leads to the creation of Verizon Micronet unless they can come up with a new job position. In the midst of trying to save his job, Ron is also trying to win over the girl of his dreams, Daliya (Felicia Hudson), who doesn't know he is alive until Ron's roommate Nic (Cameron Leighton Kirkpatrick) introduces him to the power of cell phones, texting, and My Facester.
[Read full review]
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