The Buzz – Reviews – 2017

HOOTENANNY!

Smith & Somers—

This show has a lot of things working for it. The two actors are genuinely funny and the concept was great. The songs are pretty catchy as well as. But it’s kind of like ordering the gigantic ice cream your Mom said no too. It’s a little too sweet and a little too sugary to actually eat. What started out as hilarious become rather annoying as I waited for he show to end. If the show had been a little shorter I feel I would have loved it. I wish there was more I could critique but length was the only negative things I could say about this show. These two are exactly like I remember every childhood entertainment that annoyed me at 5. In this show you get exactly what it says in the program. There are no surprises and I did laugh.

Kaitlyn Kriss

Fear Forest

Found In New York Productions—Pantages Mainstage

Not much fear here—in fact, there isn’t enough depth here to arouse much interest. It’s a cute show but there’s no real plot, conflict or development. There’s plenty of audience participation, but not the kind that gets you immersed.

By all standards, this show should be part of Kids’ Fringe. The level of interaction, thought and intensity challenges kids’ inquisitive minds. As an adult, there isn’t much to keep me staked down.

Ray Yuen

Donating Sperm to My Sister’s Wife

Stewart Huff—Son of Warehouse

This is stand up show about love and acceptance is the most logical and positive set from a stand up comedian I have heard in a long time. I assumed the show would only be about the title situation. I went in thinking it would be amusing but certainly not the thought provoke master piece it is. Stewart Huff’s show strikes the perfect balance between preaching what he believes while not alienating his audience. This show about love and acceptance deserves to be and should be heard by a great many people I know. I can’t wait to see what he comes up with next. This seasoned pro’s show is a knock out and a cannot miss.

Kaitlyn Kriss

The Merkin Sisters

SNAFU—Tom Hendry Warehouse

This is the most absolutely Fringy , definitely  must see show this year! There is plenty of room, so come on down! I am so glad I caught this as it is my favorite find and it will be yours too, I promise. I will never forget the talking vagina, ever. And the most hilarious masturbation scene in Fringe history. Be prepared to be clambered over. They aren’t shy about playing with their audience. They have the chemistry, synchronized movement, expert choreography and puppet mastery that can’t be found in any other show this year. In thirty years of Fringing, I have never seen anything as good as this at pushing the limits of edgy comedy. You will leave smug and satisfied, with sore sides and wide eyes.

Lisa Campbell

The DnD Improv Show X

The DnD Improv—The Gas Station

The beloved fringe staple is back and bigger than ever before! They have seriously upped the production value for this year. Displayed the whole time is an interactive map where the DM (dungeon master for all the newbies out there) can show exactly where and who everyone is. I never had trouble in the past following along, but this helped even me out a great deal when I couldn’t quite remember what a character was called (there are 12 after all). Always funny and quick witted the cast brought all of us on a fun romp again. I did feel at times that the cast seemed a little two quick to jump in and sometimes ended up talking over each other. It was always reigned in however but the masterful DM or one of the more senior players. Another job well done and can’t wait to see next years adventure!

Kaitlyn Kriss

On The Inside

624 Productions—Son of Warehouse

On The Inside was written and performed by Iris Dyck. She performs two characters, Ivy and Colleen, two teen-aged girls who have been institutionalized due to mental health issues. I don’t know if either of the characters are autobiographical, but I suspect that this is the case.

Their stories are handled with great sensitivity and insight. The writing is succinct, but does contain enough clues to create well-rounded characters. The staging is sparse, but that only allows you, as an audience member to be more focused on the actor.

It is always gratifying to discover new or unknown performers who have the potential to go on to bigger and better things. This actress appears quite young, but is a good indicator of the kind of talent that can be found out there.

It takes a lot of courage to put yourself out there as this actress did. Congratulations Iris. Excellent work. Keep doing it.

NOTE: the performance I saw ran 30 minutes, not 45 as indicated in the programme.

Michelle Cook

Weaksauce

Sam S. Mullins—Rachel Browne Theatre

What you expect is what you get—a no-nonsense story-telling of maturation and experiences. An accomplished presenter, Mullins captures the audience’s interest and holds it through the duration. He injects some comical parts but if you want a comedy, this isn’t it.

A lot of the story is very relatable. I’m sure all (most?) of us remember our first time, our first love, and our first archenemy, so you easily internalise the journey. Still, it’s always to fun to hear about someone else’s.

Ray Yuen

Joe Job

Imaginary Productions—Fools & Horses Coffee

This coming of age story pits the tough beatnik kid against the teacher but this time she’s teaching him how to make coffee after he quits teaching. The story was heartwarming. It’s a little predictable, I saw one of the plot twists coming from the start. Thankfully the material is handled by two very capable actors. I did like the story but the production ran ten minutes over. You’ll want to take this into account when planning to see it.

Kaitlyn Kriss

4.48 Psychosis

Theatre by the River—Red River College

Theatre by the River’s production of 4.48 Psychosis is a challenging experience. STAY AWAY if you are going through suicidal ideation. That’s what it’s about. But if you’re up for it, it’s well worth taking this play in.

The play takes us through various states and moods of the main character, including her arguments and conflicts with psychiatrists. Whitbread does a good job of shifting in and out of these various states.

A good deal of the main character’s monologue sounds like the associative babble of a mind unmoored (or, at least, of some of the non-rational parts of the mind). This effect is amplified by John Norman’s most interesting echoes and distortions of the player’s voice.

The dialogue is provided by the actor interacting with two psychiatrists (their recorded voices those of Daina Leitold and Derek Leenhouts). Both voice actors convey very well the hurtful self-importance and assurance which the main character finds, and finds so painful in, the profession. Their voices are wonderfully crisp, clear—and unliving, robotic. Whitbread, by contrast, gives us all the timbre of a messy, living voice passing through various states.

The play is irksome in some ways. There was too much association of depressed mood with “blackness” (although the line about black water is very good). Some of the voice recordings are repeated ad nauseum, and some of the “babble” sounds like someone wanting to sound “artistic.”—Which effects are probably intended. Being suicidal is an irksome experience, and can be accompanied by being unable to get recurrent thoughts out of one’s head. Also, continuity between mental illness and creativity or genius seems well-established in psychology—so it’s entirely realistic that the “babble” would run from the innocuous to the pseudo-artistic before it geysers upward into a brilliance and clarity reminiscent of the Greek poets.

Some of the great lines include:
There isn’t a drug on earth can make life meaningful.
How do I begin as I mean to go on?
Dancing on glass.
I’m angry because I understand.

Near the middle of the play is a lovely paean and lament for someone the main character can never be with—”I’m yearning for someone who doesn’t exist.” This passage alone is worth coming to this play to see and hear.

Daina Leitold’s antiseptic listing of all the drugs tried successively on the main character and their effects, followed by the fact of her overdose in the same manner, is grim but very funny. And Leitold’s breaking down into unprofessional anger is completely unexpected—and startlingly vivid. For a few minutes it seems as if this psychiatrist might be the friend, the one that the main character has been wishing for all along. When the psychiatrist says that the main character doesn’t need a friend—well, I won’t tell you what ensues.

The extremely simply set-pieces manage to express both the (inescapable) tight corners in life that can precede suicidal ideation—and the corners becoming a coffin.

Despite the uncongeniality of the subject, the audience seemed highly attentive for the full hour.

I came from Prophecy (venue 29), thinking it was unlikely I had any entrails left to spill at 4.48 Psychosis (venue 11). Mistake. I found the two plays strangely parallel experiences.

Except that the audience was so stunned at the conclusion of 4.48 that we sat there for at least a minute, and who knows how much longer we would have sat there had not the director softly started clapping.

For more of Theatre by the River’s players (Daina Leitold and Mel Marginet), come out to Time’s Fancy at venue 12.

Kevan Bowkett

A Fatal Step

Jill Vice—Son of Warehouse

Jill Vice takes on seven separate characters in order to weave this entertaining story. Using a combination of different voices and impressive body language, she is able to keep each character distinct and moves from character to character seemingly effortlessly.

I would not call this story “heavyweight”. There really are not any burning questions to sort out, or monumental judgements to be made. Sometimes it is enough to just sit back and be entertained, and Ms. Vice delivers.

The script is well crafted, witty, nuanced and fun, and meaty enough to avoid being just plain silly.

There is a bit of a dark underbelly to this show, but I won’t spoil it by explaining any further. Thoroughly enjoyable.

Michelle Cook