The Buzz – Reviews – 2017

Macbeth – A Comedy

Parkview Productions—Asper Centre (U of W)

Could a happily ever after be in store for the tragic wannabe king? This play seeks to show us that. The cast had a lot of energy and clearly a love of what they do. The sight gags were pretty funny and there were some good one liners. That doesn’t change the fact that for most of the show I didn’t laugh at all. The ending felt forced as did most of the pop culture references they tried to throw in from left field. It was a lot of forced acting and seemed to be all over the place. If you are going to have more than 20 scene changes, the following scenes should generally be longer than 30 seconds. The whole play felt very thrown together and strange. It might be best to leave the bard alone and try something else.

Kaitlyn Kriss

God is an Iron

Black Box Productions Montreal—School of Contemporary Dancers

“If a person who indulges in gluttony is a glutton, and a person who commits a felony is a felon, then God is an iron.” I don’t get it. I’ve gone over it several times in my head and it makes no sense to me.  If you know, please enlighten me.

If I would have known before the show, I would have asked the actors. I had a brief moment to meet and chat with them and they’re very nice people. The play covers several very important topics and there are some lessons to learn here. For those two reasons, it pains me very much to write this review.

In a short, succinct clause: the play is boring. My summarisation may be succinct, but that’s the only thing succinct around here. The monologues are too long; the dialogue is too long; and the play is just too long.  The hour seemed like forever because nothing happened. The opening description took 20 minutes, which in itself, is forgivable, but it better pick up fast and be excellent. It didn’t pick up at all and by the end, I wanted to hook myself up to “the wire.”

Murray Hunter

CRUMBS

CRUMBS—Pantages Mainstage

Twenty consecutive years of performing at the Winnipeg Fringe is absolutely something to be proud of. I was pleased to check in with the guys, to see if they still had the magic I remembered. And they do.

CRUMBS is a practitioner of long form improv, so if you are expecting many unrelated sketches and lots of audience participation, you will be disappointed. I can’t speak of a “script” per se, since each show will be radically different. The enjoyment of the show is derived from watching Lee and Steve start with three disparate suggestions from the audience (at my show – apes, chocolate, occularist) and weave a story in a series of scenes, that advance the “plot” and ultimately conclude all the story lines in a plausible way. Of course, being improv, the audience is looking for lots of laughs along the way. These guys deliver.

Improv is really HARD, very different from other forms of performance. Lee and Steve, not only have a loyal Winnipeg following, but an international one as well. The experience of twenty years is obvious.

Although there were a few moments when it was apparent that they “dried”, they recovered in nano-seconds, accompanied by laughter.

I have to give a shout out to DJ Hunnicutt, their sound guy, and the venue tech controlling the lighting. DJ really has to be plugged in to provide the appropriate soundscape for the sketch, and the lighting person must be on their toes. Both these people put in solid performances.

One aside – Bring a sweater. It didn’t bother me but the venue is COLD.

CRUMBS – Rock on for another twenty.

Michelle Cook

BLINDSIDE

Stephanie Morin-Robert—PTE – Colin Jackson Studio

What do you do when you lose an eye? Probably the same thing you do with lemons from life. Make a comedy show! Telling stories of her unorthodox childhood, this performer had me laughing all show! Some of the moments of her show were a little sad but the sadness never lasted long. Her wit and charm consistently won me back. She does touch her eye and take it out then do crazy things with her eye, so if you have a weak stomach, be forewarned! A great and special little gem of a show. Don’t miss it!

Kaitlyn Kriss

Waiting For Trudeau

The Miracle Violence Connection—Rachel Browne Theatre

There were competent actors on stage but they were never there long enough to flesh out their characters. They dashed on and off, never weaving a cohesive production. This left me disappointed and perplexed. As I overheard two other patrons commenting on leaving the show,”There were some clever lines. But what was the point?”. My thoughts exactly. Don’t waste your time.

Lisa Campbell

Free Beer Episode IV: A Brew Hope

The Horrible Friends—Duke of Kent Legion

After all these years of working together on The Jenny Awards, I finally caught its host, Shawn Kowalke in the act, as he and fellow Horrible Friend, Luke Falconer, worked their way through various theatre games and random silliness.

I wasn’t the only one guilty of Schadenfreude as we watched Shawn take multiple hits from a plastic baseball bat wielded by an audience member trying to earn his free beer by dislodging the supernaturally stubborn post-it notes adhering to Shawn’s shirt. Later, Luke suffered the same fate. (I’m thinking this bit was drawn less from the theatre games ouvré and more from the “stupid-things-that-guys-do-when-they’re-drunk” category.)

They adeptly teased suggestions from the initially reticent full house audience, who clearly delighted in the results. They worked surprisingly well in the tiny performance space, dominated by a supporting pillar. (Unfortunately, if you sat far stage right, as I did, your main visual was their butts.)

It was a laugh-filled hour in a pleasant little venue with bar service throughout the show. Monday was their first sell out. It won’t be their last!

Coral McKendrick

An Evening Among Friends (in NYC)

Ethereal Fantazy Productions—John Hirsch Mainstage

Since this is a double billing, the two plays will be reviewed independently.

John’s Ring:
Two friends and an impartial judge decide who gets John Lennon’s ring. Volume issues throughout (that’s the trouble with trying to fill a huge venue), but the comedic timing was great! Really funny and quick witted.

Best Warm Beer in Brooklyn:
This play is highly dated. That’s the only possible reason I can come up with for one of the ‘jokes’ being a man considering transitioning from male to female to win back his love who comes out as lesbian. To me that’s not a joke or funny by any stretch of the imagination and fuels several harmful stereotypes plaguing the trans community. I did not like this play. The accents were terrible and the acting was mediocre. Definitely not anything I would recommend or see ever again.

Kaitlyn Kriss

The Prehistory of Moses P

ArtsDiva Productions—Planetarium

“Do the right thing.” How can such a statement, so simple, and so obvious, be so complicated?

In the opening of the show, we meet the adult Moses P, an eager, newly elected white politician in apartheid South Africa (1985). He introduces us to some of his family, notably Ma Kate, who is white, and reassures his constituents that he will work very hard on their behalf and do the right thing.

Flashback to 1945, (pre-apartheid) and we meet Johnny and a very pregnant Maggie. He is white and she is ‘coloured’ but it doesn’t matter. People are just people. We all have to live together.

For the remainder of the show, de Waal shuttles between these two moments in history with great ease, as he continues to add information about the lives of these characters. With each bit of information, the tension builds as the story lines reach to intersect each other, even thought the tone of the piece is most in line with the character of Johnny. So easy going at first, by the end of the play he is overwhelmed by helplessness. The apartheid system effectively boxes all of the characters into very uncomfortable corners. As this happen, every character is forced to consider doing the right thing. They all make a choice and each choice as consequences. I was thankful that I could have my own opinion of their choices, but was not asked to sit in judgement. I was thankful that I was given the luxury of exploring what “Do the right thing” meant to me.

As I read the programme notes (and everyone should), I was stunned by the systematic way that apartheid was introduced, and could not understand how anyone living in the 20th century could think that this system made any kind of sense. And then I turned inward to look at the way we in Canada view, and legislate our own indigenous population.

deWaal wisely does not explore reconciliation. That is another play. As with all global concerns, and this play explores one of many, we must make it a priority to reach consensus and “Do the right thing”.

Michelle Cook

Anomie

Downside Up Productions—Platform Centre

Thoughtful and introspective, this existential romp examines the meaning of life and being. The play starts mysteriously but soon clues you in on what’s happening. There are spots in the middle that drag a bit but overall, it’s a good effort.

Some questions for thought include, is the grass always greener on the other side? What if there’s no grass? How much would you risk for the chance of gain? What if you lose it all? What if you win and winning is less than nothing? Throw in the horror of loneliness and nothingness and you have a lot of material for discussion.

Are there correct answers to any of these questions? Does anyone know? Nagilum?

Ray Yuen

Horrible Histories: Rotten Rulers

Hamdad Productions—Pantages Mainstage

Reminiscent of both Monty Python and your goofiest history teacher in high school, this whirlwind sketch comedy show brings you the entire monarchical history of England. It comes complete with PowerPoint and ridiculous impersonations. The show got rather silly and there were a few cheap laughs. One cast member spoke way too fast so I couldn’t understand any of what she was saying. It was also interesting that the background music for the songs in the show seemed to keep an echo of the original vocalist which became quite annoying. I did like the songs and found them funny. The cast had pretty decent comedic timing. I loved the final song as well as the impersonation of King Henry the 8th.

Kaitlyn Kriss