Sub-Total
2018 Audience Reviews
Member Reviews
The following reviews were submitted by Fringe Member:
Company: On the Verge Theatre
Show: Boobilicious
Venue: Augsburg Studio
A Playful Celebration
How great it was to witness this hilarious troupe of women celebrate, playfully critique, and laugh and our culture fixation with breasts. The mixture of sketches and songs created a cross between SNL and an all-woman Monty Python. An ideal fringe show. Catch it if you can get a seat.
Company: Theatre Corrobora
Show: Rejection
Venue: Augsburg Mainstage
Clever Exploration
This show sports delightful acting of lovably, quirky characters. I really appreciated the overlapping staging and clever use of white cardboard office boxes and a white board to establish an intriguing Brechtian aesthetic. While I appreciated the insights into contemporary dating culture, I don't think the script's conclusion was clear or satisfying. All in all, over, however, this show is worth seeing.
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Company: Red Dice Collective
Show: Cyrano on the Moon
Venue: Ritz Theater Studio
Cyrano in the After Life
This show is a creative conceit... it's fun to wonder what might happen to Cyrano in the afterlife. The actors committed to the premise, the costumes were very good for a fringe show, and much of the writing approximated Rostand's lush original. I did wonder why Cyrano did not have a big nose?
Company: Play Anyway Productions
Show: Meet The Medranos
Venue: Strike Theater
A One-Woman Bio (with songs)
This autobiographical show about identity and family works very well. I wondered about one tech moment (an odd projection that I couldn't quite make out), but I admired the performers grit and humor. The closing moment of the show was perfect.
Company: D Lobontiu
Show: Sfanta (Holy One)
Venue: Strike Theater
Impressive and Funny
A one-woman comedy about a vain, obscure Moldovan wanna-be saint... what could be more fringy. I enjoyed the writing and appreciated the performer's energy. To keep the long dialogue sections from pantomime, the performer could have taken advantage of more off-stage focus. Still, the show is worth seeing.
Company: Hit the Lights! Theater Co.
Show: WHALES
Venue: Ritz Theater Mainstage
A Visual Feast
This is the most visually impressive piece of theatre I've seen a fringe. In addition to the stunning shadow puppets, the punk music and aggressively entertaining ensemble created a wonderful party.
Company: Theatre Unbound
Show: A Gertrude Stein Christmas
Venue: Augsburg Mainstage
Non-sequitur Theatre
I love the idea of producing unappreciated works from great literary artists. I'm also open to the idea that this art might be unknown or unappreciated because of gender biases in history. If this is the case in A Gertrude Stein Christmas, however, I couldn't tell. I appreciated the committed acting, and the sense of community established by the cast, but I could not make much sense out of the non-sequitur conversations. This was a noble effort but unsatisfying theatre.
Company: HFS
Show: Wonder and Awe: A Play About Magic
Venue: Mixed Blood Theatre
Funny Stuff
Nick Saxton, the writer and director, is a emerging Twin Cities theatre talent. Keep your eye on this young man. I loved his fringe show last year as well. Nick once again guided his ensemble to a playful and zanny evening of fun. If you want to laugh, see this show.
Company: Quasimondo Physical Theatre
Show: Mrs. Wrights
Venue: Rarig Center Xperimental
Lovely and Artful
Through dance interspersed with monologues, Reinke shares details and sensibilities of women in Frank Lloyd Wright's complicated life: his three wives, his mistress, and his mother. Wright also makes an appearance in a moving scene of mourning. The conventions of the show might be a little difficult to follow (the program helps), but the results are moving and visually creative. The scene in which Reinke dances with Wright's overcoat is particularly playful and inventive. The Fringe was made for this kind of work. Support this impressive movement artist.
Company: The Band Group
Show: TITUS: Sweet Water, Silent Walks
Venue: Rarig Center Thrust
Ambitious
I'm a sucker for Shakespeare on the Fringe, so I was thrilled to see that an ensemble had the guts to tackle Titus, one of Shakespeare's more challenging works. For the most part, The Band Group succeeds. The most striking feature of the the production is the inventive and athletic movement work. I also enjoyed the creative use of fabric and the overall sense of a body chorus. Cutting the show into an hour proved a challenge. I suspect that audience members who don't know the show already would be lost. Fortunately, the staging gives them plenty to watch in their confusion. The extended scene of physical/sexual abuse was powerfully rendered. It will haunt me for a long time. Overall, this is a fine, ambitious production, much bigger than typically fringe fare.
Company: Tyler West
Show: ABEYANCE
Venue: Strike Theater
Wonderful Physical Comedy
Abeyance is a fantastic display of wit, imagination, and physicality. Highly recommend!
Company: The Herd
Show: I Killed the Cow
Venue: Augsburg Studio
Elegant, Complex, and Creative
This show reminds us how good solo performance can be. It's beautifully written and wonderfully performed. The script is full of complex and intriguing metaphors. The staging seems simple but is actually deceptively complex. I loved the creative moments of audience engagement. And the acting is both magnetic and subtle. Great show.