1 exquisite Fringe LEMOINE

1 exquisite Fringe LEMOINE

The Exquisite Hour By Teatro La Quindicina, Venue 12 (Varscona Theatre) During the last hour of sunlight, when the setting sun travels through more of the atmosphere, the illumination comes from soft, indirect light. In The Exquisite Hour, Edmonton playwright Stewart Lemoine has used this beguiling time of day as a magic opportunity for two […]

1 grand Fringe OPERA

1 grand Fringe OPERA

Pagliacci By Pop Goes The Opera, Venue 16 (Holy Trinity Anglican Church) At the Fringe you can expect most anything. Somewhere young ladies are reading naked (see program: page 107) Elsewhere you can catch a grand opera. Granted, there is no symphony orchestra in the pit or heavenly choir in the loft for Ruggero Leoncavallo‘s […]

FRINGE: Drag deity does deadly Devil

FRINGE: Drag deity does deadly Devil

Mike Delamont: The Devil By Mike Delamont, Victoria, Venue 37 (La Cite Francophone) Veteran comic Mike Delamont has once again elevated stand-up comedy into a high art form at the Edmonton Fringe festival. In contrast to his other hit show, God is a Scottish Drag Queen (returning to Edmonton in October), this time he’s that […]

2 more UNEXPECTED Fringe hits

2 more UNEXPECTED Fringe hits

The Superhero Who Loved Me   By Blarney Productions, Venue 28  (The Playhouse) “It all started with the invasion …” are the terse words that blast off Chris Craddock’s first new Fringe play in six years. As quick as a photon torpedo we are ensnared in this galactic tale. Observes Superhero Samantha (The Governess), matter of […]

3 Fringe plays on MODERN LIFE

3 Fringe plays on MODERN LIFE

Leash Your Potential By Ryan Gunther, Vancouver, Venue 10 (Acacia Hall) If you’ve ever worked in a heavily bureaucratized, stolidly corporate environment, you know exactly what Ryan Gunther is talking about in his new play Leash Your Potential. Through the vehicle of the “seminar” – a format as insipid as it is ISO-9000 compliant – […]

FRINGE: Dark office comedy in deep Kafka

FRINGE: Dark office comedy in deep Kafka

The Receptionist   By Desperate Theatre Productions, Venue 14 (Holy Trinity Anglican Church) Adam Bock’s The Receptionist may not seem like a comedy, but it is billed as such. If it is, it’s the blackest of black comedies. You can make up your own mind. Not that it begins as black – that comes later. The […]

FRINGE: Andrea House delivers the full Willie

FRINGE: Andrea House delivers the full Willie

Chasing Willie Nelson – A Tribute By Stardust Players, Venue 39 (CKUA building) The Stardust Players are a group of like-minded professional artists who, in recent years, have gathered together to create original works that play to their specific talents. Their latest is billed as a tribute to Willie Nelson. But it goes much farther […]

3 Fringe DRAMAS

3 Fringe DRAMAS

Slack Tide By parts&labour with Blarney Productions, Edmonton, Venue 8 (Old Strathcona Performing Arts Centre) This new work from young playwright Bevin Dooley pulls no punches in tackling weighty subjects. It’s set in Killer’s Cove, a local teenage hangout on the beach outside a small fishing village. The exact location isn’t named, but through clues […]

3 Fringe ZOMBIE MUSICALS

3 Fringe ZOMBIE MUSICALS

Evil Dead: The Musical By Straight Edge Theatre, Edmonton, Venue 36 (La Cite Francophone) You know fandom has gotten completely out of hand when the fan fiction is as good if not better than the original work it’s supposed to be inspired by. For those who don’t know, Evil Dead is a campy low-budget 1981 […]

Dead Troll homecoming a Fringe triumph

Dead Troll homecoming a Fringe triumph

Get Me the F*ck out of Edmonton, and other ramblings of a Fringe has-been By Wes Borg, Victoria, Venue 8 (Old Strathcona Performing Arts Centre) Sure, Wes Borg did manage to get the f*ck out of Edmonton, but the most important thing right now is that he’s back in town with a new Fringe show […]

3 Fringe MUSICAL COMEDIES

3 Fringe MUSICAL COMEDIES

Urinetown: The Musical  By Grindstone Theatre, Venue 16 (Holy Trinity Anglican Church) Be careful not to laugh too hard at this musical that cheerfully subverts some of our most basic functions. It may lead you to a need to pee and, as the rather bizarre Urinetown: The Musical points out, that could lead to dire […]

3 ALCOHOLIC Fringe plays

3 ALCOHOLIC Fringe plays

Alcohol is a staple of the Fringe festival, whether it’s the on-stage subject matter, or the libations we enjoy before, after and – at some very civilized venues – during. At two of the three venues hosting the following triptych of shows you can enjoy a beverage while watching – which may sometimes feel a […]