Brett's Personal Fringe

Out of interest of full disclosure if nothing else, this bottom-dwelling post will note my personal Fringe schedule - which shows I've seen, liked and reviewed, and which I plan to see.

Also, a couple thoughts on the venues.



My schedule for the first weekend of Fringe:

THURSDAY 9th

5-6 Cover Me in Humanness* @ Redrum Liked it, good performances, albeit a minor script.
7:30-8:30 4.48 Psychosis @ Bodega Loved it, thought it was a major achievement - see my Fringe and Purge review.

FRIDAY 10th

5:15-6 Escapades of Farty Johnson @ Shop I disliked it. The performer was very talented, but she wasted that talent mumbling, doing literally nothing but sitting on a bench for three minutes [not even any business], and generally being perplexingly self-absorbed.
6:45-7:30 Annabel Lee* @ Apothecary Lovely, engaging, moving.
8:30-9:30 Leave a Tone!!! @ Apothecary Not bad; some interesting parts. See my F+P review.

SATURDAY 11th

12-2:07 Fictitious* @ Warehouse Mainstage Good performances and good songs, a very weak book.
2:30-3:40 The Saints @ Baldacchino Dizzy Miss Lizzie rock!
3:45-4:45 Soup! @ Shop Not bad stuff, not nearly as funny or thoughtful as I suspect it was intended to be. See my F+P review.
7-8:20 Freakshow* @ Baldacchino I loved reading the script, and loved it in performance.
9:15-10:35 A Tactile Dinner @ Arthur S Fleming 9th+P Definitely 'the Fringiest.' A sensory-experiential romp. Marvelous Maranetti Mandates you see this.

SUNDAY 12th

12-1 Slow News Day @ Apothecary Funny, though I wish I hadn't seen it so early in the day - hot and sleepy.
2-3:30 Titus X @ Warehouse Mainstage TITUS. (thump thump) TITUS. (thump thump). TITUS. (thump thump). Awesome.
4:15-5:35 Please Listen* @ Baldacchino Spectacular and funny.
6:45-7:45 Elephant Man @ Baldacchino Bit of a letdown, though not bad. See my F+P review.
8:45-10:15 Closet Land @ Redrum Harrowing, essential.

THURSDAY 16th

6-7:30 Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead @ Redrum Not living up to the show's power. See my F+P review
8:30-9:45 Children of Medea @ Bedroom Deserving of its great reputation.

FRIDAY 17th

5:15-6 Life in Death: An Opera Electronica @ Redrum I liked it quite a bit. See my F+P review
6:30-7:30 The Terrorism of Everyday Life @ Warehouse Nextdoor Amazing, ridiculous, spectacular, rock and roll. See my F+P review.

SATURDAY 18th

2:45-4 The Quick Brown Fox Jumped Over the Lazy Dogs @ Redrum Words, words, words. But funny and provactive ones. See my F+P review
4:30-6 They Call Me Mister Fry @ Goethe Mainstage Quite good solo confessional on teaching in L.A. Tugs at heartstrings.
6:30-8 Diamond Dead, Continued...* @ Baldacchino Due to my association with the company, I've seen both previous versions of this awesome show. The audience I saw it with clapped for many minutes in order to get an encore bow. Ne-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-ecrophilia-a...

WEDNESDAY 22nd

Attempted to see Bad Hamlet @ Bodega, but got there late. :(

THURSDAY 23rd
7:15-8:30 The Lost Ones @ Warehouse Nextdoor BeckettBeckettBeckettBeckett excellence.
10-11 Headscarf and the Angry Bitch @ Source A lot more thoughtful that I'd gotten the impression it would be; so doubly good, as it was very funny too.

FRIDAY 24th
7-8 Krapp's Last Power Point @ Bedroom Highly absorbing, and left me with a whole lot of brain-food to chew on.
11-12:15a.m. May 39th/40th @ Bodega I didn't think the production lived up to the script's potential in some ways. Cool ideas.

SATURDAY 25th
3:15-3:50 The Girls Inside @ Bodega Brief, direct and strong.
4-5 Cabaret CooCoo 4-5 @ Mountain A Lovely Afternoon's Entertainment.
6:45-8:15 Riding the Bull 6:45-8:15 @ Bodega What a ride! More emotional range and humor and moral cosmology packed into this brief show than in many shows half again as long.
11-12:15 Irish Authors Held Hostage @ Bodega Quite entertaining.

SUNDAY 26th
(not Fringe obviously, but I saw King Lear @ Shakespeare Theatre I found it sumptous, entertaining, not as emotionally impactful as I'd hoped)
6-7 Bare Breasted Women Sword Fighting @ Source Provocative, in all senses of the word. An excellent way to end the Fringe - not just because it was equal parts Titillation and Meaning, but because it blended them together, and so it was a show about the Meaning of Titillation - and more.


The venues:

The Baldacchino - Seating comfort pretty good, sightlines very good, temperature = temperature outside (but not as bad as other places, because the heat wasn't locked in), sound = absolutely terrible, so much overheard noise from the bar. Worked for some shows, not for others.

The Bedroom - Seating comfort decent, sightlines better during in-the-round setups, not so much in proscenium style, temperature = not too bad, sound = good. A decent place for solo shows.

Redrum - Seating comfort good, sightlines very good, temperature = only Bodega was worse, sound = average at best. The weird scope of the space, I think, makes it work best for weirder shows like The Quick Brown Fox.

Warehouse Mainstage - Everything fantastic, of course. Great for any large show.

Warehouse Nextdoor - Everything pretty good, temperature great, sightlines a little less than great. Proved surprisingly versatile with The Lost Ones.

The Apothecary - Seating comfort good, sightlines pretty good, temperature = not great, sound = bad; lots of bleedover from the Bodega and outside. Worked pretty well for dance pieces.

The Bodega - Seating comfort average, sightlines good, temperature = disgusting, sound = bad; lots of bleedover from the Bodega and outside. Worked well for 4.48 Psychosis and okay for Girls Inside and Riding the Bull, but other than that everything else would have done better in one of the other spaces.

The Mountain - Everything fantastic. Great for any classic proscenium-capable show.

Goethe Mainstage - Everything fantastic, except it feels more like a lecture hall or cinema than a theatre. Doesn't work for a lot of styles.

Goethe Gallery - The only official venue I didn't see.

Source - Non-official venue, but important nonetheless. As always a largely excellent and versatile performance space, lacking only in backstage room.