Monthly Archives: May 2011

Promotional images for MISSING:, TO & FRO & UP & DOWN and DARKER.

Where I’m headed on Day 2, Thursday, June 2nd:

• 7pm at Know Theater
  MISSING: the fantastical and true story of my father’s disappearance and what I found when I looked for him from Jessica Ferris
  This magical realist detective story traces California solo performer Jessica Ferris’s search for the truth about her father who disappeared when she was two, and her discovery that he is a con artist on the lam. She portrays the members of her family as they reluctantly reveal clues, and she deftly transforms everyday objects (a folding chair, a metal toolbox, a sheet) into supernatural beings. 

Kicking off the second day with solo show number three and this one sounds promising. Jessica Ferris’ biography says, “Her eclectic aesthetic grows from her international physical theater training and the San Francisco Bay Area’s fertile performance community.” I took at brief look at her teaser video on the Fringe site, and was impressed with her physical comedy and the above mentioned folding chair.

I am a bit worried that puppets are listed with her show. I’ve had some very bad puppet-related experiences at previous Fringes…fingers crossed.

• 8:15pm at the Art Academy
  TO AND FRO AND UP AND DOWN from Kleesattel Productions
  Demonstrating yet again his strong interest in the advancement of public awareness, Satan (a.k.a. Prince of Darkness) will be hosting an educational Bible study at this years Cincinnati Fringe. The content of the production will center around his role in both the Old and New Testaments. Please feel free to come and learn from this figure’s vast experience, which includes not only being the universal symbol of evil, but also extensive work of the 1980 Presidential elections. (Please note that just because he came here from hell doesn’t necessarily imply there will be audience participation or puppets. So don’t worry.)

After visitng the Almight’s blog show the previous evening, the divine equal time rule demands that I give the devil his due tonight. (And may I point out that the Devil knows about my Fringe/puppet issues.)

Cincinnati audiences may remember cast member Dain Paige from his work with Jersey Productions and The Children’s Theatre of Cincinnati.

Cast mate Brendon North is a recent graduate of the NKU Theatre Program where last season he played Frank-N-Furter in THE ROCKY HORROR SHOW. Following the Fringe Festival, Brendon heads to Cortland Repertory Theatre to play brother Levi in JOSEPH AND THE AMAZING TECHNICOLOR DREAMCOAT.

• 9pm at Know Theatre
  DARKER from New Edgecliff Theatre
  In search of a job, Max finds himself the new kid at the Industri-Light Bulb Factory. But his surroundings are all too familiar… and he’s certain he has seen his boss somewhere before. Is he losing his mind, or is this the start of a very sick- and ultimately deadly- game? Max must uncover the truth, or accept a fate that will keep his life in a mind-numbing limbo.

Another show about getting a job, but this time with a dramatic tone. NET’s playwright-in-residence, Catie O’Keefe supplies the script.

Audiences may recognize cast member Michael Carr, a recent CCM Drama graduate and incoming Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati intern from his performances in ON THE VERGE at CCM and BURY THE DEAD at The Carnegie.

Mindy Heithause recently performed at La Comedia Dinner Theatre, in NANA’S NAUGHTY KNICKERS. At NET, she appeared in last season’s opener, THE NIGHT OF THE IGUANA.

NKU graduate (and local performing gypsy) Jeffrey K Miller makes his second appearance at the Cincinnati Fringe.

That’s it for Thursday. You can visit the blog Friday afternoon for reviews.

Official Cincy Fringe site | Plan your Fringe-ing with my daily show grid |

Promotional images for CURRICULUM VITAE, THE GOD BLOG and WHITE GIRL.

For those of you wondering what exactly IS the Cincinnati Fringe Festival, you can read the official version here. I like to describe it this way: Remember those neighborhood kids who used to put on shows in their garage? Well it’s kind of like that except they are all grown up and geez do alot of them have issues.

sO, In trying to tackle the monster that is the 2011 Cincinnati Fringe Festival, I went through the descriptions of all 30 productions and divided them into three categories: those I really wanted to see, those that sounded interesting, and the remaining performances that I would catch if I could.

Armed with those three categories and my 2011 Fringe Grid,  (available here in .pdf) I laid out my attendance schedule to make as many shows as early in their runs as possible.

For Day 1, Wednesday, June 1st, I’ll be attending:

• 7pm at 1423 Vine
  CURRICULUM VITAE from Jimmy Hogg
  It’s a show about my introduction into the working world at a very young age and consequent period of underemployment, moving from one awful experience to the next. It’s also a users guide as to how to get a job. It’s really the show where I made my mark on the Fringe scene by establishing a style that was very physically detailed, exceptionally fast-paced and packed with details, descriptions, segues and anecdotes leaving the audience little time to breathe until the curtain comes down.

Unfortunately I missed Jimmy’s A BRIEF HISTORY OF PETTY CRIME during last year’s Fringe Festival, (well truthfully I missed the entire festival), but I thought I might enjoy someone else’s comic take on unemployment, because living it, no so funny.

• 8:15pm at the Art Academy of Cincinnati
  THE GOD BLOG from What If Play Shop Players
  Yo, Fringe Fans! The Big Guy here, asking you to come see me and my friends from Celestial Services in THE GOD BLOG, a radio soap opera which asks the musical questions, “Can a burned out, demographically irrelevant deity find happiness in this crazy world he created AND stop Granola Guy Lucifer from confiscating his donuts at the staff meeting?” See for yourself why I need a new gig. Hey, remember that bike you got on your seventh birthday? I’m not trying to lay guilt trips on anyone…just sayin’ the Big Guy would appreciate a little love. Thanks!

OK, so I’m a sucker for the religious-themed Fringe shows. I think the reason can be traced back to a college Religious Philosophy class that was constantly interrupted by a fellow student brandishing his Bible. The point of the class, to me, was to learn what other major religions of the world believed. He however took it as an opportunity to declare each of those beliefs as incorrect because “The Bible says…” It was a LONG semester.

• 9:15pm at ArtWorks
  WHITE GIRL from Maythinee Washington
  What is beauty? What is race? How do we see ourselves and determine our identity? WHITE GIRL is an original solo show employing found text & sound with movement and pantomime telling a story of a girl exploring these questions. At times comic and poignant, the artist draws from her personal history and plays with pop culture to create a work that continues to be thought-provoking long after it has ended.

Full disclosure, the only show available to me after THE GOD BLOG on Monday night is WHITE GIRL. With no gap between the ending of TGB and the beginning of WG, it’s a block and a half mad dash to the final venue. There is no performance after WG, so holding for five minutes wouldn’t throw the scheduling off (hint, hint).

Just like you can’t judge a book by its cover, you can’t judge a fringe show on description alone. Part of the fun is taking a chance on something and finding a hidden gem.

With the way the Fringe is structured you can enjoy dinner after work, see a show or two, and be home in time for the 11 o’clock news. If you are passing near downtown Cincinnati/Over-the-Rhine over the weekend, leave a few hours early and catch a performance.

If you purchase a voyeur pass, you can see six shows for the price of five.

BTW, if you are interested in my opinion of what I find, be sure to visit this blog on Thursday for my reviews.

Official Cincy Fringe site | Plan your Fringe-ing with my daily show grid |