Category Archives: Cincy Fringe Festival

June 7, 2011 · 12:17 am

Fringe Festival Update: Sell-Outs, Schedule Changes and Segway Accidents

THE SELL-OUTS

Zehra Fazal and Kevin Thornton continue to sell out performances at the 2011 Fringe Festival.

The second performance on Sunday of Kevin’s I LOVE YOU (WE’RE FUCKED) also SOLD OUT. Ticket availability, for the remaining shows, is limited.

  • Tue, June 7 at 9:15pm
  • Thu, June 9 at 8:15pm
  • Sat, June 11 at 9pm

Tuesday’s final performance of HEADSCARF AND THE ANGRY BITCH has already SOLD OUT. There will be limited “standing-room only” tickets available at the door.

THE SCHEDULE CHANGES

I’m sorry to report that, due to a death in the family, of one of the artists, Thursday’s performance of TRANSFRINGEMENT: CIRCUS MOJO has been cancelled. If you have tickets to this performance, please call the Know Box Office at 513-300-5669. The final performance on Saturday will go on as planned. I have updated my 2011 Fringe Festival grid. You can download it here.

Also, the 22.5 Hour Play Project scheduled as Tuesday’s night event at the Fringe Bar series has been replaced with an improv jam.

THE SEGWAY ACCIDENT

After locking up following Saturday’s Fringe Festivities at the Know, Producing Artistic Director Eric Vosmeier was involved in an accident on his way home.  I was told that a driver exited a parking lot or garage at a high speed without checking for sidewalk traffic. Eric suffered two broken arms, but he is home and doing as well as can be expected. Wishing him a speedy recovery.

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Filed under Cincy Fringe Festival, In Other News

June 6, 2011 · 1:53 pm

2011 Fringe Adventure: Day Six

Promotional images for THE MASCULINITY INDEX and OPAL OPUS: JOURNEY TO ALAKAZOO

Fringe performances on Monday, June 6th begin at 7pm. I have two shows on my schedule for the day:

  • 7pm at 1423 Vine
    THE MASCULINITY INDEX from Powerhouse Productions
    What makes a man? The answer to this question is ever elusive, but John Ware and William Brown delve fearlessly into their own hearts, minds, and guts, popular culture and conventional wisdom to uncover the truth. THE MASCULINITY INDEX  is the journey of one young man to attain a sense of having grown up and to cross the mythical barrier between boyhood and manhood. His path is littered with all the trials young men must conquer before they can rightfully call themselves men. Through soliloquy and encounters with the outside world, our young hero learns what is truly important. 

Conceived by recent CCM graduate John Ware who teams with sophomore William Brown in this two person show.

  • 8pm at Hanke 2
    OPAL OPUS: JOURNEY TO ALAKAZOO from Tangled Leaves Theatre Collective
    OPAL OPUS is a pop’ra, musically navigating the dark, whimsical, romantic, eccentric, creative processes of the soul. The “J” family is stuck in the familiar mire-muck of Disconnect – from their True Selves and one another. Desperate, the family embarks on a journey to find the Opal Opus in the mysterious land of Alakazoo. 

Serenity Fisher and Robin O’Neal Kissel, winners of the 2010 Audience Pick of the Fringe for SOPHIE’S DREAM, return this year with a new musical. In the cast, familiar names to local audiences include Ken Early, Blake Bowden and Aretta Baumgartner.

Reviews for both productions will be available on Tuesday.

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

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Filed under Cincy Fringe Festival, On Stage

June 6, 2011 · 12:18 pm

THE BODY SPEAKS: SCRIPTED Review

THE BODY SPEAKS: SCRIPTED from The Performance Gallery as part of the 2011 Cincinnati Fringe Festival. You can read the show description here.

As usual, The Performance Gallery brings another interesting, thought-provoking, head-scratching, full o’ talent, show to the Cincinnati Fringe Festival.

Choosing to create the individual works that make up this production independently was clearly the correct decision. Each piece is focused, well executed and has an individual voice that demands and holds the audience’s attention. Two works, OUT AND REACH and THE BODY SPEAKS, definitely pulled me in and left me wondering what happened next.

This production also suffers from the sight line blues at times. In fact, several audience members abandoned their seats to stand in the back of the performance space. From my seat near the back row, another problem was the lighting for the puppetry work was too dim.

Overall, this exercise in assigned inspiration is a success for both the creators and the audience.

Only two performances remain of THE BODY SPEAKS: SCRIPTED at 1411 Vine:

  • Tue, June 7 at 8:15pm
  • Fri, June 10 at 7:30pm

Links to all reviews can be found on the BTC REVIEWS page. Blog postings, links to other media reviews and more are available on my FaceBook fan page or you can receive updates on Twitter from @BTCincyRob.

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June 6, 2011 · 10:48 am

MISS MAGNOLIA BEAUMONT GOES TO PROVINCETOWN Review

MISS MAGNOLIA BEAUMONT GOES TO PROVINCETOWN from Joe Hutchenson as part of the 2011 Cincinnati Fringe Festival. You can read the show description here.

If there is any misstep in this production, I didn’t see it. The script is extremely well-written, emotionally vibrant and real. Both Miss Beaumont and Master Joseph are fully developed characters with depth and heart. The characters transitions are eye-blink fast and yet there is never any confusion as to which character is speaking. The progression of their “forced” relationship to friendship hits all the right emotional notes. MISS MAGNOLIA BEAUMONT GOES TO PROVINCETOWN is an impressive. entertaining work.

And as promised, you do get to see Joe’s naked butt.

JUST. GO.

Three performances remain of MISS MAGNOLIA BEAUMONT GOES TO PROVINCETOWN at 1423 Vine:

  • Tue, June 7 at 7pm
  • Thu, June 9 at 8:30pm
  • Fri, June 10 at 8:45pm

Links to all reviews can be found on the BTC REVIEWS page. Blog postings, links to other media reviews and more are available on my FaceBook fan page or you can receive updates on Twitter from @BTCincyRob.

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June 6, 2011 · 9:36 am

THE BEASTS Review

THE BEASTS from The Great Ben Egerman Adventure - Photos by Bryn Weller.

THE BEASTS from The Great Ben Egerman Theatre Adventure! as part of the 2011 Cincinnati Fringe Festival. You can read the show description here.

There is great potential in Ben Egerman’s THE BEASTS, a sort of an apocalyptic cautionary fairy tale. Parallel story lines have characters debating the same action, opening “the door” that separates their worlds.

The use of puppets, as well as the hand-drawn illustrations, work well. As does the confusion over “archaeological finds” when the written word has been lost to time. A bit more exposition about the current world and some physical and sexual diversity to the characters would add layers to the show.

Perhaps the biggest problem is the pacing. Every time the actor leaves the stage for a costume change, any momentum that has been built is lost. It might also help the keep the entire performance on the stage. I think the audience is savvy enough to understand which side of the door they are on without having to repeatedly shift in their seats. I would have liked one more scene to serve as a coda for the piece as the current ending seems a bit abrupt.

One thing that clearly stands out is Egerman’s enthusiasm for what he does and for being part of the creative, communal energy of the Fringe.

Three performances remain of THE BEASTS at Media Bridges:

  • Mon, June 6 at 8pm
  • Fri, June 10 at 9:30pm
  • Sat, June 11 at 7:30pm

Links to all reviews can be found on the BTC REVIEWS page. Blog postings, links to other media reviews and more are available on my FaceBook fan page or you can receive updates on Twitter from @BTCincyRob.

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Filed under Cincy Fringe Festival, Reviews