Category Archives: In Other News

My 2016 Cincy Fringe Show Rankings

Updated 6/13/16

CFF_We Did It Girl logoI have reached that point in the Fringe Festival where I become woefully behind in reviews vs. productions I’ve seen.

Below I am ranking the shows I’ve attended to date. Links to reviews added as they become available.

  1. WE DID IT, GIRL!
  2. BOO-BOO
  3. CESSNA: A Drama Noir | Review
  4. DARLINGS | Review
  5. UNREPENTANT NECROPHILE | Review
  6. ICE CANDLE
  7. BABY MAMA
  8. NAKED STRANGERS | Review
  9. FRUIT FLIES LIKE A BANANA
  10. MY LEFT TEETH
  11. FURLESQUE
  12. COSMIC NOMAD
  13. RYAN & ALICE?
  14. DADDY ISSUES
  15. SHENATRA!
  16. SHIT MEN HAVE SAID
  17. SQUEEZE IT FROM THE MIDDLE
  18. PUNK’S NOT DEAD AND NEITHER IS SAM (YET)
  19. GOLCONDA
  20. THE 4TH GRADERS PRESENT AN UNNAMED LOVE-SUICIDE
  21. THE FAINTING ROOM
  22. THE BISCUITEATER
  23. TESLA EX MACHINA | Review
  24. PLEASE, CALL ME CUPCAKE
  25. VELOUR
  26. THE SECRETS OF AVONDALE FALLS
  27. OTHER BOTHER | Review
  28. I HATE IT HERE | Review
  29. WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE’S MOST BRUTAL TRAGEDY: MEASURE FOR MEASURE
  30. BLACK-N-WHITE CAFE
  31. WOODY VS. MIA VS. GWYNETH VS COLDPLAY
  32. GOSPEL OF FAT KATHY
  33. TWIGGY FARTDUST AND HER NEMESIS FROM MARS

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My Fringe Schedule: Day 4

Seven shows on the schedule today, so this post is gonna be short and sweet:

CFF_We Did It Girl logoWE DID IT, GIRL!
Torie & Me
Cincinnati, OH
Written by Kevin Crowley and performed by Kevin Crowley & Torie Wiggins
I heard positive comments about last night performance on the street (context, people).

Our goal with WE DID IT, GIRL! is the eradication of racism in America by the end of our run. Anything else is a waste of time. You might also laugh, cry, sing along and find yourself utterly horrified by the end and that’s ok too. But we’ve got no more time for broad assumptions and lazy generalizations about people who are different and so we are putting a stop it here and now.

CFF_Black-n-White Cafe logoBLACK-N-WHITE CAFE
arte-fact theatre collective
Dayton, OH

A diverse group of fun-loving patrons at a local hipster cafe are brought face-to-face with their fears when confronted by a larger society that seems to be crumbling like the famous NY-style black and white cookies that the cafe is known for. One by one, as they are confronted by the issues at hand, they learn to face one another honestly as they grapple with the awkward truths revealed as the story unfolds.

CFF_Woody vs Mia vs logoWOODY VS. MIA VS. GWYNETH, VS COLDPLAY
Baby Ears
Atlanta, GA

Welcome to our break-up game show! This show imagines its four title characters are all friends, and follow what happens after Gwyneth and Coldplay’s conscious uncoupling unsettles Mia and Woody’s imperfect partnership. Interspersed through this are games requiring the performers to challenge and surprise each other (every night is different), including “It’s All Good! An Exercise in Rationalization,” “The Love Song of J. Gwyneth Paltrow,” and “The Five Stages of Staying the F— Together!”

CFF_Squeeze It From the Middle logoSQUEEZE IT FROM THE MIDDLE: A Love Story
Donkey and Unicorn Productions
Cincinnati, OH
Created by Allison Bishop and performed by Allison Bishop & Adam Sanregret

SQUEEZE IT FROM THE MIDDLE: A Love Story is an intimate musical adventure. It is a collection of story scenes that are interspersed with original songs, weaving a unique tapestry of theatrical evolution! One Woman, One Man, armed with only a chair, a table, a bottle of bourbon, and some instruments, SQUEEZE IT FROM THE MIDDLE is a journey of (mostly) humorous stories are (practically) true tales worth repeating. Give it a juicy squeeze!

CFF_GolcondaGOLCONDA
Tongue of the Mind
Cincinnati, OH
Written by Robert Macke & directed by Nate Netzley
Featuring Jeff Miller as Magritte, Andrew Ian Adams as Picasso, Chris Bishop as Van Gogh, Jack Manion as Warhol & Adam Jones as Theodore

In the modern world of online dating, anyone can be anyone. So why not be four of the most influential artists of all time? Join Magritte, Van Gogh, Picasso, and Warhol at brunch as they explore the freedoms and restrictions of their sexualities. When presented with equal dignity in the eyes of the law, what happens when some refuse this right themselves? It’s a coming of age story, where four generations come to age together.

Following a mad dash through the Art Academy building…

My Left TeethMY LEFT TEETH
Paul Strickland Presents
Cincinnati, OH
Written & directed by Paul Strickland, the troubadour of the trailer park
Featuring local favorites Miranda McGee & Annie Kalahurka

While cleaning out the house of her estranged and strange dead aunt, a woman encounters her aunt’s persistently peculiar neighbor, and then finds a mysterious videotape the departed left behind—which is probably going to change everything.

CFF_The Gospel of Fat Kathy promoTHE GOSPEL OF FAT KATHY
#theatrecompany
Cincinnati, OH
Directed by AC Horton
Cast includes: Katie Langham as Fat Kathy, Spencer Lackey as Awkward God, Owen Alderson as Taius, Ryan Garrett as Otto & Mickey Tropeano as Clementine

In this play, God checks in on Earth disguised as a high school student. A girl spreads cooties with a nudie. A suicide is contemplated. Myths are performed. Lessons are learned. You’ll cry, you’ll LOL- your grandmother’s not gonna get it.

I’ve got my 5-hr energies in my backpack and my running shoes on my feet. Happy Fringing!

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My Fringe Schedule: Day 3

Third day, three shows…

CFF_The Unrepentant NecrophileFirst is THE UNREPENTANT NECROPHILE, this year’s offering from The Coldharts, the husband and wife team Nick Ryan and Katie Hartman from New York.

Other Cincinnati Fringe performances include  EDGAR ALLAN (2015 – Full Front Pick of the Fringe) and THE LEGEND OF WHITE WOMAN CREEK (2014).

In THE UNREPENTANT NECROPHILE:

A mortician falls in love with a man as she prepares his corpse for burial. She has three days until the funeral… but three days just isn’t enough.

CFF_Naked Strangers promoOut of School Productions is a collective of nine like-minded actors from the Acting Department at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music.

Directed by Richard Hess, the cast of  Jabari Carter, Lauren Carter, Mafer Del Real, Annie Grove, Landon Hawkins, Carter LaCava, Katie McDonald, Graham Rogers & Rupert Spraul present NAKED STRANGERS:

We all enter the world as naked strangers. We clothe ourselves in etiquette to navigate the twists and turns of life together on this planet. We are taught what is right at a young age and we do our best by each other. Or do we? NAKED STRANGERS is a theatrical journey that will rock your world. These are nasty times.

CFF_The BiscuiteaterI’m finishing up the night with THE BISCUITEATER:

Based loosely on his childhood, THE BISCUITEATER is told in Jim Loucks’ distinctive Southern storytelling style with songs and humor. Granddaddy was his hero, a big man with a bigger personality, haunted by demons from his days as Chief of Police in small-town Georgia. A moving tribute to an imperfect hero.

Loucks’ previous show in the Cincy Fringe, CEMETERY GOLF, was the 2009 Critic’s Pick.

Last night’s opening performance of FURLESQUE was SOLD OUT. If you plan on seeing tonight’s or any other future performance, I suggest you get your tickets early, because after all, Mike Hall (also appearing in CESSNA: A Drama Noir, which sold out its opening night performance as well) is box office gold. 🙂

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My Fringe Schedule: Day 2

For the second day of performances, I scheduled myself for two productions.

CFF_I Hate It HereSHEatre: Cincinnati Women’s Theatre inaugural fringe offering is I HATE IT HERE, written and directed by its co-founders, Abby Rowold and Caitlin McWethy respectively.

Shelly and Margaret are at an impasse in their relationship. Shelly’s an unemployed, outgoing hypochondriac, and Margaret is a highly functional agoraphobe who hasn’t spoken to anyone but Shelly and their cat, Mr. Furrypants, in a year. To jumpstart their lives and eliminate their faults, they try to meld into one person.

The cast includes Abby Rowold and Sarah Fischer. Be sure to keep an eye on their official website, http://www.sheatretheatre.org/ for information on their future staged readings.

CFF_Tesla3_sm

Ricky Coates as Nikola Tesla. Photo by JMC Photography.

Working hard to avoid any electricity puns, my other performance for the night is TESLA EX MACHINA. This one-man show is written and performed by Ricky Coates, a Seattle-based theater artist.

In 1892, the famed inventor Nikola Tesla awoke with partial amnesia. Using his incredible willpower, he pieced his life back, memory by memory. In this one-man biopic, Ricky Coates examines humanity and science using his trademark theatrical prowess. Featuring: tap dance, robots, historical figures Thomas Edison and Mark Twain, and live electrical wonders! “Ricky Coates is a bit of genius in a slick and muscled body” – Edmonton Journal.

Wednesday night, CESSNA enjoyed a near-capacity audience. I’d recommend you get tickets for the remaining performances sooner, rather than later. DARLINGS also performed to a packed house.

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My Fringe Schedule: Day 1

Day One of performances, of the 2016 Cincinnati Fringe Festival, kicks off tonight.

I was able to squeeze three productions into my first evening.

CFF_Cessna logoAs I’m typing this Tuesday evening, only a handful of tickets remain for the inaugural performance of CESSNA: A Drama Noir:

December, 1982. An unexplained plane crash leaves five officials and confessed embezzler Carl Johnson incinerated in a ruined Montgomery bookstore. The box of cash they sought? Buried in Cincinnati. Agent John Lockwood seeks answers and redemption in a dark caper where none can be trusted and fate carries out its own inscrutable design. Based on true events, CESSNA features live jazz music.

Created locally by Hugo West Productions, their previous fringe productions include: DON’T CROSS THE STEAMS: THE CEASE AND DESIST MUSICAL (2013), HOT DAMN! IT’S THE LOVELAND FROG (2014) & ZOMBIE-LOGUE (2015).

CESSNA is directed by Greg Procaccino. The cast features local favorites: Michael Hall, Michael G. Bath, Mindy Heithaus & Carter Bratton.

CFF_Other Bother logoThe second performance of the evening is OTHER BOTHER (no, not OTHER BROTHER) by The Performance Gallery, a Cincinnati-based collaborative of theatre artists.

Others have infiltrated our daily existence. Others are irksome and tedious. Others believe weird stuff and do weird things. They’re cretins. Evolution has not solved this problem? Why? WHY? WHHYYYYYYY? We will get right down to the real nitty gritty. We will solve the problem. We will make the world a joyous place. Join us as we explore how to conquer the bother of another other.

Previous original fringe productions include: IMAGES OF A BEATING HEART (2004), THE KILLER WHISPERS AND PRAYERS (2005), GODSPLAY (2006), GIRLFIGHT (2007), FRICATIVE (2008), KAZ/M (2009), THE COUNCIL (2010) THE BODY SPEAKS: SCRIPTED (2011), RODNEY RUMPLE’S RANDOM REALITY (2012), MATER FACIT (2013), HEIST (2014) & SHIRTZNECOCKLE (2015).

OTHER BOTHER is written by Derek Snow & Regina Pugh and directed by Regina Pugh. The local cast includes: Willemien Patterson Van Dartel, Maya Farhat, Justin Lee, Jodie Linver, Patrick E. Phillips, Regina Pugh & Samantha Russell.

CFF_DarlingsRounding out my first night is DARLINGS, by Animal Engine of New York City, featuring the husband and wife team of Karim Muasher and Carrie Brown.

A re-imagining of PETER PAN told from the perspective of the Darlings, two parents struggling with the loss of their children. They search for them by day and tell stories about a place called Neverland by night … where the mermaids will drown you, the pirates might kill you, and you can’t trust the charming little boy with the impish smile. A dark and dangerous fairy tale for adults.

Previous Cincy Fringe productions include: THE VINDLEVOSS FAMILY CIRCUS SPECTACULAR! (2011), PETUNIA AND CHICKEN (2013 – Artist’s Pick Award and one of my personal all-time favorite fringe shows) and DOG SHOW (2015).

I hope you have a chance to make it down to Over-the-Rhine and catch a show or ten. Feel free to say hello and remind me to take a Facebook Friends Project selfie. Happy Fringing.

 

 

 

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