PICKS OF THE FRINGE ARE IN!
Filed under In Other News, On Stage
GOD OF OBSIDIAN presented by Gideon Productions as part of the 2017 Cincinnati Fringe Festival. You can read the show description here.
Gaslighting is a form of manipulation that seeks to sow seeds of doubt in a targeted individual or members of a group, hoping to make targets question their own memory, perception, and sanity. Using persistent denial, misdirection, contradiction, and lying, it attempts to destabilize the target and delegitimize the target’s belief. –Wikipedia
Mac Rogers as Nathan & Rebecca Comtois as Alice.
Gideon Productions ups the creep factor with a strong, engaging script from playwright Mac Rogers. I enjoyed the Brothers Grimm undertones to the story.
As Alice, Rebecca Comtois is fascinating to watch as her new and happy relationship descends into one of mental abuse and manipulation. Emotionally, her performance rings true and believable as she struggles to remember who she is and reassert her independence.
Mac Rogers is equally strong as congenial and earnest Nathan. Even though the character doesn’t change much superficially, the machinations under the surface are there and fascinating to watch. He pretty much embodies that “he was quiet and kept to himself, but always seemed so nice” serial killer quality.
Director Jordana Williams keeps the pacing strong and uses the play space effectively. The upstage use of the bridge worked very well. There was one point near the middle of the performance where I felt it was starting to lose momentum but the show quickly rebounded.
At the performance I attended, part of the “fun” of the performance was the audience’s physical and verbal reactions as the story unfolded. Very interesting, well-written and strongly performed, but I felt like I needed a shower after it was over. The final performance is tonight, June 5th.
I’m back in Over-the-Rhine tonight for three more shows.
First scheduled is IS THAT ALL THERE IS? This is Cincinnati LAB Theatre’s first entry in the Cincy Fringe, but you may have caught their original productions that last couple of summers over at Falcon Theater.
Ronald Ryan, known professionally as cabaret star “Rita,” prepares for one final performance. Amidst the wigs and gowns are also regrets, booze, and broken relationships. Will this finale – and an encounter with his sister and former duet partner – provide the closure he’s looking for? Or will Ronald leave the stage wondering “Is That All There Is?”
The cast includes Jared Doren, Danielle Muething & Sean Michael Flowers. Local actress Sara Mackie is the playwright of the piece. You can see Sara on stage as Jennifer Keaton in FAMILY TIES (yes, based on the TV sitcom) at Human Race Theatre Company in Dayton through June 25 AFTER the fringe closes, of course. 🙂 Happy opening Sara!
Show number two is GOD OF OBSIDIAN from Gideon Productions based out of Queens, NY. This is their second visit to the Cincinnati Fringe having presented LIGATURE MARKS in 2014.
You have to cross a bridge to get to Nathan’s house. Crossing in is tricky. But crossing out – as Alice soon discovers – is almost impossible. From the writer of the global hit podcast THE MESSAGE and the creative team behind CityBeat Critic’s Pick LIGATURE MARKS comes a dark fairytale about a psychologically abusive relationship, as one woman seeks the story that will take her back across the bridge and set her free.
My Friday night concludes with GEN AND MABEL, the sophomore effort from Caps Lock Theatre from New York, NY.
From last year’s Producer’s Pick Award winner comes a heartbreaking queer dramedy! GEN and MABEL like each other. A whole lot. So why can’t this relationship seem to get off the ground? As they try to shortcut their way to intimacy by baring their souls, they break each other’s hearts repeatedly in tiny, devastating ways – and then come back together. A story about trust, lust, and the quest for connection.
Please say hello if you see me out and about tonight. I’ll be at the Know after the final show for the Fringe News. Happy Fringing!
Filed under In Other News
GOD OF OBSIDIAN
Part of the Cincinnati Fringe Festival ’17
Gabriel’s Corner
Over-the-Rhine
You have to cross a bridge to get to Nathan’s house. Crossing in is tricky. But crossing out – as Alice soon discovers – is almost impossible. From the writer of the global hit podcast THE MESSAGE and the creative team behind CityBeat Critic’s Pick LIGATURE MARKS comes a dark fairytale about a psychologically abusive relationship, as one woman seeks the story that will take her back across the bridge and set her free.
Official page | Press release | Facebook page | Facebook event | Official website |
Filed under On Stage
Gideon Productions Presents
GOD OF OBSIDIAN
World Premiere as Part of the Cincinnati Fringe Festival!
Written by Mac Rogers
Directed by Jordana Williams
May 31st – June 5th at Gabriel’s Corner
Gideon Productions, the award-winning company behind the Cincy Fringe CityBeat Critic’s Pick Ligature Marks, will present the World Premiere of playwright Mac Rogers’ (The Honeycomb Trilogy; the global hit podcast The Message) dark fairy tale/drama GOD OF OBSIDIAN, May 31st to June 5th at Gabriel’s Corner as part of the Cincinnati Fringe Festival. The production will be directed by Jordana Williams (The Honeycomb Trilogy; Universal Robots) and will feature Rebecca Comtois (Viral; Crystal Skillman’s Geek! with Vampire Cowboys) and Mac Rogers (NYIT Outstanding Lead Actor Nominee for The Adventures of Nervous-Boy with Nosedive Productions).
You have to cross a bridge to get to Nathan’s house. Crossing in is easy. But crossing out – as Alice is about to discover – is almost impossible. GOD OF OBSIDIAN is a dark fairytale about a psychologically abusive relationship, as one woman seeks the story that will take her back across the bridge and set her free.
GOD OF OBSIDIAN will run May 31 at 9pm, July 2 at 7:45pm, June 4 at 2:45pm, and June 5 at 7:45pm, as part of the Cincinnati Fringe Festival at Gabriel’s Corner (Sycamore & Liberty, Cincinnati, OH, 45202)). Tickets ($15) may be purchased online at www.cincyfringe.com. The show will run 60 minutes with no intermission.
MAC ROGERS (Playwright) is an award-winning playwright and audio dramatist. His sci-fi thriller podcasts THE MESSAGE and LIFEAFTER were downloaded a combined 5 million times. His plays include THE HONEYCOMB TRILOGY (New York Times and Backstage Critic’s Picks and winner of the NYIT Award for Best Premiere Production), VIRAL (winner of Outstanding Play at FringeNYC 2009), and UNIVERSAL ROBOTS (nominated for four New York Innovative Theatre awards). Mac’s plays have earned acclaim from The New York Times, The Guardian, Time Out New York, The New York Post, , and many others.
JORDANA WILLIAMS (Director) has directed numerous plays by Mac Rogers, including Ligature Marks (CityBeat Critic’s Pick), The Honeycomb Trilogy (NY Times and Time Out NY Critics’ Picks), Universal Robots and Viral. Other favorite directing work includes Kill Shakespeare at NY Comic Con 2012 and The Particulars with The Bridge Theater Company, FringeNYC.
REBECCA COMTOIS (Alice) previously worked with Mac Rogers and Jordana Williams on Ligature Marks (CityBeat Critic’s Pick), Viral (Winner of FringeNYC’s Outstanding Production of a Play) and The Honeycomb Trilogy (NY Times and Time Out NY Critics’ Picks). Other notable roles include Minnie the Minotaur in Cystal Skillman’s Geek! (Vampire Cowboys), Jenny in James Comtios’ Infectious Opportunity (Nosedive Productions) and Mag in Taylor Mac’s The Hot Month with Carol Kane (Boomerang’s Legacy Reading Series).
Critical acclaim for Gideon Productions:
“Television is where you find complicated storytelling. Film is the home of epic sci-fi trilogies. Giant aliens are expensive. Mac Rogers’s “Honeycomb Trilogy,” a titanic story about humanity in crisis wedged into a small theater in Queens, laid waste to these truisms, and provided giddy, cerebral fun along the way.” The New York Times
“Mac Rogers—genre playwright extraordinaire—can rant like Sorkin, plot like Mamet, banter like Whedon and sting like a bee.” Time Out New York
“This is full-on, unapologetic science fiction with a galactic-scale backdrop involving interstellar trips and an insectoid race.” New York Post
“One of the most intelligent and complex theatrical events of the year.” Flavorpill
“Both pitch-perfect science fiction about an alien occupation and a wrenching treatise on the state of humanity.” io9.com
GIDEON PRODUCTIONS crafts gripping plays that explore what’s strange about being human and what’s human about being strange, using familiar genres and cultural touchstones as a springboard to something wholly unexpected.
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www.gideonth.com
www.cincyfringe.com
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