Month: June 2014

Ottawa Fringe 2014. Wunderjammer

Ottawa Fringe 2014. Wunderjammer

One good aspect of this performance was the sporadic use of  the Prague inspired Black light puppet figures . They introduced the evening , appeared in certain sketches and announced a playful atmosphere which dominated the evening of non stop comic sketches . The comic timing was very good, the pace was good, the skits followed each other rapidly, the evening progressed with no pauses and a lot of the individual characters that the actors produced worked very well. In fact they all appeared to be talented comics. Of course Gélinas is one of the more talented fixtures with the Company of Fools and his work is always excellent. I There were a few simple props and a curtain, suggesting the stage set for each “act” and that was it,but it was the writing that made them stumble. The skit I liked was the one in the science lab where two scientists are trying to uncover the mystery of the man eating flower…that looks like a daffodil. Also Richard Gélinas as the hyper turbaned Calif looking for a new “wife” was deliciously perverse …somehow though a lot of it didn’t fly. The ideas were not sharp enough, the humour fell flat. Very unequal show with people who could definitely have worked with much better material.

Wunderjammer by Richard Hamphill

A production of Punchbag Playhouse

Comedy sketches with Richard Gélinas, Jordan Hancey, Gabrielle Lazarovitz and Victoria Luloff

Ottawa Fringe 2014. Portable #3. Not Just Another French Class

Ottawa Fringe 2014. Portable #3. Not Just Another French Class

This autobiographical comedy explaining why Alexander (Sandy) Gibson chose a career as a French teacher in elementary school has the ring of truth, even with a little hyperbole thrown in.

Despite a little gentle mockery, there is affection in his characterization of his mother. Gibson offers her a bouquet of thanks for putting him on the right road to becoming a passionate, rather than an adequate teacher, and delivers the description of life in portable #3 with highly expressive punch and energy.

Gibson has an attractive stage presence and Portable #3; Not just Another French Class is not just another navel gazer.

Well worth seeing.

Portable #3: Not Just Another French Class

By Alexander Gibson and Matty Burns

SDT Productions, Ottawa

Plays at Arts Court Theatre

Ottawa Fringe 2014. Burnt at the Steak

Ottawa Fringe 2014. Burnt at the Steak

 

Carolann Valentino is a high-energy performer, who presents an in-your-face portrait of managing a New York steak house via a series of cameos of the characters she meets along the way, while she waits for her big break in show business.

While there is no doubt about Valentino’s talent and tornado force, her decision to embarrass three men from the audience in the interactive section of the show is questionable.

Not everyone likes their humor this raw and pushy or their steaks this blue.

Burnt at the Steak

Written and performed by Carolann Valentino

Carolann Valentino Productions, New York, NY

Venue: Academic Hall

Ottawa Fringe 2014. Can’t Argue With Pussy

Ottawa Fringe 2014. Can’t Argue With Pussy

The idea behind Can’t Argue With Pussy , Rebecca Reeds and Jennifer Hayward’s stand-up comedy show, is women talking about their lives without having a club owner telling them to avoid too “feminist-ey” or “female” topics. It’s definitely a raunchy show. Poops, vaginas, sex – none of these are off-topic and I say wonderful! It’s always good to hear voices presenting new perspectives, especially in comedy, which is such a powerful story-telling tool. Unfortunately, although I applaud the idea behind the show, the material could use work. Rebecca Reeds obviously has the raw talent and storytelling ability. However, her mannerisms on stage, such as constantly pulling up her sleeves and covering her mouth, distract from the performance. Jennifer Hayward isn’t afraid to stir feathers, both with her topics of choice and demeanor on stage. Her performance, however, would greatly benefit from finished sentences. She tends to trail off at the end which is usually where the punch line of the joke is. Overall, this was a decent, though not ground breaking  show. Some good ideas, but it needs work and polish.

Can’t Argue With Pussy plays at Studio Léonard-Beaulne

JH5 Productions

By Rebecca Reeds & Jennifer Hayward

Ottawa Fringe 2014. Kitt and Jane- An Interactive Survival Guide to the Near-Post-Apocalyptic Future

Ottawa Fringe 2014. Kitt and Jane- An Interactive Survival Guide to the Near-Post-Apocalyptic Future

Two fourteen year old misfits have hijacked a school assembly during their presentation on wild salmon, and are holding the audience hostage while they spell out society’s upcoming demise. The two characters – Kitt and Jane – are clown-like in their representation of these pseudo-activist, young teenagers. An interactive sing-along, horseplay, and shadow puppetry contribute to the illusion that this is a youthful, home-sprung environmental mission, but poor enunciation and a dragging pace overwhelm the experience. There were a number of problems with this production, not the least of which was that both the plot and the characters were scattered and inconsistent. A series of disjointed vignettes, meant to showcase their child-like approach to the apocalypse, end up falling flat. The narrative is unnecessarily long and meanders around a number of themes, but never fully develops them. It could be shortened to help address the laborious pace. This play hovers somewhere between environmental activism and character-driven comedy, but commits to neither.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ottawa Fringe 2014 . The Surprise ….A work of theatrical art

Ottawa Fringe 2014 . The Surprise ….A work of theatrical art

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Martin Dockery..

The Surprise is a beautiful work of theatrical art. Inspired by Dockery’s relationship with his father he brings his whole body into play as he tells and shows us how  deeply emotional relationships develop with people who are close to him. A fine, subtle and accomplished performer, he constructs a scenario that flows faultlessly to a conclusion that we did not expect. From one surprise to the next.

A performance  genius in our midst!

It plays at the ODD arts court.

The Surprise Performed and written by Martin Dockery

Also watch for Moonlight after Midnight

Ottawa Fringe 2014 : Paco V Put to Sleep

Ottawa Fringe 2014 : Paco V Put to Sleep

A study in inertia that tips its hat to Samuel Beckett, Harold Pinter and Edward Albee, Paco P. Put to Sleep manages to maintain interest in what doesn’t happen when “somebody should do something.” It just will never be done by any of the (intentionally) sluggish characters on stage.

Ambitious, amusing and interesting for lovers of Theatre of the Absurd.

Plays at Arts Court Theatre

Paco P. Put to Sleep

By Martin Dockery

Black Sheep Theatre, Ottawa

Venue: Arts Court Theatre

Ottawa Fringe 2014. High Tide

Ottawa Fringe 2014. High Tide

High Tide performed by Morgan Johnson

A poetic, near mystical experience of bonding with the sea and the earth in general, this performance presents the work and the person of Rachel Carson, who launched environmental thinking in the 1960’s

The actress appears to be someone who does not have too much experience but it’s the words that are important and they make you want to learn more about Carson. As a performance, it might have benefitted from some images of the sea projected somewhere on that space that seemed so large and high with a single performer but luckily it only lasts 45 minutes and that is perfect.

A flight into transcendence and a moment of calm in all the frenzy of the Fringe.

 

Plays at the ODD box in Arts Court.

Ottawa Fringe 2014. Great Battles of History. Welcome to the Anti-Fringe!!

Ottawa Fringe 2014. Great Battles of History. Welcome to the Anti-Fringe!!

Great Battles in History

Performed and written(?) by Mark Shyzer

If one knows German, the family name of this fellow could be problematic but no matter. This is the perfect Fringe anti-theatre where Jeff mumbles, fumbles, works his way through a musical performance that was meant to be but doesn’t quite make it because the people involved haven’t turned up, and in any case Jeff the narrator, director, actor can’t play the Ukulele, can’t sing and he hates musicals. An event that appears to deconstruct theatre (musical theatre really)   by giving us a slightly campy vision of the great battles of history and singing songs off key to highlight those moments. Actually, this is not about history, its about  theatre and mainly about Jeff’s transgressive vision of the world who tells us he doesn’t need all these established models because he has new ones and doesn’t have to find evasion in those soppy heroic romantic performances that musicals and historical narratives  usually are. He has his own models and he is fine because he knows exactly who he is. All kidding aside, that is a lot more profound than you could imagine. Clever and annoying!

Plays at Arts Court

Ottawa Fringe 2014. The Surprise

Ottawa Fringe 2014. The Surprise

The Surprise

Martin Dockery, Brooklyn, N.Y.
ODD Box

Reviewed for the Ottawa Citizen

The Story: Martin Dockery – who’s lightened our lives  with Wanderlust, The Bike Trip, in years past- rockets through another true-life adventure in his usual riveting storytelling style. This time it’s rooted in his trip to  Vietnam and Cambodia to meet for the first time his two Vietnamese siblings, both decades younger than he. The story is a series of surprises, none more memorable than the wrenching conclusion.

Pros:   Dockery’s gifts, here in full flight, include not just an extraordinary sense of dramatic pacing but an eye for character, place and the funny or poignant or just unexpected element in an otherwise unremarkable event. This tale of family, love, other cultures and our essential aloneness in life feels as true as anything he’s ever done.

Cons:   Dockery’s high-energy shows can be exhausting, but who’s complaining?