Victoria, BC’s Fringe Festival is Back! Journey with Alice as …

Anyone who knows that movie will realize that Alice is struggling in this Fringe Festival performance, but eventually she perseveres.

Victoria FringeAug 13 to Sept 24 — INTREPID THEATREAug 13th to 18th
Tickets can be purchased in advance here.

The Victoria Fringe Theatre Festival is back, and it’s adapted to allow enthusiasts of the dramatic arts to attend shows in person and online. That is, for the live stage shows, instead of rows of seats, we have tables. This change makes sense as we are still in a pandemic, and it allows for some distancing between social bubbles so that small groups of friends can stick together when going to a performance.

Kicking off the 2021 edition, the shows are spread throughout four weeks at The Metro theatre venue. All the in-person events will take place here, and for once, we’re not running around town to get to another show. One year, the Fringe will return to that format, but until the health officers say we’re past the health scare, I believe Intrepid Theatre will stick to this new format.

To read a list of my picks of the Fringe, I’ve published a guide on my food & theatre site, Twohungryblokes.com

In the show to kick off the Fringe, Alice explores Wonderland, not in the Lewis Carrol sense but ala Carl Jung. This young girl is losing her mom. In the opening act, she’s asked to see the doctor. Afraid, instead of wanting to face the inevitable, she steps into a void and hits a barrier. 

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[Fantasia 2021] Alien on Stage is Freakishly Funny!

This British play, Alien on Stage, has that wryness and style which defines many a British sci-fi productions.

ALIEN ON STAGE THE DOCUMENTARY by Danielle Kummer — Kickstarter
Fantasia Film Festival 2021
Available to Scream, er Stream On Demand. Tickets can be purchased here

Not everyone will have visited West End in London to see Alien on Stage when it first premiered. This theatrical take of the movie by Ridley Scott is not meant to be a high budget performance, but a comedic Fringe Festival like to take. Their parody performance is one for the ages. The documentary makers Lucy Harvey and Danielle Kummer deserve a standing ovation for being involved in following the theatre troupe from its inception to its inaugural performance.

Half the crew are bus drivers fromDorset, England and the other are simply close family and friends with a varying range of acting ability. They are an amateur group of community theatre performers, and I was amazed at how they got their act together. This team did their research and props to them when considering they didn’t have too high of a budget! The stage uses curtains and lighting to alter where the crew of the USCSS Nostromo are throughout the ship.

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[Fantasia 2021] From Stage to Film to Streaming with Art Kabuki

Taping live theatre performances is one thing, but to capture the nuance that defines song, dance and drama through the lens of a video camera requires having the eye to make the show as mesmerizing as attending one.

Art Kabuki
Fantasia Film Festival 2021 Available to watch On Demand Tickets can be purchased here For more information, please visit https://artkabuki.com/ (Japanese)

Nakamura Kazutaro and Onoe Ukon knew that when the pandemic hit, not every citizen of Japan could partake in watching Kabuki theatre. There are other forms of entertainment, but some cultural events would have to reinvent themselves if it’s to survive. Taping live theatre performances is one thing, but to capture the nuance that defines song, dance and drama through the lens of a video camera requires having the eye to make the show as mesmerizing as attending one. And thus, Art Kabuki was born.

The story we find has to enthral and even captivate. The first segment, “The Descent of the Four Gods” connects the heavens with the mortal realm as these divine forces get rather curious about our human affairs. Much like early Greek theatre, where gods are said to intermingle in the lives of humans and are part of the show, this Asian world takes a novel approach.
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Time to Seek, not Hyde from this Musical Extravaganza!

This special two-day event celebrates two decades of Hyde’s career as a solo artist.

Musical
©VAMPROSE Inc. All Rights Reserved.

For more information, please visit the main website.

EVENT INFORMATION

Sat, July 31, 2021
18:30 Open / 19:00 Start (JST)
Archive streaming period: Aug 1, 21:00 (JST) – Aug 4, 20:59 (JST)

Sun, Aug 1, 2021
18:30 Open / 19:00 Start (JST)
Archive streaming period: Aug 2, 21:00 (JST) – Aug 5 20:59 (JST)

Internationally acclaimed rock vocalist Hyde is celebrating and he’s hoping fans world-wide can join him. Not only is “20th Orchestra Concert 2021 HYDE HEIANJINGU” will be performed live at Heian Shrine in Kyoto, one of Japan’s top cultural landmarks, but also it’ll be broadcasted to movie theaters across country and streamed live worldwide.

This special two-day event celebrates two decades of his career as a solo artist. He’s personally selected the orchestra to perform at this platinum event. Archive viewing of the concert will be available to fans so they can enjoy the event in their own time zones. International ticket information will be announced soon.

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Cinderella Switch Vol 4 in Review and Who’s Next in Part 5

VTubing is a coming thing and Cinderella Switch is on Board with their virtual reality concert on Oculus/Meta devices!

Cinderella Switch After Talk Segment
Available with the VARK app on Oculus and Quest 2 (VR); regular version on Android, iOS, and Niconico (non VR)

If only Virtual YouTubers existed back in the 1980s, I’m sure EVE from Megazone 23 would’ve endured beyond the golden age of anime. She’d even be ‘upgraded’ with the times. Well, technically, she was an avatar, a computer program designed to keep an eye on the people of Earth on floating cities. Her presence is meant to keep the populace happy, and the virtual idols of today serve a similar purpose–and Cinderella Switch aims to take charge!

As for other virtual idols, their celebrity lifestyle is something fans want to follow; Himemori Luna (姫森ルーナ) and Natsuiro Matsuri (夏色まつり) is ) are two beloved video bloggers on YouTube who have a massive following. According to the VTuber Wiki, the number of subscribers to these idols and many more number in the millions. These two are the latest to perform a virtual concert last weekend!

Cinderella Switch -Futari de miru Hololive- cycles through popular virtual idol singers per show and unlike their regular YouTube content, which also puts their life on spotlight, these performances allow fans see them sing from the best seat in the house. The shows are “managed” by VARK Inc, considered a leader in this VR concert industry, and software that’s developed puts viewers into a cartoon.

Cinderella Switch 4

This show realizes the two as best of friends. One is sweet and naive, and the other a ball of fire. Their shows are approximately an hour long, consisting of five tracks. Luna’s repertoire was bouncy, and Matsuri’s more varied (her show’s production value is a lot more varied). They sing covers of tunes composed by other artists, ranging from 40mp to DECO*27, and the emotional value is everything I’d expect from a Urusei Yatsura EDM mix-tape. Notable favourites include Ugoku, Uogoku (Chito & Yuuri), Paprika (Foorin) and U&I (Houkago Tea Time).

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4K is the Season to Upgrade your Television and What to Choose From

I’m not as interested in buying movies I already own (either in DVD or Blu-ray). Of those classics worth re-investing in, only a handful exists:

MusicalBy Ed Sum
(The Vintage Tempest)

According to CableTV.com, 2020 is the year to embrace the 4K (UltraHD) for your television viewing needs. A 55″ unit is considered reasonably priced. The infrastructure exists for broadcasters to push the digital content, but the alliance industries are not ready unless people pay the cost of this extra data bandwidth usage instead of them.

Anyone buying a TV during the Black Friday (Cyber or Boxing Day) sales will be in for a treat. I’m enjoying the format so I can view crisp CGI over live-action. Nature documentaries are the best. Some films truly shine whereas others really do not need it.

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