Tag: Victoria Fringe Theatre Festival

[Victoria Fringe Festival ’14] Hot Patootie! Roller Derby Saved My Soul, A Review

The soundtrack used in Nancy Kenny’s show, Roller Derby Saved My Soul, will no doubt get some music lovers dancing.

By Ed Sum (The Vintage Tempest)

Roller Derby Saved My SoulBroken Turtle Productions
Written/Created by: Nancy Kenny

Oh god bless Rock n’ Roll, the New Wave Punk movement and Disco. The soundtrack used in Nancy Kenny‘s show, Roller Derby Saved My Soul, will no doubt get some music lovers dancing. This performance has coasted all the way from debuting in Ottawa before going to Montreal and later into Calgary before arriving in Victoria as part of a huge Fringe tour to not only bring awareness of what participating in the Fringe is like but also spotlight her talent as a physical comedienne and tough-as-nail’s performer.

Technically, there’s no pattern about what kind of route Kenny’s taking, since she will be hitting Vancouver next. But if you get a chance to see this roving comedy, the price of admission is worth paying for just to see how she brings all the female pop culture icons from the past 6 decades and distills what being a hero is for all time.

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[Victoria Fringe Festival ’14] The Rise of Basement Boy as a Hero? A Review

When two buddies are seen playing Dungeons and Dragons, a fantasy role-playing game, before even the show starts, some people may well wonder what will transpire in The Rise of Basement Boy?

The Rise of Basement Boy PosterPresented by ShaneBob Productions
Directed by Shane Campbell and Markus Spodzieja

In homage to many a geek or nerd who can relate, a free slice of a cheese pizza is going to be offered at every performance of The Rise of Basement Boy. When two buddies are seen playing Dungeons and Dragons, a fantasy role-playing game, before even the show starts, some people may well wonder what will transpire in this comedy musical? If they read the synopsis, Archibald Clarkson (Markus Spodzieja) has to brave leaving the basement in order to be with his first true love or face losing her forever. When he spends most of his time sheltered away from reality along with Clarence, his Grandpa, (Francis Melling), who also struggles with his own demons, the only person they share a camaraderie with is with Bart (Jenson Kerr), a buddy who comes over to play with them.

But when Archie answers the door in order to receive their daily influx of pizza that’ll make the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles hungry, just who he meets is not their regular delivery person. Instead of the guy who has been ripping them off for years, he meets Candy (Hayley McCurdy), who happens to be the girl of his dreams. To see Clarkson flabbergasted is not without some chuckles and to witness Bart act jealous gets the plot in motion.

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[Victoria Fringe Festival ’14] Finding Mask Over Matter, A Review

In order to fully understand their work will require a crash course in absurdism.

fringe poster1Presented by Lightning Theatre

Mask over Matter is one of those plays with a name that conjures forth visages of wonderment and intrigue. Instead, the show offers a mix of pantomime and improv where the performers are wearing a mask in order to play archetypical characters from many a narrative. In what they represent are not necessarily that of comedy and tragedy that Greek theatre made famous. The style hails from Italy where it’s more commonly known as Commedia dell’arte. Deception is used to create its humour, and it’s a different type of improv that many may not be familiar with, much less get.

At least for this young comedy group, they are certainly learning the ropes fast. With a few members of the cast schooled by the Dave Morris’ Improv Class, at least they are being trained by the best. Andrew Brimmell and Shahin Mohamadi are two such individuals. Together, with Daniel Belkin, Robin Valerie and Kevin Koch, they play a diverse cast of characters from various social standings. They are caricatures of various occupations and a night’s show can be a discourse in social studies. As with many a performance, Brighella (Shahin Mohamadi) Arlecchino (Kevin Koch) and Columbina (Robin Valerie) introduce what this type of comedy is about and audiences are essentially being taken for a ride of slapstick after a few audience members provide a few ideas and direction to help move the night’s performance along.

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[Victoria Fringe Festival ’14] Shadows are Abound in Vasilisa, A Review

Props have to go to a very stylized theatrical presentation of Vasilisa the Beautiful, a Russian fairy tale that can easily fit right in a Disney Universe.

Vasilisa the BeautifulPresented by
Ouroboros Shadow Pictures

Props have to go to a very stylized theatrical presentation of Vasilisa the Beautiful, a Russian fairy tale that can easily fit right in a Disney Universe. However, this presentation is very dark and it has the feel of belonging in Fantasia more than as a light-hearted animated stand-alone product.

In this stage-version, shadow puppetry, sombre music and dance is used to tell the tale of a young girl tasked by a wicked step-mother to bring back fire from the witch, Baba Yaga. In her spiritual journey through the woods, she learns about courage as she faces the terror borne from the elements. Baba Yaga is the Russian version of the Wild Man of the Woods from Celtic tradition. The only reason to seek this type of “creature” out is to find wisdom.

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[Victoria Fringe Festival ’14] ] The Search for Paleoncology, A Review

Paleoncology

Presented by Moon Dinosaur Theatre
Directed by Andrew Young

You wouldn’t think that a play about a woman in a dinosaur onesie could make you cry, but give Paleoncology one hour and you may shed a tear too. Written and performed by UVic alumni Kira Hall, she plays Lea, a young woman dealing with the knowledge that her brother Daniel has untreatable cancer by turning to her childhood love of dinosaurs. Lea’s struggle to deal with something emotionally devastating has affected her on all levels, including her job. Her move back to her parents’ home isn’t met with warmth. They expect more out of life from their daughter — even more so now that their eldest child is terminally ill.

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[Victoria, BC] How to do the Nerdy Fringe 2014 Edition

By Ed Sum (The Vintage Tempest)

DV 2007-08 ProgramEvery year, there’s a uniqueness to be found at the Victoria Fringe Festival that will bring out the pop culture enthusiasts when it starts today and runs till August 31st. These theatre productions cater to a smaller crowd than a large one in the scale of Broadway, and they usually cater to niche audiences.

Last year had shows like “An Improvised Quentin Tarantino,” “Geek Life” and “Bing Bang Query: A Dirk Darrow Investigation” to draw me out. Some I’ve reviewed and others I just wanted to sit back and enjoy.

To go further back in time of what I’ve seen: P.I. Darrow proves that he’s “NCSSI (Not [A] Completely Serious Supernatural Investigator).” Although Fringe theatre does not usually support returning acts, it’s really the luck of the random lottery that sees some performers get to play three or four years in a row before fortune favours someone else. I miss seeing the maestro Colin Godbout on the roster since he did some fantastic guitar playing which includes “Music on the Orient Express” (2011). I first discovered him playing all the tunes associated with “Route 66” back in 2010. Those two years were great since it offered the Steampunk inspired “Tara Firm and the Lunar War Chronicles,” rock n’ roll themed “Z-Day: The Anthem for the Post-Zombie Apocalypse,” and the darkly choreographed “Cabinet of Dr. Caligari.” It was those shows which made me become a Fringe addict.

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