It’s Fringe Time Again.
We are blessed to have one of the biggest Fringe Festivals in the world. What is a ‘Fringe Fest’?
This is where one can see plays, musicals, magic, comedy, drama, dance, and pretty much any kind of stage show you want in small venues scattered around near the downtowns of major cities. It all started in Edinburgh, Scotland and we have been going to the Edmonton Fringe for over 40 years.
There are tons of outdoor street performers as well and all kinds of artisans and food vendors too. In short : it’s a blast!
In the early days we would run from venue to venue to see how many shows we could take in for $6.00 each. We might see as much as 10 shows a day and we had the energy to do it!
This year, we decided to see four….ha ha…but life is busier and we are slower and older.
Oh! Also in the recent past I used to only choose shows that were given 4 or 5 star reviews so as to guarantee winners!
But this year I just chose performances on how they fit into our schedule. Now, would you believe that two of the four shows I chose (by timing alone….for example….we need a show at 3:30) were actually 5 star shows that sold out? Woohoo! Lucky us.
I had never heard of Eurovision before I saw the spoof movie with Will Ferrell. So I chose our first play to get more information about that crazy musical contest. The one man show was fairly interesting for facts but …”Just O.K.” for entertainment value.
Bangs, Bobs, & Banter was very very good and it was a replacement for another show I had booked that couldn’t perform because Air Canada cancelled their flight! Unlucky them but lucky us because this show was SO well written and acted. A really funny commentary on what it is like to be a hairstylist.
A Comedy Show At The End of the World was a very funny idea but not that funny to watch. The one man show was full of energy and spunk though and the individual scenes were a mixed bag of a few chuckles and dead quiet from the audience. Yikes. Jon Blair deserves kudos for his true vaudevillian performance.
Finally, we accidentally saved the best for last.
Evie and Alfie might have been the best show we’ve seen in our entire years at the Fringe.
This excellently written and performed show was about an elderly, British couple going about their simple day to day with flashbacks to their younger years together. It was so sweet and heartwarming, funny, and yet I had tears twice at emotional scenes. Just perfect.
And speaking of just perfect….
A happy belated birthday to Terry, my husband and best friend for about 47 years.
