Fringe Reviews

This is the last weekend of the Toronto Fringe.  I don't think I've seen any dogs, though there is one show that didn't quite live up to my expectations.  I really will try to circle back with more detailed reviews, but here are a few recommendations.  Hopefully there are still a few dates -- and tickets still available on those dates.*  

Here are just a few highlights, and I do apologize for passing over so many deserving shows...

Good Old Days over at Theatre Passe Muraille.  This is a two-hander about two former roommates who had a major falling out and how they reconnect a few years later.  Much of the piece is in sort of a dreamlike fugue-state, and both actors play multiple characters.  I agree with this reviewer who said there is a bit of an After Hours vibe going on.

I enjoyed Constellation Prize a lot.  This is a musical about a 13th constellation that yearns to be accepted into the Zodiac.  It's over at Aki Studio in Regent Park.  There are still shows on the 15th and 16th.    

Miss Titaverse is getting good reviews. I see it on Sat. (tomorrow) at Theatre Passe Murraille, but I feel pretty confident in this recommendation.  I think most of the shows are sold out, however. 

Blake & Clay's Gay Agenda is another triumph for this pair.  I suspect this is completely sold out for its remaining shows.  Last year, they brought Gay for Pay to Crow's Theatre after the Fringe (reworking it and expanding it slightly).  I hope that happens again in this case, as I would definitely come again (see what I did there...).  I actually missed the first five minutes or so because Line 2 was having one of its too-predictable meltdowns and I had to bail and catch a taxi up to Tarragon.  Needless to say, I was incredibly pissed but glad that they let me in at all (and I wasn't even heckled, not that I didn't deserve it...).  I'll probably write another time about yesterday, which was extremely frustrating but at least it ended with two very funny Fringe shows.  (Sarah and Racquel Rule the World was also very good, but I think also very sold out...)

Aliya Kanani is very funny and manages to tackle touchy subjects in an amusing way (similar to Blake and Clay actually).  Again, it is very possible that the remaining shows sold out, but there may be availability on Sunday.  I actually saw her on the opening night event and wanted to ask if she had changed up the show at all, or it was the same as last year's set, but she kind of flew on out of the venue and didn't stop to schmooze.  In the end, I decided it probably wasn't going to be fresh enough to see it twice, but I would definitely recommend this show for anyone that didn't go last year.

Finally, No One Special at the Tarragon Theatre Solo Room is a comedic look at growing up as an immigrant in Toronto from one of the writers responsible for Kim's Convenience.  The Sunday show is sold out.  There may be seats at the 8:30 show tonight.  Good luck!

Happy Fringing!

* I will say that there's been a major shift over the years in terms of booking policies.  When I first did the Fringe, over 20 years ago, almost everything was show up last minute at the door.  Even five or so years ago, they made a point of reserving a few seats for last minute walk-ups, but that is completely gone.  There were quite a few shows completely selling out their entire runs on the first or second day of ticket sales!  I don't mind this that much, but it does require a very different approach to planning the Fringe and makes it hard to be spontaneous.  Also, it is definitely harder to use the artist passes, not that this impacts me this year.