Writer/actor Jayson McDonald gets shot through the heart, flips the bird at who’s to blame, then, as detective Thom Phox, sets about cracking the case. So goes Gunpowder the very first show of this year’s Uno Fest, and it goes pretty well.
With lots of shows left to see and so few to see them in, I knew that I had to catch this acclaimed sketch-com act from Montreal. You’ve only got one more show to do it - and I’d suggest you put it on your Sunday “to do” list.
In the style of High School Musical, Back to the 80’s is a same-old-same-old story about an average guy after a cool girl – the exception being that it’s chockfull of pop culture references custom made to fit a playlist of hit songs from the 80’s. If you were around for the side-ponytail, the oh-so-trendy aviator shades, the neon, you’ll enjoy the nostalgia, probably sway in your seat and clap your hands.
Victoria: When Missie Peters randomly pulled the Queen of Clubs out of a box, she declared, “sometimes ya gotta take a gamble.” This is exactly what Dave Morris and Peters did when they chose to put on a night of improvised spoken word.
Victoria: Jonno Katz is no stranger to Victoria Fringe-goers. This packed house further drove that point home - but not as much as this stellar performance. Katz has been able to strike an even balance between the physical and comedic before, and he does so again with tremendous results with The Accident.
In slacks, shoes, shirt and beret all black, with guitar in lap, Colin Goubout passably looks the part of a gypsy minstrel, posing for Picasso in '30s Paris perhaps. Plus his playing is blazing good, shot through with passion and very brave, taking on as he does the music (and thumbnail bio) of jazz great Django Reinhardt.
Plunge straight into this 60-minute, fast paced one-woman show, where a librarian accidentally turns to the adult video industry to find herself. This production of Chris Craddock’s pornStar takes you into the heads of four women, all masterfully characterized by Anne Wyman. Esther is a librarian who is nominated for a prize for her role in an adult video that her ex-boyfriend filmed without her knowing; she then heads to Toronto to claim the award where she meets Clarice, a loud-mouthed sex columnist, whom Esther then falls in love with, becoming a headlining lesbian porn star—to her Christian politician mother’s...
I always wondered what it would be like to just forget school, forget social pressures, and forget thinking for a while. And guess what? Just the other night, I learned that the positives of this lack of knowledge are taught perfectly in The Power of Ignorance by Vaguen. (Vaaagggguen. Vaguen. Vaaguen. Vagueeen.) Vaguen teaches us the Ig mantra ("duh"), hypnotism and skills in learning people’s names. He teaches us that it is actually good to un-learn everything you know—because hey, what you don’t know can’t hurt you.
Jonno Katz brings us this 60-minute movement piece about the relationship between two brothers: Sebastian, the kind-hearted younger one, and Roy, the greedy older one. At first, the brother dynamic was touching and potentially worked well—like in the moments at the beginning when Roy stood up for Sebastian. There were also a couple of fresh ideas thrown into the clichéd storyline; for example, “The Shit Machine” (which you would have to see to understand), and a poignant moment that seemed to show an inner-aging process that was very well done.
Victoria: Adapted from the bestselling novel, Tuesdays with Morrie is the true story of Mitch Albom and the lessons he learns from his university professor, Morrie Schwartz or “Coach.” 40 years after he has left school, Mitch learns of his coach’s fatal illness and returns to his side every Tuesday to listen to his final lectures.
