Wow! This was quite a year for Fringing. And I’ve ended up where I usually am when it’s all over. I cleared my schedule, had only one evening meeting during the entire run. And still I didn’t get to see nearly as many performances as I hoped – I missed the SCPA kids’ 4 days with 3 productions. Didn’t get to even one. Missed the entire Body Project.
But saw some really terrific theater, and had a great time, plus lots of great meals with friends before and after.
The God Blog, by my friend Kathleen, was the first production I saw. And I also saw the final performance, and hung out with the cast at Washington Platform after. So now I have a bunch of new friends. It was smart, fast, daring, outrageous, creative in staging, costumes, props. And did I mention the lines zipped past fast? Hopefully another version next year!
Missed The Lydia Etudes, high on my list, because of the storms that just wouldn’t quit. Final show I saw was Memoir of a Mythomaniac, dance and theater, great and edgy. The only performance that was disappointing was Tooth and ‘Nuckle. Truly not worth discussing. Only two minutes of thought and no point of view went into it. Three times, there were 1 to 4 minutes that were terrific. Less than 10 minutes total.
Opal Opus was perfect Fringe. Music, singing, intriguing story, actors, sufficient weirdness. Headscarf and the Angry Bitch was great stuff, risky, brave, professional Wow. Melancholy Play by the Ensemble Interns was another treat – played just right. Peyote Business Lunch had a lot going for it, but kind of fell off its own edginess. 101 Rules for Dating – two women with their own stories and a great multimedia backstop. Fire and Light by the Cincinnati Incendarium (who knew?) were a rousing treat at Neon’s Unplugged.
The restaurants, besides Washington Platform, were Iris BookCafe (twice), A Tavola, Coffee Emporium (twice), The Senate. Which means we missed Arnold’s, Mayberry and Lavamatic.
So it was all great, and I’m properly wiped out, with a brain full of new concepts and techniques. And still I didn’t get to see it all. But I have a whole year to figure out how to see Everything in 2012.