Fringe Reviews

Case Study

Let's-Have-A-Discussion Productions

The Fringe Cabaret Lounge

10330 84 Ave.

2.5 Stars

Case Study experiments with an interesting premise but delivers lacklustre results and a weak conclusion.

The Team (Connor Stuart and Andrew Dool), two ominous sounding government officials that finish each other's sentences, informs the audience that today we will be answering the question, “Is violence caused by genes or the environment?” We are then introduced to our two researchers, a professor and a scientist, also played by Stuart and Dool.

The Team is the best part of Case Study. Appropriately creepy, speaking in robotic tones and generally being unnerving, the Team's presence is indicated by the set lights changing to blue. It works well and the script doesn't ruin their mystery by over-explaining them.

Unfortunately, the plot is focused on our two researchers and that is where the script falls apart. Playwright Josh Languedoc intends to take the audience on a descent into madness, but his characters act irrational from the very beginning.

There is no sense of build-up to make the corruption horrifying. The scientist goes straight from accidentally killing a death row inmate to murdering a 17-year-old girl and laughing maniacally as a whole room of people die. His development is more in line with a Batman villain than Mr. Kurtz from Heart of Darkness.

It's a shame because there are some great moments here. The researchers record their daily logs with iPhones that stream video onto screens in grainy black and white. It's a nice touch and used to excellent effect in the third act.

It is too bad the nice touches are polishing a rough product. Case Study isn't subtle enough to be dark and isn't light enough to be entertaining.

When the audience starts chuckling during the tragic climax, you know the experiment has somehow gone terribly wrong.

– Alex MacPherson

11 O'Clock Number! An Improvised Musical

Grindstone Theatre

Venue 9 Telus Building

10437 83 Ave.

4 Stars

An improvised show is a completely different animal from a rehearsed, scripted production. It takes guts to for an actor get up on stage and quickly rattle off impromptu lines that have some semblance to what's happening on stage.

And for the audience, it's also a risk. You never know what will land on your plate. However, the afternoon I saw the 11 O'Clock Number! An Improvised Musical, the six-actor cast dished it out beautifully with uninhibited finesse.

Their strategy is to gather information from the audience and with those few kernels concoct a full storyline on the spot. Every audience is different. Every show is different.

But the one common thread is an unpredictable zaniness. The afternoon I attended, a 72-year-old woman named Sandy had just gone rollerblading in Nova Scotia when she attended the Magnetic North Theatre Festival with her actress daughter.

From these breadcrumbs the cast spun a tale of a 72-year-old rollerblading devotee developing a crush on a 26-year-old jobless actor who somehow lands a $42-million contract and invites her to Hollywood.

Sounds nuts, right? But it was hilarious and the audience was constantly in stitches. The actors – Byron Martin, Mary Hulbert, Neil Kuefler, Mark Vetsch, Nathania Bernabe and St. Albert's David Johnston – had an obviously funny chemistry, impeccable timing and razor-sharp wit. They were ridiculous but endearing.

Improvisations can be dicey, but the 11 O'Clock Number delivers quick wits and good clean fun.

– Anna Borowiecki

Anne of Green Gables

Kaybridge Productions

Venue 14 Kunitz Shoe Stage, Holy Trinity Anglican Church

10037 84 Ave.

3 Stars

There's a built-in audience to Anne of Green Gables from people around the world who have fallen in love with the spunky red-haired orphan living in turn-of-the-century Prince Edward Island.

It's a tough gig to live up to, especially following the successful Canadian television series that captured the era with all its joys and heartbreak.

However, Maralyn Ryan, founding artistic director of St. Albert Children's Theatre, is never one to shy away from challenges.

Working with The Youth Performance Troupe, Ryan directs this nostalgic Canadian jewel about an elderly brother and sister that adopt a young orphan.

The play compresses much of novelist Lucy Maud Montgomery's books into a tight 55-minute play. Although telescoped, the storyline captures many of the experiences humans share growing up in a family and being part of a community.

The show's actors, all under the age of 18, step up to the plate. However, since they are still learning the building blocks of acting, the performances are a tad raw.

Emma Walker in the lead role of Anne Shirley delivers a plucky performance as a dramatic dreamer who just yearns to belong. And Emma Wilmott is a delightful contrast as the starchy, prim Marilla Cuthbert.

Despite some of the uncertain acting, this production has a certain charm that successfully aims for a few emotional wallops such as when the gentle Matthew Cuthbert (Jonah Dunch) dies from poor health.

Anne of Green Gables is a play about self-discovery and realizing what you want in life. That's a great lesson to impart to young kids.

– Anna Borowiecki

The Reluctant Return of Donald Drake

Centuries Old Production

Venue 5 King Edward School

8530 101 St.

3 Stars

The Reluctant Return of Donald Drake transports us to the 1940s, the era of radio plays where most of the action took place in the imagination.

St. Albert playwright Rick Kiebiech has concocted a play-within-a-play set in a radio studio. It's the first seasonal episode of a continuing series Guy Faulkrand Gentleman Adventurer. In typical '40s style, it is peopled with a mad Nazi and a damsel in distress.

Cast and crew are waiting for the leading man Sebastian to arrive for the on-air broadcast and the clock is ticking.

However, Hollywood's studio heads are courting Sebastian for future films. Inflated with false greatness, he starts to disdain radio and misses rehearsals. With seconds to spare, Sebastian dashes in the door and they are on-air.

Once on air the knives come out and the egos grow larger.

Perhaps the most interesting part of this production is watching Chester (Ian Horobin), the silent sound tech stand at a table manipulating everyday objects to create sound effects – for instance a mop splashing in a pail of water to simulate running water.

The actors' dynamics are consistently entertaining. Even though they stand in front of bulbous vintage microphones for a good part of the program, it is a visual treat with a great deal of action taking place.

– Anna Borowiecki

Tobit

One Candle Production

Venue 5 King Edward School

8530 101 St.

1 Stars

Luckily I've only seen a few crappy productions at the Fringe. Each time I wondered why the director didn't pull the plug prior to raising the curtain.

Tobit is one show that falters badly and the responsibility falls squarely on the shoulders of director-playwright Mena Jewell.

It was Jewell's intent to introduce a biblical adaption of the Book of Tobit, an allegory that recognizes the importance of honourable conduct regardless of personal cost. It's a noble thought that fails miserably.

Unfortunately, Jewell's script sounds bombastic as if it's plucked directly from the Old Testament. There is an awkward flow between scenes, and the lines are so restrictive they leave actors little room to create three-dimensional characters. Even Bugs Bunny had more depth.

In some cases, the acting is downright horrible. John Moerschbacher as Tobit is so preachy that listeners were checking their watches. Christian Pawlowski, as his son Tobias, is a close second. Even Dave Kantor, a performer with Edmonton Opera Chorus, who one would expect has a melodious voice, is instead stiff as a board.

St. Albert's Bob Locicero injects a dash of humour in his role as Raguel and former Sturgeon County resident Diana-Marie Stolz has a natural aptitude as the long-suffering Anna. But neither of these two versatile actors have a magic pill to save this wreck from disaster. Tobit neither educates nor entertains. It is a mess.

– Anna Borowiecki

Ananasi and Friends

Caraway Story Theatre

Venue 14 Kunitz Shoes Stage, Holy Trinity Anglican Church

10037 84 Ave.

3 Stars

When you put 20 energetic kids on stage there's always the anticipation of wondering what direction a show will go.

In Ananasi and Friends, a breezy production featuring four remarkably interesting African folk tales, the young actors sparkle with fun. And a lot of the credit goes to director-playwright Bethany Ellis from Caraway Story Theatre, a K-9 troupe of young thespians.

Ananasi and Friends features four lively African folk tales passed on from generation to generation to instil wisdom.

The 80-minute production starts with a Nigerian tale of Cinderella-like girl who goes on a quest and discovers herself. An anecdote about a cunning trickster spider follows along with a fable about a Liberian family that breathes new life into the memory of a dead patriarch. The show closes with a parable of a lazy rabbit that receives his just desserts.

Each tale is well formed and complete, and it's a marvel to see the power of stories simply told. At its core, this production has a universal appeal. So prepare to be captivated by expressive acting, pulsating drumbeats, and bright costumes.

– Anna Borowiecki

Letters to Laura

Short Girl Productions

BYOV #6 C103 (former Catalyst Theatre)

8529-103 Street

5 Stars

Just in the midst of the exciting, stomach-turning, bewilderment of falling in love, a couple – Laura (Elisa Benzer) and Marc (Evan Hall) – find themselves in the long distance predicament.

What starts as a spark of physical chemistry, Laura and Marc start dating but aren't ‘official.' When Marc moves to Boston for work, the couple continue the awkward dance between wanting more out of the relationship, but also holding their true feelings back to give the other one ‘space.'

Writer and actor Benzer (formerly of St. Albert) examines the complexity – the adventure and the pitfalls – of cross-border communication. With a plethora of ways to communicate – phone, text messaging, Facebook, Skype – there is no excuse not to be able to keep in touch, but the intention and effort to stay open and honest is up to each person.

Charming and funny, Benzer captures exactly what a long distance romance is –enclosed in an intoxicating bubble when you are together, but lonely and strenuous when you are apart. If done right, what Benzer says is correct, “the results can be incredibly romantic.”

Letters to Laura is a short and sweet production that recently showcased at the San Diego Fringe Festival in July.

– Amy Crofts