The Minnesota Fringe Festival began on Thursday, and last night we saw three shows.
Withering Lows: A Love Story Better Off Dead was a bit off-key, which is partly my fault for not remembering the original material from 40 years ago. But it also felt like lines were recited in proper order, rather than organically originating from the actors, and that was disappointing. It felt like a training exercise, in some ways. C.
The Spirit Moves You To Color The Unseen was closer to the essence of Fringiness, being a frankly mysterious homage to the artist Hilma af Klint and the philosophy of theosophy. The five six seven women constituting the cast clearly had rehearsed this thoroughly in both word and gesture, but I have to wonder if the script could have used another draft – or if theosophy itself needed a bit more work. Still, it moves beyond the vapid Hollywood question of Is it good? to the more pertinent question of Does it provoke thought? B+.
And finally …
Duluth: An Improvised Midwest Murder is an improv show that was, like most improv shows, wacky and silly. You’ll probably tire yourself out trying to keep up, but your questions may be only banal at the end. A fun improv show. B-.
We still have a 10-pass with four left, so two more shows are in our near-future.
