So, here we go folks, the first contests of the 2011 Toronto Fringe Festival! In this edition we will be giving away tickets to the Wednesday July 6 performances of four shows.
The shows are:
Excuse me, Would you like to buy a bar – To be entered into the draw for a pair of tickets to the 8:15pm show at The Solo Room (Venue 5) please send an email to contests@mooneyontheatre.com with the subject line “Would You Like to Buy a Bar contest” by 7pm on Tuesday July 5, 2011.
Abra-Cadaver! – To be entered into the draw for a pair of tickets to the 8:45pm show at Tarragon Theatre’s Extra Space (Venue 2) please send an email to contests@mooneyontheatre.com with the subject line “Abra-Cadaver contest” by 7pm on Tuesday July 5, 2011.
War of the Clowns – To be entered into the draw for a pair of tickets to the 9:30 pm at the Miles Nadal JCC (Venue 16) please send an email to contests@mooneyontheatre.com with the subject line “War of the Clowns contest” by 7pm on Tuesday July 5, 2011.
The Giant’s Garden – To be entered into the draw for a pair of tickets to the 10:30pm at The George Ignatieff Theatre (Venue 6) please send an email to contests@mooneyontheatre.com with the subject line “Giants Garden contest” by 7pm on Tuesday July 5, 2011.
See below for details on each show, how the contest works:
Excuse me, Would you Like to Buy a Bar
From the press release: Outside of time, six people are trapped in an absurd cycle of broken dreams and regret. Their only hope: One boy on a mission to sell the most chocolate bars and be the best. This “dark chocolate comedy” by up-and-coming playwright Wesley J. Colford explores the theme of perfectionism in art, education, families, and relationships in ways that are both comically surreal and intimately familiar.
What interests me about this piece is it’s history. It started life 3 years ago in Nova Scotia as part of the Cape Breton Hits the Streets Summer Festival. Then it won the Tarragon Theatre playwrighting competition in 2010, then this year it was part of the Paprika Festival – a free theatre festival that showcases work from young emerging artists. It was then selected by the Toronto Fringe Festival as part of it’s 10x10x10 initiative, which includes production support and a mentor. Clearly a lot of people have been interested in this piece so far, which is always a good sign. Plus, unlike some Fringe shows, this one is quite mature. It’s had a lot of time to develop and improve.
The piece plays at the Solo Room, Randolph Center for the Arts, 736 Bathurst St. Performances: July 6th, 8:15; July 9th, 8:30; July 11th, 7:30; July 12th, 6:45; July 14th, 9:45; July 15th, 5:15; July 17th, 5:45
Abra-Cadaver!
From the press release: A dark comedy about death inspired by the life of Dorothy Parker! Legendary New York City literary wit, Dorothy Parker, spent her entire life trying to kill herself. She failed every time. Join 100 year-old Dorothy in this dark comedy as she takes you on the ride of her life… and death.
Beyond just an interesting premise for a show, the idea of learning more about Dorothy Parker seems pretty great. As far as I know (which is very very little) she was a pretty amazing woman. She managed to be an amazing woman while being completely self-depreciative and essentially having no confidence in her work. While this is not a path I recommend, it is fascinating that she managed to be so successful despite that attitude.
The piece plays at the Tarragon Theatre’s Extra Space, 30 Bridgman Avenue. Performances: July 6 – 8:45pm; July 10 – 6:30pm; July 11 – 1:00pm; July 12 – 3:30pm; July 13 – 11:00pm; July 15 – 12:00pm; July 16 @ 8:45pm
War of the Clowns
From the press release: This 17th Century period piece is a stylistic blend of Dario Fo and Alfred Jarry. Though set in the distant past the message is a familiar and contemporary one: “Let’s kill all the clowns!”
While it might seem a bit harsh to kill all the clowns, there are certainly some clowns that terrify me and I would be happier if they weren’t in existence. Usually they are porcelain doll clowns, I mean, those things are just creepy. While you might not be into the death-to-clowns part of the piece, it’s good to note that this show is filled with lauded artists. The Dora nominations and awards abound for the participants of this production both on and off stage. Generally a pretty good sign that these folks know what they’re doing.
The piece plays at The Miles Nadal JCC, 750 Spadina Avenue. Performances: July 6 – 9:30; July 7 – 9:30: July 8 – 9:30; July 9 – 9:30; July 10 – 9:30; July 12, 2011 – 9:30; July 13 – 9:30; July 14 – 9:30; July 15 – 9:30; July 16 – 9:30
The Giant’s Garden
From the press release: an all ages musical inspired by Oscar Wilde’s The Selfish Giant. Deep in The Deep Dark Forest, hidden beyond The Stream of Sorrows and Sinking Spirits lies The Giant’s Garden – a place forbidden to outsiders: But when Giant goes away, the children sneak in to play, and for seven years their idyllic world has been undisturbed … until today.
Not only is the production packed with experienced and award winning artists, but it’s based on one of the few stories that my son and I both enjoy at bedtime. A testament to the draw for both children and adults. Given that this particular performance is at 10:30 at night, this is an opportunity to experience this great story without the giddy laughter and chatter of children in the audience enjoying the songs and story on stage. I mention this because, while this is endeering for some, it drives others bonkers.
The piece plays at The George Ignatieff Theatre 15 Devonshire Place. Performances: July 6th – 10:30 PM; July 9th – 5:15 PM; July 11th – 8:00 PM; July 12th – 3:00 PM; July 14th – Noon; July 15th – 8:45 PM; July 16th – 4:00 PM
Contest Rules:
(these will remain the same for each Fringe contest, so take the time to read the list once and you’ll be set)
- The only acceptable form of entry for the contest is by email, sent to contests@mooneyontheatre.com (Mooney on Theatre will never use your email address for anything other than to reply to the specific contest you entered, and we certainly would never sell it or anything like that)
- Each show counts as its own contest, and each entry must be in a separate email. So, if 5 shows are giving tickets away on a given day, and you want to try for each of them, then you need to send 5 emails.
- Entrants must be available on the day and time listed in the contest. The tickets are available for that showing only, and cannot be transferred to another date.
- The winning entrants will be chosen by a random drawing.
- Winners will be notified by email by 9pm on the day of contest closing and need to confirm their attendance 10am AT THE LATEST the following morning so that their names can be given to the theatre company for tickets to be set aside.
- Photo I.D. may be required to claim the winning tickets.
- Tickets must be picked up 60 to 30 minutes before show time at the venue box office. The box office reserves the right to release any tickets not picked up 15 minutes before show time.
- We ask that all winners provide us with a quick blurb on what they thought of the show, either in the comments section of the press release on Mooney on Theatre, or if it has already been reviewed by Mooney on Theatre in the comments section of that.