By the time we get into the second week of the Toronto Fringe Festival I’m always stunned by how fast time moves. By the time you are reading this most shows will only have two or three performances left. How can that even be?!?
Well, to help you decide what to see, every day we’re featuring three of our rave reviews from our long list of the reviews of each show. And today is no different. Keep reading to see what we have picked out for you today.
Settle This Thing (bick/antzis)
What it’s about: “Tamara & Drew, (real-life husband and wife) are highly uncertified specialists teaching completely unproven scientific-ish methods, to help you achieve a perfectly satisfactory relationship, like theirs! More importantly, they want your vote as they try to settle some disputes they simply cannot resolve on their own.”
Why our reviewer loved it: “The voting gimmick is such tremendous fun that the audience can’t help but get engaged. Every time we reached for our paddles, giggles and staring matches broke out (you’re voting for her?!), and I certainly overheard people picking apart the scenarios on the walk out the door. . . . But damn if it isn’t fun all the same, especially when Bick and Antzis get off-script. . . . Settle This Thing is a lovely little cream puff of a show, equally ideal for first dates, newlyweds, exhausted parents, old pairs of shoes, and recent divorcees.”
The Brothers Gentle (SockMonkey)
What it’s about: “The lizard is loose and the gorilla is coming. It’ll be a long drive home – do you have any crackers? Some bread maybe? Time is running out and what is there left to say? Hospital coffee sucks. Three brief scenes featuring the Brothers Gentle.
Why our reviewer loved it: “I can’t stress how much I enjoyed this piece. I constantly harp in my reviews about how a good play only needs a stage, actors, a box and a stick to tell a strong story; the minimalist set of The Brothers Gentle that uses only lights and spartan props embodies this philosophy. . . . With a strong script, great performances and a fantastic location in the Passe Muraille I strongly recommend The Brothers Gentle as part of your Fringe experience.”
Women of the Fur Trade (Vault Projects)
What it’s about: “The Year: 18something. The Place: A Fort. Louis Riel is heading home after years away predicting mustache trends and writing poems. Meanwhile, three young women with flair for Fur Trade fashion, eagerly await his return.
1st Place, Toronto Fringe New Play Contest
2nd Place, Winnipeg Fringe New Play Contest
Why our reviewer loved it: “Irreverent and relevant, Women of the Fur Trade also dramatizes a darker side as well. Eugenia reveals she’s losing her language, having lived in the fort too long. The Métis Marie Angelique denounces her mother for giving her away at birth. Caucasian Cecilia pines for the “handsome Irishman” Thomas Scott, aware of how her adultery might be viewed in this era. . . . Firmly tongue-in-cheek, Women of the Fur Trade should be mandatory comedic viewing: Canadian history reinvented and newly explored for our contemporary times.”