Lost and Foundling

MTYP’s Summer Studio—MTYP – Mainstage

The evil smiley face: that’s the logo that everyone should see when they look at the WalMart icon. When I was young, there was a local grocery store at the end of every street, and we bought our daily dinners fresh off the shelves as we came home. The large grocery stores (Dominion/Safeway/Loblaw) came along, and thanks to economies of scale, could offer the same foods at much lower prices. Plus, they had a variety that the local, corner stores could never compete with. Next came the big malls that meant you could buy everything without having to step outside as you go from store to store. All of this contributed to the death of the corner shops.

Then emerged the super-retailers: the Mega-WalMarts/Superstores/Costcos that sell everything under one roof. They use the same economies of scale to squeeze out the grocery stores. We’re at a stage now where the trifecta of WalMart/Superstore/Costco owns the majority of shoppers and it’s only people like me, who are willing to pay more to avoid the crowds, that eschew the megastores for the smaller grocery stores.

This play satirises the megastore by showing that you can live your entire life in one of these stores and never have to step foot outside. In fact, you can be born in the store and never know that a world exists outside the walls of the megamart. Moreover, this store is so large, the child (raised with the name “Price”) hasn’t even seen more than their own quadrant of the store, and travelling to the “lost and found” is like travelling to another world.

Never mind what’s outside, what scary things lie within the store itself? Fear of the unknown plays a large part in this show as well.

Finally, I count 13 actors during the curtain call. Of the 13, it looks like 85% are women/girls/female. Without seeing a face, we hear that the name of the Store Manager is Dave, and the Assistant Store Manager is named Brian. I wonder if there’s an intentional societal statement about the workplace having 85% non-men/male menial workers, but the two top positions are occupied by men?

Largely meant for a younger audience, the flow and content are sufficiently placed that adults would enjoy it too. There’s one scene that might even give some adults the creeps.

Ray Yuen

Eleanor’s Story: An American Girl In Hitler’s Germany

Ingrid Garner—The Fountain – Portage Place

Brilliant! This is a reprise and if you didn’t get to love this last time, now’s your chance. The respectful buzz from fellow performers had me anticipating this work. This true story told by the granddaughter of the real Eleanor is perfection!

The title is the plot. The ever-changing black and white photos in the background really added to the depth of this experience. We could see and hear the terrifying events our young heroine was subjected to. The similarities with the images, and the atrocities perpetually perpetrated during war, that we are now seeing from Ukraine needed not be voiced. That these crimes and injustices actually happened to her family, made Ingrid’s exquisite tale all the more biting and tragic.

Not a single flaw. Whether you love history and/or appreciate great theatre, this is the show that delivers.

Lisa Campbell

Minoosh Doo-Kapeeshiw

Echo Theatre—Kids Venue

This cute show shows that anyone can be friends. The unlikely duo meet while Minoosh searches for a meal, in non-typical cat fashion. They end up becoming best buds and go on an adventure worthy of any rural hiker.

The simple gadgets give the appearance of “magic” and arouses a few “oohs” from the kids. Silent but briefly narrated in Michif, I couldn’t get most of the words but there are certainly some recognisable French influences.

Ray Yuen

AWAY, NOW – The World’s Most Desired Destination

Paul Strickland Presents—The Fountain – Portage Place

Paul and Erika are the smiliest, friendliest, folks you ever want to meet. I’ve adored past performances by both of them. That makes this all the harder. I was not impressed. This duo is capable of so much more. I wished I had as much fun watching this as they obviously did doing it.

The title comes from the answer during the pandemic as to what most people respond when asked where they are dying to go. Away, now! The puppetry was the highlight of this for me. So skillful, amusing and obviously took a long time to craft and perfect. And the rich pattern of the suitcase / drum makes a perfect backdrop for this scene. Perfection!

I wish I was as in love with the rest of the show. If you need to repeatedly tell the audience when to clap, you’re already losing us. These two are capable of so much more. Too much repetition, along with a fuzzy storyline, left me disappointed and underwhelmed. These two are so talented; and need to better display this. Doesn’t mean I won’t be there next year.

Lisa Campbell

Bushtits, Shih Tzus and Private Dicks: All’s Fur in Love and Noir

Theatrically Obsessed—The Rachel Browne Theatre

I hadn’t really planned to see this show. But it was a hot afternoon, the kind of day where everything sticks to you like a blue-bottle hitting flypaper. My dogs were barking and I needed someplace to cool down and venue 8 seemed like just the place. Ok, enough with my poor excuse for noir speech. Boy am I glad I stopped on in.

This is a great fast-paced comedic romp. Trevor Matheson plays the lead who when he puts on an old movie memorabilia Fedora he bought transforms into a film noir detective. Melissa Dorsey frenetically plays all the other 12 characters. Each is identified by certain props or wardrobe and voice changes and often involves her running off set then running back on as someone else. Even more amazing is that in real life she is a new mom to 4 month old twins.

The timing of everything is amazing, they make use of a door and frame on wheels which gets moved around the stage, opened, closed and walked through a lot to set up different rooms in scenes. Kudos also to the tech, because whenever the hat is put on or taken off the lighting changes. Those changes really make the show as the switches in realities come with some really funny consequences. If you want a fun and hilarious break from some of the more serious shows out there, this is the ticket.

Murray Hunter

Monster Makers

North Kildonan Community Players—John Hirsch Mainstage

I love monster shows; I love horror; and I love to be scared (although I’ve never seen a Fringe show that truly scared me—many are disturbing, but nothing downright scary). To be fair, the performance delivered on everything it promised in the guide write-up. It was my own fault that I expected to see a “monster show” when it was a show about monster-making (duh—shudda read the title better).

To be fair, I can only review part of the show because a medical emergency halted the performance after Act 2. Perhaps a mob-full of monsters appear in the final act?! The cast promised a final Act full of excitement and frenzy. They and MTC offered comps to all the patrons to re-see the show. Alas, as a reviewer, our schedules are very tight, and I will not have the opportunity to visit this show again

To this point, the acting was very professional and the singing superb. There was a lot of energy and fun through the scenes and the trip through time was fun.

Huge compliments to the excellent reactions of the audience, the staff at MTC, and the cast for the professional way they handled the crisis. Last word was that everything would be ok. Big cheers for that.

Editors Note: There was an update sent out over Twitter saying the Audience Member had Heat Stroke and was at home recovering.

Ray Yuen

The Stakeout

big word performance/ jem rolls—Planetarium

Tight comedy wordplay at its finest paired with a psychedelic dramatic conceit. Andrew Broaddus and Martin Dockery have fantastic chemistry, a prerequisite as they trade banter and established social roles rapidly over the course of the performance. Conceptually the main themes feel complex enough to encourage a re-watch to fully digest, but frankly I’d consider that a positive should the show be brought back to another Fringe. Probably closer to 60 minutes than 75, but that’s the downside of the Fringe time block structure.

Josh Fidelak

Symptom Circus

Chronically Ch(ill) Productions—Planetarium

What a punch in the face – wow.

I had no idea what to expect walking into this theatre. The guide write-up is about as accurate as can be, but it doesn’t give many clues on what to expect. What we got was a straight fist to the throat of emotions.

Most of us (all?) have insecurities, deficiencies, and oddities—and socially, many try to hide those facts to the best of their abilities. Rhoda bravely peels off all those clown masks to give us a frank look into her world.

As I age, I realise that my body gradually but surely loses strength, endurance and constitution. Some days, I miss what I had and fret what’s to come as I physically continue to deteriorate with the passage of time. Leaving the theatre, I’m thanking every good fortune out there for the health that I have.

Ray Yuen

God Is A Scottish Drag Queen (Best Of)

Mike Delamont—MTYP – Mainstage

When you have a theme that is completely unique, totally engaging, and you change it up enough to keep it fresh, you have a winner. This is evident in that he can stage off-season shows in the Peg, and sell out. Almost everyone is familiar with Delamont, and makes sure to book in advance. I was fortunate tonight to experience him through fresh eyes. I was seated in front of a large group of teenagers; who had never seen God before. Their howls of laughter were very amusing; and Delamont commented on their youth, took no responsibility for his content, and said it was now their parents problem!

If you aren’t familiar with a sermon from one of the funniest guys in Canada, you darn well should be. He Is God, as far as a lot of us are concerned; and I’d rather you experience him yourself rather than have me explain his genius.

Lisa Campbell