Toronto Fringe Festival 2024 Round 3

Toronto Fringe Festival: Round 3

A+ – A fantastic show, on my “Must See” List for the year.

A – A great show, but with a few bumps to smoothen out. Still worth seeing.

B – Has many elements of a great show, but needs work before the next production. Go into the show with an open mind. 

C – May not be the best show out there, but I can appreciate their hard work and recognize the courage it takes to put on a show. Proceed with a very open mind if attending. 

D – Needs a lot of work before giving it another go. Don’t give up, creating theatre is not easy! 

My third round of seeing Fringe shows had me mostly at the Tarragon Theatre in all three of its theatres, which is a beauty of the fringe. If you don’t want to run around the city, you don’t have to! Even though I can’t see it all, I am delighted to get a chance to see some theatre and give you my opinions and critiques. These aren’t as in-depth as my regular reviews, but they’ll give you my overall, condensed feelings. 

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Painting By Numbers 

Rating: A (So close to an A+)

“Painting By Numbers” is a fantastic piece of theatre at the Toronto Fringe. The show felt light in tone, all while also being incredibly meaningful. The themes of what it means to assess/address meaning and value, and how legacy plays into our life’s choices were all played out beautifully. The script felt fresh and snappy, never dragging along, and the comedy was so good. 

The actors beautifully play out the aftermath of an art heist, with Leila Fitzgerald (played by Cassandra Henry) being in the centre of all of it: the act of the Painting being stolen, bought, and unveiled to the public. Henry does an exquisite job as Leila, and allows herself to really lean into both the comedic and serious moments of the show. 

My only quam with the show is that I wish some of the actors would enunciate a little more, and take their time with some of the faster lines. I often choose to sit in the back of a theatre, and I can’t understand what you’re saying at all times, some of the meaning can become completely lost. If this cast can fix that, then the run of the show will be an absolute smash. If you’re looking for a meaningful, heartfelt, yet light and funny show, this one’s for you. 

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Death of a Starman 

Rating: B

The Fringe is a chance for artists to create experimental theatre, and try something that otherwise may not have a chance to be seen in the theatre world. “Death of a Starman” is a play that caught my attention because I for one am interested in the world of astrology and the stars. This one-man play plays out the life of Sal Solomon (played by Zaid Bustami) who is an astrologer with an astrology show on a local TV show.  He has major debts with the mob and had to figure out how to navigate through his lack of success, and all his relationships.

I have to really hand it to Bustami, he did an EXCELLENT job portraying the dozen or so characters in the show. His voices were all unique, and his commitment to every character was outstanding. His physical acting and humour was top notch, and he was dedicated to every single bit that was presented. I also liked the overall plot of the show, and the writing was quite good too. 

The problems I had with the show had to do with something a lot of theatre creators (myself included) have a hard time doing: doing less. Bustami ran around the stage like a mad-man trying to play the characters, having to take off his glasses for most of the characters, and putting them back on for Sal. Sometimes, the characters would only have lines that were no more than three words, and they would be lying on the floor while another character was standing. Though the physical excursion was impressive, as an audience it felt like a lot. 

If you think about how a TV show or a movie would mock or farce a one-person show, unfortunately, it might look like this one. I think simplifying some of the staging, getting rid of the glasses, and having the transitions between characters be less about the physical placement on stage and be more about the character switches (which he does so well) will bump this show way up on the enjoyment scale. Worth the watch if you want to see an actor go through an Olympic amount of character changes, but go in with an open mind. 

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Being Celine 

Rating: A+ 

Celine Dion is an absolute icon, beloved by so many people around the world. Plus, after her recent all-access, honest documentary, people are showing her an immense amount of love. “Being Celine” really and truly is a love letter to the Canadian Legend, one that I believe the real Celine would love herself. 

The show is presented as an intimate Celine Dion concert, in which the audience gets to hear Celine sing some of her most iconic songs and hear some of her personal stories. She changes from one outfit to another in a flash, and we get to even hear some Celine-isms, and her love of dropping random songs into conversation. Laura Landauer who plays Ms. Dion does an incredible job embodying the larger than life personality, from the accent to beating her chest, and her facial expressions. She basically played a perfect Celine, and had me smiling literally the entire time. 

The theatre was jam packed the day I went, so I would recommend grabbing a ticket as soon as possible, if there are any left of course! 

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Before We Go 

Rating: A/B

Improv and the Fringe go together like peanut butter and jelly. I had to make sure I checked out at least one Improv show during the run of the festival, so I decided to see this production by Shy Lil Guy. The premise is simple: The world is ending and we have six hours to go. People are gathering for parties, and to celebrate the end, and that’s the only thing that will be consistent from show to show. This is a piece of unscripted dark comedy, and thanks to unique audience suggestions at the top of the show which shape the entire three-act play, each and every show is different. In our show, we picked the song “Highway Through Hell” which was played throughout the piece, an Eiffel Tower keychain bought as a memento after being dumped in Paris, and the Ontario Science Centre (RIP) as a location.  

The actors did a great job setting the scene and doing their best to make every single scene funny, but unfortunately, it just didn’t work out all the time. The opening scene took place in a Alcoholics Anonymous meeting that for the most part wasn’t all that funny. Things got better as the storyline progressed, with my favourite scene being when we met the different characters at the end of the world party at the Science Centre. Though this show is definitely worth the watch if you’d like to see an improv show in the Fringe, remember that every night will vary, and requires a bit more of an open mind compared to other comedy shows. 

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Boy Boy and The Magic Drum

Rating: A 

Whenever something is presented as an Award Winner, your expectations tend to go up a little bit. There have been many times when those expectations haven’t been met but when it comes to “Boy Boy and The Magic Drum”, I can see why the soca-inspired musical won the 2024 Adam’s Prize for New Musical. This Trinidadian piece, adapted from the children’s book “Boy Boy and the Magic Drum” by Machel Montano, was truly a ton of fun. With a cast made up of incredibly talented individuals, surprisingly good music, and a simple but very effective set, this wonderful piece of family-friendly theatre will leave you clapping to the beat and smiling from ear to ear. 

“The annual Peace Parade has been cancelled and it’s up to the self-doubting Boy Boy to save it. Will he figure out the mystery of the rainbow brew in time?” 

I didn’t have too many issues with the show overall, which really speaks volumes to the direction and production of the show and the level of professionalism from the cast. I did hear some audio issues through the show with the mics and the music being unbalanced, and I also spoke to friends who said they wished there was more conflict in the show (and that the parents came off as a little too nice), but I kept thinking to myself that in the heart of it, this is a youth audience or YA show, that’s the realm it lives the best in. I don’t think something needs to be hard-hitting to be effective, and this proves that. The audience was very happy, and you could tell that there were many people in the crows who felt seen and represented, and honestly, that is something incredibly valuable in itself. This piece did feel special, and I am so curious how it continues its life after this stage of development! 

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Monks 

Rating A+ (Really and truly a must-see). 

I count myself to be incredibly lucky. On my day of Fringing, I wanted a late-night show to help round out my schedule. I found “Monks” and thought that it was worth at least exploring, even though based on the show description, it felt like I wouldn’t enjoy it. Oh boy was I wrong. “Monks” was incredibly stupid, obscenely dumb, and nonsensical in the best way possible. It is quite possibly one of the most enjoyable things I have ever seen at a Fringe Festival – EVER. 

I didn’t realize when I signed up that this production was a “clown” show, with the only plot point being that the two performers played two Franciscan monks somewhere in 1100s Spain, and we the audience played other Franciscan brothers coming to visit their monastery for a day of doing absolutely nothing (which, spoiler alert, doesn’t end of happening). 

Now, when I say this show is nonsensical, boy do I mean it. We help the monks count lentils, brave a storm with them, help them find their lost donkey, and even shame the devil into submission (yes, you read that right). I don’t want to give much more away because the beauty of this production is that so much of the piece is completely unexpected, and keeps you on your toes the whole time, especially because a large part of the show requires audience participation (which has a risk of being super cringy, but this show makes you want to participate.) What I REALLY didn’t expect however was the end of the performance to leave me teary-eyed. Like, two women dressed in Franciscan Monk drag made me cry? And it was Meaningful?! Brilliant. 

I don’t know if there are any tickets left to this incredible performance in the 2024 Toronto Fringe, but if you’re lucky enough to find tickets do me a favour and snatch them up, and go see this wonderful piece of clowning. 

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Unfurnished 

Rating: C 

I decided to take in another youth-driven play and picked “Unfurnished” written by Spencer Pearson & Luis Sanchez. In this farce, a group of university students re-unite in their old teacher’s cabin (who used to let them party there as high schoolers), when a series of gangsters bust through the window claiming to be the true owners of the place. The Fringe is a good place for pieces like this that are in the early stages of development and need to be workshopped to further enhance the piece. 

I want to start off by saying the acting performances of the entire cast was fantastic. There wasn’t a weak cast member in the lot, and that says a lot. Kudos to them! I also was in awe of their set, because as some of you may not know, the storage space the Fringe gives you to store set pieces is nothing, so the fact that they could store a door frame, a window in a frame, a couch, and many other pieces was impressive. 

The problem with this show, unfortunately, is the script itself. The story is all over the place, and a lot of things don’t make sense. Farce or not, the plot needs to make sense in the universe that the piece lives in. For example, one of the friends who is trying to become a real estate agent schedules a viewing of the cabin for two in the morning. I know a few real estate agents, so I asked them in their early careers if they would ever do that, and the answer was a resounding no. I understand that certain choices were made in the writing to keep the story going and flowing…but when they get a little too out there all of a sudden, we as the audience are left going, “…huh?”

Another example is, right before the climax of the play, and the friends are getting ready for a literal war, one of the character breaks down because everyone forgot her birthday, so she leaves the room while they get a card together for her and wish her. I think the two playwrights show a lot of promise, but I also think certain lessons when it comes to plot, story arc, and narrative need to be revisited.

I also found that the audio levels for the show were way too loud and not balanced in the least, especially when it was over a bit of dialogue. I thought it may have been just me, but after talking to some friends in the audience, they said the same thing. 

I give a major round of applause to the cast and crew of ‘Unfurnished’ for trying something really, really hard: putting on a show. I hope this production is just the first of many for all of them, and that this piece is a learning opportunity for them all. 

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Koli Kari 

Rating: B- 

I really wanted to like Koli Kari, written by Ganesh Thava, especially as a Sri Lankan myself who struggles to find acceptance from his family (especially as his amma). In this play, failing cooking show host Ravi has a final plan to save his show: revealing the secret recipe for his recently departed Amma’s (mom’s) Koli Kari (Chicken Curry). But when the chicken comes to life and summons the recipe’s true creator, Ravi must confront his long-lost Amma.

A little strange in concept, sure, but I thought to myself it could be reminiscent of Charles Dickens’ ‘A Christmas Carol’, with spirits representing the past, present, and maybe even future. It wasn’t exactly that, but it was an interesting exploration of the relationship with an Immigrant parent. Often times we hear how much has had to be sacrificed for the dreams of the child to be allowed to flourish in a new country, and I felt like that was explored quite well in this piece. 

The acting by Ganesh Thava, Asha Ponnachan, and Anne Saverimuthu is quite good. They are genuine and really dive deeply into their characters. The trap that ‘Koli Kari’ falls into however is one that a lot of Fringe shows do: try to squeeze in too much into a short period of time. The idea of queerness comes into play closer to the end of the piece (though there are hints sprinkled throughout) but I felt like it wasn’t given the right amount of time and space to be addressed. Being queer in a South Asian family is so complicated, and so complex, but in this piece is barely scratches the surface. 

I am also having a lot of trouble understanding what the point of the chicken was. Was it a metaphor for Amma’s love? Acceptance? Was it a manifestation of tradition, or something else completely? I hope that in the next iteration of Thava’s play, this concept can be flushed out deeply, so we as the audience can fully understand why the Koli came to life and essentially haunted Ravi. 

Grab tickets for Toronto Fringe Festival from July 3-14, 2024 

[Review by Shan Fernando]