fringe

I’ve said it before but I’m not the most experimental of theatre critics. While I can appreciate seeing something in different phases I don’t know if I’m the best person to capture the vision of what a project is going for. That’s why I am often hesitant to critique a new work like the new musical Possessive: The Musical. In the case of this musical, however, they invited me, my friend Dylan had seen and loved it and it did well over at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. So I drove up to Heber to see Possessive: The Musical performed at Timpanogos Valley Theatre, and I’m so glad I did. What a fresh, exciting, unhinged evening at the theatre!

The story behind this musical is quite diabolical. A family in the early 2000s led by parents Carl and Hannah (David Thorpe, Kaushay Ford) are stressed-out dealing with an unruly child named Darian. Then one day Darian starts behaving better but also in very strange ways. It turns out he has been possessed by a devil which of course is very concerning but the parents are tempted to keep their child behaving well for as long as possible. This is made even more complicated when their relationship also improves with their rebellious daughter Lisa (Yasamin Marashi) and she becomes friendly with the demon’s minion (Connor Thompson.) It’s all as ridiculous and off-the-wall as that premise sounds and even more so!

It’s hard to not compare Possessive to Beetlejuice. They even make a joke about that comparison themselves but I have to be honest I found Beetlejuice to be much more annoying than what we get in Possessive, so I prefer this. Beetlejuice I feel like the characters are constantly shouting at me where this has a variety of expressions along with the big over-the-top laughs. Jessica Wall, who plays Darian, deserves much of the credit. She lip-syncs her demon dialogue who is standing behind her as played by Derek Wayman. The two of them work seamlessly together and seeing Wayman’s big booming voice coming out of Wall’s petite frame is hilarious.

Everything the night I saw the production was directed by David Thorpe with sound design by Emily Wayman, and like I said it’s the coordination between the different elements to make Darian become a demon that worked so well. Plus, other characters switch places or are inhabited by other characters. It brings the biggest laughs of the night. Plus, the dialogue is very funny with a lot of nods to the early 2000s and things like dial up modems and bands like Blink 182.

I also really enjoyed how the scenic design they used making the background look like a giant book and each scene change looks like the moving of a page in said book. This is a smart way to make transitions fast and add a bit of whimsy into the low budget production.

Even though I liked the songs better than Beetlejuice I do wonder if it actually needs to be a musical? The songs are fine but it’s really the dialogue and the effect with Darian/demon that makes the show work. I think I’d like it just as well as a straight play, but I understand those aren’t as marketable especially for comedies. I do think it would be fun for Darian/demon to get a real showstopper introducing themselves in the vein of “Sweet Transvestite” from The Rocky Horror Picture Show. The parents have most the memorable songs in this current version of the show.

If they were going to ask me for advice going forward I’d suggest adding some interactivity to the show. It has a cult-following feel to it and something like the splash zone in Evil Dead: The Musical might really work. Especially towards the end when you have blood and windex and other that could potentially be brought into the audience.

Obviously the most important aspect of any comedy is did it make me laugh and with Possessive: The Musical it definitely did. It has loads of potential and I can’t wait to see how it evolves and grows over the years. If you do get a chance to see it it’s a great ghoulish good time.

Possessive: The Musical has book, music and lyrics by Spencer Ford with orchestrations by Alec Lowe. It was first performed in 2023 at a Hart Theatre Company production and there is a cast album available to listen to from 2023 on Spotify.

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Honestly I’m not the best person to go to when looking for reviews of something like a Fringe festival. I admire the concept and effort that goes into these small plays, but I’m also not that experimental or artistic of a person so the edgy side of the event can be beyond me. However, I do try and support what looks appealing to me and this year I saw 6 shows all of which I enjoyed quite a bit. I guess I chose well!

By design the shows at Fringe are all supposed to be under an hour so these are just a few quick thoughts on everything I saw rather than the detailed reviews I might give longer 2 act shows. I can elaborate more if readers want. Just let me know in the comments (also these are in the order I saw them not ranked in any other way.)

The Variants- Curious Modern Plays production in association with Meanwhile Park

First up I saw the dark family comedy The Variants. This is perhaps the most polished production I saw at the festival and one that I can see being developed into a full play and even a streaming series with the right approach (it’s all about zoom calls so would be easy to adapt into a youtube show or something like that.) Local playwright Randall Huskinson takes us back to the pandemic and 2021 when the vaccine was just being rolled out in all its controversy. A family of 3 siblings and their mother meet via zoom to talk about their varying views on the issues of the day and whether they should gather together for the Mother’s 70th birthday party.

I admit I am a highly conflict averse person so these kind of comedies that revolve around families fighting aren’t my favorite. It’s a bit stressful for me to see people fighting with those they love. That said The Variants does feel authentic in its characters and writing. Almost anyone who sees it will relate to all the characters and the situations. Of course, it is political but I appreciate that all of the characters and perspectives are treated with dignity amongst the laughs.

The cast is also great with Annette Wright leading things off as the Mother. She is a tremendous actor who I most recently saw in The Roommate at SLAC. The siblings are played by Kirt Bateman, Allen Smith and Eva Terranova. Any Utahn will be able to relate to the perspectives of all 3 siblings and the 3 actors have a believable chemistry together in their squabbles with each other.

I know some people struggle with COVID related content but it was such an insane time and surely there has to be a point where we process that experience through art? I certainly think so and am glad we are getting entertaining efforts like we have in The Variants.

The Replacements- Salt Lake Monster Theatre Co

Next up we have The Replacements which is a little sci-fi story that felt right out of a more intimate episode of Doctor Who. It features 2 actors who are working in a futuristic society one is more of traditionalist played by Dustin Hardebeck and the other breaks the rules played by Jaxton Romeo Brenner. The 2 are assigned to a machine where they have to push red buttons when an overseer tells them to do so. The purpose of the machine or the buttons is unclear to either worker but the older worker doesn’t question just keeps doing it in hopes of a reward. The newer employee struggles with such obedience and questions what is happening around him leading to surprising results.

I’m honestly not sure what the final takeaway is supposed to be from The Replacements but isn’t good sci-fi supposed to be about asking questions verses necessarily having the answers? It’s clearly talking about conformity vs obedience but I’m not sure which side wins in the end or what we are supposed to take for our lives from watching it but that’s ok. The performances by Hardebeck and Brenner are terrific and the script by AB Harrison (who also directs) doesn’t forget to include lighter moments to break up the tension. The set is simple but does the job for the story and anyone who enjoys sci-fi stories like Doctor Who will have a good time with this play.

The Emperor’s New Everything- Salt Lake Children’s Theatre

Sometimes it is easy to forget the effort which goes into entertaining small children. We see all the pre-k programs on television and it can seem easy but it is certainly difficult to do it and do it well. It might seem odd for a childless adult to go to a performance like The Emperor’s New Everything but as I’m not often drawn to the edgier side of Fringe I like to pop in and see what the family content-makers are up to. Last year the folks at Salt Lake Children’s Theatre took on Alice in Wonderland and this year we have The Emperor’s New Clothes with The Emperor’s New Everything. In this fun piece of interactive storytelling kids get introduced to live theatre and are involved in every step of the performance.

To begin with the audience are all given different color flags which are then used to call out audience participation at different points. One color flag has to do a dance, another wear a silly hat, etc. I really appreciate that playwright Mindy Curtis explained to the kids what a play is to start out the hour and told them there would be time to be loud and times to listen. This is so helpful to begin to teach kids what attending theater is. The cast is also a lot of fun with Zac Curtis playing the dopey emperor, Jake Andersen as the craft servant Fraudrick and Jim Martin as the sarcastic Lords. They are all personable with the kids and up for whatever wildcards they are thrown (very funny when one kid asked them to a split leap.)

Salt Lake Children’s Theatre is run by Zac and Mindy and they do events all over the valley in schools and museums. If you get a chance to see their productions like The Emperor’s New Everything with the kiddos I highly recommend it.

Helen- Written and directed by Annabelle Willes

With Christopher Nolan’s epic movie The Odyssey and the Hadestown proshot in cinemas it is only natural that I would end up seeing more Greek mythology with Helen. This play was done in the black box space at Mad King and it tells the sprawling story of Helen of Troy. I am sure Willes had to condense things a lot to fit the timeframe and they still went over at least 15 minutes (one person said it was 90 minutes but I didn’t check my time so not sure.)

The cast is large and very strong with Jaclyn Nelson and Truman Christensen having terrific chemistry as Helen and Menelaus. Brendan Bowman is good as Paris and Isa Wade as Aphrodite. I also appreciate the dress they had for Nelson which had a Greco-Roman statuesque feel to it.

I enjoyed watching Helen but it felt rushed and became difficult to keep track of all the characters and everything that was happening. I’d be interested to see the full 2 act version because I bet it is a lot clearer and more satisfying. I’m also not a Greek scholar despite how much of it I’ve been getting lately. Those more familiar with the Helen of Troy story may find it easier to keep track of. Still, it’s a tremendous effort and I’m glad I saw it.

King John- by Matthew Windham director Damjan Dimovski

I’m not sure why but I almost always love the dynamic of a one-person show. It can be a bit gimmicky but I’m always kept fascinated how the person is going to pull off the next element of the story and make it all work. Such was the case with the one-man adaptation of King John at the festival .

This is an adaptation of the Shakespeare play which is normally 2.5 hours but Windham does a good job paring it down to the hour length. He plays all the characters effectively using chess pieces, hats and other items like a teddy bear to signify a change in characters. Indeed, a production like this rises and falls with the quality of the actor and Windham had m transfixed the entire time. He is an incredible actor!

Similarly to Helen I am sure the more knowledgeable the audience is on King John the more they will pick up. I’ve never seen or read it so it is a little hard to keep up with what is happening in the story. Still I loved Windham’s performance, and I got enough of it to get an idea of the plot. King John is honestly probably my favorite play of the festival.

Dramapocalypse- Owen Briggs directing.

My final play was probably my favorite comedy of the festival. It is called Dramapocalypse and dives into the dark side of drama geeks. The play is directed by Owen Briggs who also plays PJ (written by Arthur Thomas.) PJ is a diabetic teenager who along with 6 classmates are locked in a school basement with no way to get out for hours. While there someone breaks the curse of the Scottish play and the ghost of William Shakespeare comes alive to enact revenge on the students. This was pretty funny as I had just come from watching King John but also Eleanor Jonsson plays Shakespeare well as the “patron Saint of bisexuals.”

The biggest strength of this play is the pitch-perfect casting across the board. Everyone completely fit their roles. I particularly loved Joey McDonough as the dopey if problematic football player-turned actor Ben. Cris Criddle also gets a ton of laughs as the sassy hot-tempered Karina. It may be because it’s a high school production at Mad King but this reminded me a lot of We Are Tigers and She Kills Monsters which I also saw at that black box space. Some of the humor can feel a little belabored and repetitive but I sincerely hope they keep working on this because it has a lot of potential.

So there you have it. That’s my thoughts on this year’s GSL Fringe. What about you? Did you get to see any of these and what did I miss that you enjoyed? I’d love to hear in the comments. Thanks to all who set up and volunteered for GSL Fringe and for including me.