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Monday, August 15, 2016

Fringe Festival 2016: "Itch"

Day: 11

Show: 49

Title: Itch

Category: Something Different

By: Three Knives

Written by: Tyler Olsen

Location: U of M Rarig Center Thrust

Summary: An outbreak of a mysterious illness in a an experimental science facility turns deadly and super creepy,

Highlights: When the floor of the Rarig Cente thrust stage is covered with a blood-stained tarp, you know you're in for something weird and creepy. And when Raw Red Meat does the effects, you know there will be blood, and lots of it. The tension and creep factor slowly build as a scientist coldly reports on the events of the outbreak. The residents are having a party to celebrate a divorce, when one of the researchers realizes there was a tear in his suit. Whether real or only imagined, this virus soon infects everyone on stage (and in the audience). Compulsively scratching, writhing on the floor in agony, spouting blood from various places on the body, even chewing their own flesh, the researchers' illness seems almost too real, especially when they start lumbering into the audience and the lights go out. We eventually find out what (or who) caused the outbreak, but the bottom line is that Itch most definitely gets under your skin. The nine-person cast is incredibly convincing, and I can't help wondering what their post-show laundry routine is like, and if they have a place to shower before going on with their day. Gross in the best possible way.