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Show: 5
Category: Drama / Solo Show / Historical content
By: Jennifer Vosters
Written by: Jennifer Vosters
Location: Rarig Xperimental
Summary: A solo piece about the famous 19th Century composer Felix Mendelssohn and his less famous but no less talented sister Fanny.
Highlights: This is another case of history not telling us about the women artists (see also The Spirit Moves You To Color The Unseen). Like the stories told in the podcast Significant Others, Fanny was her brother's biggest supporter, confidante, partner, and soulmate, in addition to her own independent creations, but history doesn't remember her. Because she was a woman, her father, and Felix himself, didn't think it was appropriate for her to be a published musician. Eventually she found a way, but her, and her brother's, life and career were cut short but a stroke.* Chicago-based artist Jennifer Vosters has beautifully constructed this piece, like a composition by one of the Mendelssohns, and also performs it beautifully. She tells the story of the siblings' lives from childhood, in a modern and conversational way, making it feel very present and relatable. Dressed in a black suit with tails and an embroidered vest, she plays both siblings and smoothly transitions from one to the other. The intimate space at the X contains only a piano bench and two music stands, representing Fanny and Felix, but the space soon becomes littered with sheet music. In under an hour, we're taken on an epic journey of creation, family, ambition, disappointment, and triumph. Jennifer gives a masterful, impassioned, engaging performance (accompanied by snippets of the music referred to) for which she's deservedly been racking up prizes at Fringe Festivals around the country. I attended the second performance and it sold out, so I recommend making a reservation or getting in line at the box office early to score a ticket to this show.
Read all of my Fringe mini-reviews here.
*For another story of a musical prodigy whose life and career were cut short due to illness, see the final reading of the new musical about cellist Jacqueline du Pré, How to Play the Cello (Until You Don't), as part of Theater Latte Da's NEXT new works festival.
