Minnesota Fringe Festival 2026: "FAST Death of a Salesman"

Day: 10

Show: 37

Title: FAST Death of a Salesman

Category: 

By: alleged Theatre Company

Created by: alleged Theatre Company

Location: Rarig Stoll Thrust

Summary: An important theater director is desperate to impress his 10-year-old nephew, so he leads a group of theater students through Arthur Miller's classic at a pace kids are used to.

Highlights: In typically meta fashion, Alleged does theater about doing theater. While the idea of getting more young people engaged in theater is one worth exploring, this show is not that. Instead it shows what goes wrong when you try to make theater for a short-attention-span youth. Dr. Duke Didier is a serious director (you can tell because he wears a beret), but what he wants more than anything is the approval of his nephew Braden, who used to love going to the theater, but now will not look up from his device (played I think by an audience member). So he directs a bunch of theater students (and one carnival barker auctioneer, because he can speak fast) to do Death of a Salesman fast, first by acting to a recorded track of the original dialogue sped up, for a ridiculous breakneck Salesman. When that doesn't work, he asks the students' advice, so they try a superhero Salesman, a comedy roast Salesman, a "brain rot" Salesman (I'm so old that went completely over my head). And then finally, at his wit's end, he himself performs some sort of absurd one-man Salesman. His students tell him he should just make the kind of theater he likes for people who like that sort of theater, and let Braden watch whatever kind of theater/entertainment he likes that other people make. What a novel idea; maybe if you make the art you're inspire to make, the right audience will find it, even if that's not your nephew. Written and directed by Jake Mierva, with Jeremy Motz as Dr. Didier and J. McIntyre Godwin, Kait Johnson, Laura Berger, Sarah Halverson, and Steph Callaghan playing the cast playing the Salesman roles, this show is a wild and meta ride.

Read all of my Fringe mini-reviews here. 

2026 Minnesota Fringe Festival Must-See List

We've reached the dog days of summer, with a string of 90+ degree days, and devastating wildfires in Northern Minnesota and Canada that at times make our air quality here in the Twin Cities dangerous. But #TCTheater has not taken a summer hiatus; I'm busier this summer than any summer I can remember. And that will continue into early August when I attend my 16th MN Fringe. The 33rd Annual Minnesota Fringe Festival runs from August 6th through the 16th, with some 100+ shows having five performances each at venues around Minneapolis, most of them clustered around the Cedar-Riverside neighborhood. After 33 years, the Festival runs like clockwork (thanks to the hard-working staff and volunteers), so it's easy to get out and see one, or a handful, or dozens of shows, those that fit your interests, and those that expand your comfort zone. Visit the Fringe website to peruse the schedule and make your plans, or keep reading for a dozen or so shows that I recommend (most of them from artists I know and love), as well as some helpful tips for Fringe newbies. See you at the Fringe!

Minnesota Fringe Festival: "Five-Fifths of 9 to 5" at the Ritz Theater

Five-Fifths of 9 to 5 was everything I wanted, and everything that's good about Minnesota Fringe. The annual fundraiser for the 11-day August festival takes a popular movie, divides it into five parts, and gives each part to a different Fringe artist or company, who then perform their fifth in chronological order for the weirdest and most wonderful Frankenstein version of the movie you've ever seen. It's truly astounding how you can give five artists the same inspiration, and they will do five completely different things. And that's the great thing about our beloved Fringe, now in its 33rd year - artists are supported in making and presenting their own unique kind of art, and we audience members can sample a little of everything! For this year's Five-Fifths, Artistic Director Dawn Bentley gently bullied her staff into choosing the 1980 Jane Fonda/ Dolly Parton/ Lily Tomlin revenge comedy 9 to 5, and it was the perfect choice for 2026. Each one of the five theater companies, all of whom have performed at the Fringe in the past and will do so again this year, did something that was so totally them. It was truly a delightful smorgasbord of theater performance. Keep reading for a brief summary of the companies and what they did, and mark your calendar for this year's festival August 6-16. You can even buy your passes now, and watch social media for announcements of shows and schedule. See you at the Fringe!

Minnesota Fringe Festival 2025: Wrap-Up and Favorites

The wonderful theatrical whirlwind that is the Minnesota Fringe Festival is over for another year, and I'm left with great memories of friends, fun, and theater, and also not a little exhaustion (I took an afternoon nap yesterday and then slept nine hours last night). I never cease to be amazed, impressed, and moved by the incredible talent in this festival, both local and touring artists. This year I saw 39 Fringe shows in 10 days, but technically I saw 42 shows within the 11 days of the festival, because I took the first day off to drive to Duluth and see Zeitgeist Theater's incredibly immersive and intimate production of my favorite musical RENT, and I took a few afternoons off to see a NEXT new works reading at Theater Latte Da and Artistry's fabulous production of the beloved classic Singin' in the Rain (continuing through August 31). But other than that, I saw a show in every timeslot that I could (not counting 10pm shows because #morningperson). And I did not see a bad show, in fact the majority of the shows I saw were excellent. Which makes narrowing my list of favorites down from 39 to something less than half of that a nearly impossible task. So here's a list of some (but not all) of the shows I loved at Minnesota Fringe this year. But Fringe is never really over; they continue activities and programming year-round, so be sure to follow them on social media and sign up for their email list (if you're not already). And most of the artists and companies in this festival do work all year round, so if you saw someone or something you really loved, check out what else they're doing this season. The 2025 Minnesota Fringe Festival is over, but #TCTheater never ends!

Minnesota Fringe Festival 2025: "The Temporary Tattoo Trio"

Day: 3

Show: 11

Title: The Temporary Tattoo Trio

Category: Comedy / Drama / Audience participation

By: an alleged Theatre Company

Written by: Jake Mierva & Danylo Loutchko

Location: Rarig Arena

Summary: Three best friends named Tyler have a temporary tattoo business, and things start to go awry when secrets are revealed.

Highlights: This is a simple premise that is brilliantly executed. We're just watching three friends put temporary tattoos on people for an hour while they talk about their friendship. If this sounds boring, it's not, it's very funny and engaging. The three Tylers (Danylo Loutchko, Jake Mierva, and J. McIntyre Godwin) are so committed to the bit that it feels like we're eavesdropping on one long conversation between actual friends. And all the while, they are actually applying temporary tattoos to audience members' arms, while continuing their conversation. Or even better, we sit in awkward silence while they fume and apply tattoos. And the Rarig Arena is the perfect (perhaps only) venue for this; the performance space becomes the entire theater into the rows of audience on either side of the stage, the Tylers sometimes taking a seat while they hold a wet washcloth on someone's arm for several minutes. Things get even more complicated with the arrival of the Tylers' friend Taylor (Sarah Halverson), their favorite lifeguard from their favorite place on earth - Wisconsin Dells. Will these secrets break up this bromance trio? We never really find out, but maybe friendships have to grow and evolve as we age, maybe we can't be applying temporary tattoos and going to Wisconsin Dells together forever. But it sure was fun while it lasted.

Read all of my Fringe mini-reviews here. 

"The Closing Night Audience Q&A for ROCCO'S CRIMES" by An Alleged Theatre Company at the Phoenix Theater

If you've been to a post-show discussion, aka talkback, aka Q&A, you know that sometimes they can be really great, and sometimes they can be painfully awkward. And sometimes even both at the same time! New theater company An Alleged Theatre Company plays with that idea in their original play The Closing Night Audience Q&A for ROCCO'S CRIMES. It's a clever conceit that allows them to poke loving fun at this theater thing that we all love so well, and maybe take too seriously sometimes. The cast is delightfully committed to the earnest silliness, showing off a bit of improv skills as well. See it at Phoenix Theater in Uptown this weekend or next weekend only (don't mind the unfinished entry way - it's open!).

Minnesota Fringe Festival 2021: "Open Your Eyes, Be Bully-wise!: An Anti-Bullying Spectacular"

Day: 4

Show: 9

Performance Type: In Person

Location: Phoenix Theater (indoors, masks required)

Length: 60 minutes

Title: Open Your Eyes, Be Bully-wise!

By: An Alleged Theatre Company 

Summary: An edutainment show about bullying, how to recognize it, and why you shouldn't be a bully.

Highlights: This is a ridiculous show, in the best way. Creators Jake Mierva, J. McIntyre Godwin, and Danylo Loutchko play characters with their same name, but hopefully are nothing like them. The show opens with a hilarious parody of YMCA, like an anti-bullying PSA. They then proceed to educate the audience about bullying, all while Jake and Mc are subtly, and then not so subtly, bullying Danylo. There is audience participation in the form of questions for the audience, confessions to Santa, and a beach ball Q&A about the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. There are skits and ads for their sponsor HERTZ, which they transform into a handy acronym about bullying, and more songs. It's a lot of silly fun, with the performers fully committing to the concept and these over-the-top characters (smoothly responding to audience prompts), culminating in an important lesson learned by all.     

Read all of my Fringe mini-reviews here.