Fringe Festival 2016: "Happenstanced"

Day: 8

Show: 35

Title: Happenstanced

Category: Something Different

By: Pipermonkey

Written by: Allegra J. Lingo

Location: U of M Rarig Center Xperimental

Summary: A series of essays about parenthood by the Fringe's favorite "essayist."

Highlights: In 2014 Allegro did a show called The Genealogy of Happenstance about her and her wife's journey to parenthood. Fast forward two years, and Matilda is now 19 months old (and the cutest performer in the Fringe - she waves on cue, and can find her nose, hair, and belly button!). This is Allegra's first foray back into writing and performing after spending the last 19 months as a stay at home mom. The six essays read are funny, well-written, and insightful, with topics ranging from childbirth to Disney to how to answer inappropriate questions from strangers. Very human stories, told from the heart, with thoughtfulness about the world at large.

Warning: this show is a high sell-out risk so be sure to make reservations or get to the theater early.

Fringe Festival: "The Genealogy of Happenstance"

Day: 4

Show: 16

Title: The Genealogy of Happenstance

Category: Something different

By: The Peanut Butter Factory

Created by: Allegra Lingo

Location: Rarig Center Arena

Summary: Fringe fave Allegra Lingo shares her unconventional journey to motherhood.

Highlights: This is a moving and compelling story. While it's a bit academic (not surprising since it was adapted from Allegra's dissertation), I did get caught up in the story and hoped for a happy ending. Allegra and her wife Amy made the decision to start a family a few years ago, with Amy as "the optimum womb" because of Allegra's health history. She shares personal stories from various points along the journey, some funny, some touching, some sad. She also relates this journey to stories from her past, including her fear of flying and surgeries for scoliosis. The Genealogy of Happenstance is a moving, funny, relatable, personal story well-told by the person who lived, or rather is living, it.

Fringe Festival 2012: A Comedy of Edits

Day: 3

Show: 10

Title: A Comedy of Edits

By: Callahan and Lingo

Written by: Allegra Lingo

Location: Rarig Arena

Summary: In a sort of play-within-a-play, what starts off as two writers in a storytelling competition becomes the performance of one writer's play about the process of writing. She's suffering from writer's block, and through a discussion/debate with her friend, is able to find her voice again.

Highlights: A lot of Fringe shows are sort of low-brow, silly humor (not that there's anything wrong with that), but this is not one of those shows. It's refreshingly intelligent and will keep your mind spinning as you try to keep up with the debate. Allegra is a Fringe regular, but this is my first time seeing her work. She's a wonderful writer, and Taylor ably and adorably shares those words with the audience as he spars with her.

Read more of my fringe fest reflections...