Minnesota Fringe Festival 2018: "Right, Wrong or Bomb! A Dating Musical"

Day: 5

Show: 17

Title: Right, Wrong or Bomb! A Dating Musical

Category: Comedy / Dance / Musical Theater

By: Backyard to Broadway Productions

Created by: Rosie Sauvageu Nestingen, Shannon McDonald, and Brittany Shrimpton

Location: Mixed Blood Theatre

Summary: An original musical about life and dating in the social media age.

Highlights: I saw this musical when it premiered a few years ago, and while I thought it had promise, I did have a few issues with it. The main character (Jill) seemed to be only focused on finding a man. But for whatever reason, I enjoyed it much more this time around. About the premiere I wrote: "It feels like a small-scale musical, in a good way, and with a little trimming would work great as a short and sweet 90-minute-no-intermission show." Creators Rosie Sauvageu Nestingen (music and lyrics) and Shannon McDonald and Brittany Shrimpton (book) have done just that, only 60 minutes. Maybe it was being forced to make cuts, or the fact that director of both versions Shanan Custer also co-wrote Not Fair, My Lady! which takes a very real look at women in musical theater, but this version feels more like a focus on Jill and all her relationships, including her female friends and her mother (who in this version is less of an unpleasant stereotype of a "cougar"), and a study of not just relationships but life in the social media age. The cast (Anna Larranaga, Delanie Wiedrich, Per Nestingen, Rachel Austin, Teri Parker Brown, and Thomas Matthes) is all new and all great, the songs are fun and clever, and there are a few cute winks at the audience. Sometimes less is more, and editing makes things better. This version of A Dating Musical seems fresh, tight, funny, relatable, and just right.

Read all of my Fringe mini-reviews here.

"Side Show" by Chameleon Theatre Circle at Ames Center

The 1997 Broadway musical Side Show is a bit of a cult hit among musical theater nerds, although it closed after just 91 performances in its original run. I saw it at Park Square Theatre, but it was 15 years ago so I remember next to nothing about it, other than it's based on the true story of conjoined twins and vaudeville stars Daisy and Violet Hilton. I was eager to see it again, so it was the perfect opportunity for my first visit to Chameleon Theatre Circle way down south in Burnsville. It's a fascinating and tragic story of fame and abuse, but the musical's creators Bill Russell (book and lyrics) and Henry Krieger (music) have turned it into one of true sisterhood, perseverance, and acceptance of oneself. I very much enjoyed Chameleon's production, which brings out all the weirdness as well as the heart of the story.

"Shrek: The Musical" at Lyric Arts

"Fairy tales should really be updated." So sings Shrek in the 2008 musical adaptation of the smash hit 2001 movie. And that's exactly what the creators of the movie and the musical (playwright David Lindsay-Abaire, who also wrote Rabbit Hole, Good People, and Fuddy Meers, and composer Jeanine Tesori, who is also responsible for one of my favorite musicals Violet, opening soon at Yellow Tree Theatre) have done. Lyric Arts' joyful and colorful new production is my third go-round with Shrek: The Musical, for which I have much affection despite it being a blockbuster movie adaptation. The musical retains and builds on the funny, clever, irreverent tone of the movie, adding a diverse collection of songs. This updated fairy tale for the modern age is well done by Lyric Arts with a fantastic cast, bright and colorful set and costume design, and a joyfully irreverent spirit.

"The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee" at Lyric Arts

Middle school (or junior high as they called it in my town) is the worst. You're not a kid anymore, but not really a teenager yet, and you're just trying to figure out who you are and where you fit in the world while everything is changing at rapid speed. But that's what makes it such deliciously awkward fodder for a musical! A 2005 Tony-winner for best book, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee brilliantly illustrates the humor, trauma, elation, and devastation that comes with a middle school spelling bee. This quirky little musical is a great choice for Lyric Arts, and they've created a sweet and funny production with a solid cast.