Minnesota Fringe Festival 2018: "The Womyn's Mysteries"

Day: 3

Show: 8

Title: The Womyn's Mysteries

Category: Drama / Physical Theater / Storytelling

By: See-Saw Theater Lab

Directed by: Chava Curland

Location: Minnsky Theatre

Summary: An ensemble created piece telling the stories of the women in the Bible.

Highlights: Using music, movement, scarves, and stories, this diverse and talented 8-womyn ensemble (Erika Kunk, Gina Sauer, Jex Arzayus, Jody Bee, Kate Kennedy, Katherine Engel, Samantha Joy Singh, and Vinecia Coleman) tells stories from the Bible you may have heard before, but not quite like this. The piece is arranged in four parts (the beginning, matriarchs, warriors, and lovers or harlots), and the ensemble members take turns narrating and acting out scenes. They make these ancient women seem modern and relatable. There's also a bit of fourth-wall breaking, when someone will call cut in a questionable scene and the cast will proceed to discuss the story they're telling. There are also scenes in which they truthfully speak their own personal fears and wants. It's a beautiful thing to see a group of womyn on stage supporting each other in telling their stories and the stories of womyn in history and mythology, and how that history and mythology has shaped where we are today. A timely and timeless piece.

Read all of my Fringe mini-reviews here.

"The Basset Table" by Persistent Theatre Productions at Dreamland Arts

Welcome to the Renaissance! The day after seeing the hilarious fictional farce about (all male) playwrights in Shakespeare's day, I saw an actual play written by a female playwright of the era. Who knew that there was a successful female playwright who lived and wrote shortly after Shakespeare's time? I didn't. Susanna Centlivre was one of the first women in history to make a living as a playwright, and was also an actor in the era just after women were allowed on stage in England. With the current necessary focus on putting more women's stories on stage, it's a great idea to revisit female playwrights of the past who have been largely forgotten. Thanks to Persistent Theatre Productions, a new #TCTheater company with a "feminist voice," for bringing us one of Centlivre's works.

Fringe Festival 2016: "Mother's Milk"

Day: 7

Show: 31

Title: Mother's Milk

Category: Something Different

By: Inner Voice

Created by: Katherine Engel

Location: U of M Rarig Center Xperimental

Summary: A series of short vignettes about mothers, including storytelling, scenes, and songs.

Highlights: This feels like a companion piece to The Abortion Chronicles, which tells women's real-life stories about abortion. But in this case, the focus is on the women who chose to become mothers, and the children who remember and honor them. Some pieces were written by the cast (Jody Bee, Chari Eckmann, Shea Roberts, Delinda "Oogie" Pushetonequa, and Katherine Engel), some are from other sources, all are performed with great emotion. Most of the singing takes the form of chanting and feels ancient, as do these specific and universal stories. Mother's Milk is moving and beautiful way to honor our mothers, and will most likely strike a chord with anyone who sees it.