Minnesota Fringe Festival 2018: "Deep in The 100 Acre Woods: A "Pooh"-dunnit?"

Day: 3

Show: 9

Title: Deep in The 100 Acre Woods: A "Pooh"-dunnit?

Category: Comedy / Drama / Mystery

By: Fearless Comedy Productions

Directed by: Becci Schmidt

Location: Minnsky Theatre

Summary: A noir murder mystery featuring the characters from Winnie the Pooh as people, and Pooh as the victim.

Highlights: In this version of the story, the silly old bear is a gangster, womanizer, and club owner who doesn't treat his employees very well (played by James Fairbairn). When he's found dead on the stairs of his club The Honey Pot, Detective Christopher Robin (Joseph Facente) comes in to interrogate all Pooh's employees and figure out Pooh-dunnit. It's a very clever promise and so fun to see these beloved characters as people, retaining their characteristics, and the cast does a great job of bringing out character specificities. We have club singer and Pooh's girlfriend Eeyore (Lana Rosario), her piano accompanist Owl (Ian Welch), Tigger (Mike Hanson) - the bounce-er, bartender Rabbit (Gregory Parks), nervous stuttering Piglet (Mickaylee Shaughnessy), and mama Kanga (Lauren Haven) and her young adult son Roo (Nathan Kelly) who wants to know who his father is. Det. Robin questions each one in turn, with flashback scenes filling in the story. It seems everyone had a reason to hate Pooh (hate Winnie the Pooh, can you imagine?!), so when we eventually find out the culprit it really doesn't matter. The fun comes in watching these familiar childhood characters juxtaposed against this familiar noir mystery storytelling style where they really don't belong. Very fringey indeed.

Read all of my Fringe mini-reviews here.

Fringe Festival 2017: "RomCom-Con: A Meet-Cute Musical"

Day: 8

Show: 33

Title: RomCom-Con: A Meet-Cute Musical

Category: Musical

By: August Moon Productions

Created by: Kyle DeGoey

Location: Ritz Theater Mainstage

Summary: After bad break ups, two people meet-cute at a convention for fans of romantic comedies.

Highlights: This meet-cute musical is super cute. Book writers Nathan Kelly and Kerri O'Halloran have filled the show with rom com references old and new. The show pays homage to the genre that is loved by so many, including our meet-cute couple Will (Aaron Cook) and Samantha (Erin Kennedy), while turning some of the tired tropes on their head. When Will jumps in to defend Sam to her ex Brock (Edd Jones), who comes to the rom com dressed as his favorite rom com character Severus Snape, she protests that they've only just met and she doesn't need him to defend her. And then goes on to explain that true love doesn't happen in an instant, but builds with time and hard work. The super charming and appealing cast also includes Hannah Parish as a rom com guru/fairy godmother, and Nimene Sierra Wureh and Drew Tennenbaum as the best friends who have a meet-cute of their own, even though we're told "true love is for main characters only." Kyle DeGoey (music and lyrics) has once again written a clever, fun, and genre-specific Fringe musical (see also Oregon Trail and Gilligan).

Read all of my Fringe mini-reviews here.