Fringe Festival Reviews # 2
Fringe Park. Photo Rachel Levine
Tango, to the Pointe
I thought of leaving a one word review: Wow. But really this piece deserves a few more. Here are some that come to mind: Go see it. Don’t miss it. <3<3<3. This is a romantic dance piece with a 1920s vibe that brings together ballet and tango and the result is smoking hot. Every detail has been curated to perfection — the lights, the costumes, the hair, the music/spoken word. It’s flirty. It’s funny. It’s excellent. The two dancers, Erin Scott-Kafadar and Alexander Richardson, are so skilled that they make even technically challenging movements seem like fun. While watching, I kept thinking of the famous line “Ginger Rogers did everything Fred Astaire did, but backwards and in heels.” In this case… Scott-Kafadar does it in pointe shoes. Damn, girl, that strength, that training. But, make no mistake, Richardson is a perfect match for her. They smoulder together. Try and score a ticket if you can.
Tango, to the Pointe takes place on June 14 and 15 at the Monument National (1182 St Laurent Blvd). Tickets HERE.
Cosmic Origin
If I were to imagine the Fringe-iest show I could, Cosmic Origin could be it. Framed as a variety talk show for all interstellar cosmic beings, the audience is introduced to a multidimensional pollinator who will be sent into a human body in 2022. However, the human experience points to a life separate from the Source. Yuele Elijah and Ilana Shecter have a burlesque-style stage presence and have a great sense of timing as they dive into their new agey, campy-queer-undertoned characters. Expect witchy cosmic-consciousness, clever props, zingy lines, and a loose plot. I kind of think I saw a vulva face mask in there and everything seems like some sort of double entendre. It’s that kind of show.
Cosmic Origin is at the Monument National (1182 St Laurent Blvd) on June 15, 18, and 19 . Tickets HERE.
We Want to Know We Are Free
I love Italy, and relate easily to William Burr’s magical summer studying Italian in Perugia and Assisi with other international students. This soft storytelling show recounts moments that were transformative whether they are his first encounter with his Italian professor, seeing Giotto’s frescoes, or falling in love with a Franciscan monk. Burr sings (beautiful voice, by the way), prays, and opens up to the audience, not to mention, undresses, as he recounts events during his summer. There’s so much tenderness in the delivery, that afterwards you’ll want to flip through the pages of your own early adult diary and experience that wistful, Wes Anderson-esque nostalgia.
We Want to Know We Are Free is at the Monument National (1182 St Laurent Blvd) on June 15, 17, and 19. Tickets HERE.
St-Ambroise Montreal Fringe Festival is on now, with shows beginning on June 9 and continuing until June 19. For information about tickets and shows, click HERE.
