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This Page Was Most Recently Updated: Thursday, December 2nd 2010
72 shows rated & ranked, 31 reviewed
For the best comedy shows tonight—and every night year-round—please visit this site's home page at HyReviews.com, which is updated daily.
Covering the 14th Annual FringeNYC, Which Ran August 13th-29th;
and the FringeNYC 2010 Encore Series, Which Ran September 9th-26th
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Please click the links below to jump directly to what you're after:
Introduction to FringeNYC 2010
Best Video Promos & Sneak Peeks
Previous Fringe Currently Playing Off-Broadway
Shows That Sold Out Performances
Shows That Received Added Performances
HyReviews.com Insider Freebies & Discounts
Other Sites:
FringeNYC 2010 Coverage, Page 1
Copyright © 2010 Hy Bender
Email: hy@hyreviews.com
I assign all reviewed shows one to four stars, using the following rating system:
**** = Transcendently Great
*** = Solid & Worth Seeing
** = Unless Your Relatives Are in the Cast, Think Twice
* = "I Wanted to Kill Myself"
Each review includes a show's Web site address and a representative photo. Clicking the address will open a new browser window taking you to the show's official site. Clicking the photo will open a new browser window taking you to the show's listing on the FringeNYC site. You can use the latter to read the official description of the show, and see when and where it was playing during the festival.
Please keep in mind these reviews had to be written in a hurry. If you spot any factual errors, please don't hesitate to let me know by emailing hy@hyreviews.com. I'm always happy to make corrections and updates.
16. The Hurricane Katrina Comedy Festival
Rating: *** |
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The true-life stories of five New Orleans residents, in their own words, form the basis of this show describing varied experiences of surviving Hurricane Katrina. Some of the material is what you'd expect: tales of water rising shockingly fast, looting, initial incompetence from the authorities. But what makes this work are the small human moments. For example, here's a woman trying to take care of her 15-year-old developmentally challenged granddaughter:
She was starting to get a little panicky. I was worried too, but I couldn't express it to her—because she's special, you know? So I kept her mind occupied. We played bingo; I taught her how to take a bath with just one bottle of water; things like that. And then she said to me, "Grandmother, what are we going to do to flush the toilet?" I said, "You know what? We're going to tie a sheet onto that bucket, we're gonna dip it down into the water out there and put the water into the toilet tank."
Later she said to me, "Grandmother, I sure would like to have the meatballs and spaghetti in the can. But we don't have any way to heat them up." Then she laid down and took a little nap. Well, it was awful hot outside. So I quietly opened that can, put the spaghetti and meatballs on a plate, and put it out in the sun. When she got up I said, "You ready to eat somethin'?" She said, "Yes. I guess I'll eat peanut butter and crackers." I said, "No, we got spaghetti and meatballs." She shook her head. "But they cold!" I gave her the plate and said, "No, they warm!" She tasted them. 'How...how did you do that, grandma?" I shrugged. "Just magic, I guess." She sure did enjoy eating those spaghetti and meatballs.
Scenes like this are magic indeed—and particularly when delivered by the show's stellar ensemble cast of Gary Cowling, Evander Duck, Philip Hoffman, Lizann Mitchell, and Maureen Silliman. Additional kudos go to brilliant director Dann Fink (who also helmed my second favorite show of this year's festival, Saving Throw Versus Love).
My main quibble is that the script should include more moments like the above and fewer that fail to significantly add to our understanding of the catastrophe's human dimensions; and I'm hoping this is addressed via further editing over time. But there's enough greatness as is to make this show worth experiencing.
Finally, as an aside, I want to thank whoever at FringeNYC scheduled both THKCF and its other memorable Katrina show, 23 Feet in 12 Minutes: The Death and Rebirth of New Orleans, so they could be seen as a double-bill on its final day...which just happened to be the date of Katrina's fifth anniversary. It was an amazing way to close out this year's festival—which was the very best in FringeNYC's history.
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Rating: *** |
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When it's bad enough, there's little as hilarious as amateur theatre.
This eternal truth is embraced by Jim David, a veteran stand-up comic (Comedy Central Presents, Last Comic Standing) who also has a passion for plays. In this one-man show David imagines a community production of A Streetcar Named Desire with performers who aren't quite up to the task. For example, the actress portraying Blanche starts off a rehearsal like this:
I have always depended on the kindness of...line?
And the director later remarks:
I have to hand it to you. I've never seen the rape scene with Blanche on top.
Not all the jokes hit the bullseye so effectively; but there's enough of a barrage of funny lines to keep most audience members laughing throughout.
Plus it's fun to see David play all the characters—a total of 11, including himself.
If you enjoy this show, by the way, I also highly recommend reading the book The Art of Coarse Acting by Michael Green. Some samples:
One of the infallible signs that Coarse Drama is going on is the fact that the traditional roles of actor and audience are reversed. The actor is being himself while the audience are playing a part, heavily pretending to enjoy the show, struggling to laugh at unfunny jokes and so on. Watching a bad amateur show can be more exhausting than three hours on stage.
In Coarse Acting there is no compromise. One is young or senile, fit or crippled. The younger an actor is, the older and more decrepit he tries to be. I have seen shows with entire armies of limping men.
Try to learn the technique of merely glancing at the lines surreptitiously. It looks rather odd if a messenger addresses his speech to the end of his own spear instead of to the King. In the incident to which I am referring some of the King's lines were, by arrangement, also on the end of the same spear, and the two of them fought over it, sawing backwards and forwards between them in a most untheatrical fashion.
Storms and effects generally often cause trouble in the lighting department, not so much because they go wrong (which is to be expected) but because the lighting section cannot stand competition. If there is a lighting and a sound effect going on at the same time a macabre race may develop. There was a production of Andre Obey's Noah where a little gentle thunder and rain, together with spasmodic lightning, were called for. It all started well enough, with occasional rumbles in the background, and the odd flash, but gradually the audience became aware that the rumbles were growing in intensity and as they did so the lightning flashes grew more frequent and spectacular. Finally nothing could be heard or seen in the theatre but booming thunder-claps and blinding lights.
Beware of the evil-minded actor who forgets his own lines and throws the blame on the person opposite, usually by asking some question that isn't in the script. An old pro I knew used to have a stock speech ready for this emergency. If it was a Shakespeare play, he would stare the offender in the eye and say firmly, "Thou weariest me. Unto my chamber shall I now retire And rest me on my couch a little hour. Farewell, until we meet again, farewell." He would then exit, light a cigarette in the wings, and watch his victim trying to get out of that one.
Anyway, see South Pathetic—a show about amateur theatre from a show biz pro.
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Rating: *** |
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This musical was developed through The Magnet, which is one of the finest comedy schools in NYC. I therefore expected the music to be so-so, but the story & jokes top-notch.
Ironically, the opposite happened. The songs in this show are consistently clever, well-crafted, and addictive; chances are you'll want to hear them over and over. They're the core strength of the show—and arguably the best group of songs of a musical in the festival (winning composer Christopher Pappas and lyricist Justin Moran a FringeNYC Award).
Conversely, the book isn't nearly as good as it ought to be. It starts out well. But from the point where the Pope gets into trouble, the characters become overly cartoonish and flat, with zero arcs; the story repeatedly crosses the line from cutely silly to flat-out dumb; and there's a long lag in the middle where not much happens—beyond, again, great music & lyrics...
If the book is rewritten from scratch, this show has real commercial potential.
Meanwhile, come and enjoy the songs; and the energetic and adorable actor/singers who bring them to life. As long as you don't expect much of a story, you'll probably have a great time. (I may actually go see it again with precisely that attitude...)
19. Jurassic Parq: The Broadway Musical
Rating: *** |
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Smart. Funny. Inventive. And exploding with energy.
Highlights are the sexual confusion; the mime; Morgan Freeman; and the realization that we're all dinosaurs.
Don't ask. Just go see it.
To my eye, JP:TBM and Pope! are this year's FringeNYC musicals with the greatest commercial potential.
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Rating: *** |
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Bunked! caught my attention before the festival even began by posting songs I adored on its Web site. (You can find a bunch of them scattered throughout the Best Video Promos & Sneak Peeks section; my favorite is Trust.) So I've got no quarrel with the musical aspects of this production.
The key problem is that it's set in a summer camp, and both its title and set revolve around that theme; but the story doesn't. The latter instead consists of a dopey competition between a girl and her gay brother for the attentions of a bisexual guy; and another girl who falls for a guy who then pushes her away because he has (wait for it) "a heart condition."
My gut feeling is that a lot of passion went into the songwriting. But none of that emotion and creativity is evident in the storytelling; and so it becomes increasingly impossible to care about the characters and situations, making the non-singing segments a snooze.
That said, the cast is attractive and talented—especially Amanda Jane Cooper (above), who is a bright light throughout. Cooper plays the sister who always does the right thing, so effectively is the "straight man" in the production. But this singer/dancer/actress radiates so much energy and comedic attitude that she steals every scene she's in.
Bottom line: If you can hold your nose at the dumb book, come for the songs and the enthusiastic young performers...and especially Cooper as a vibrant triple-threat with a promising future.
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Rating: *** |
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Cartoonish, absurd, and bursting with ideas, this comedy/musical borrows from such sources as Rocky Horror and Monty Python to create a way silly but fun romp about revolution in Western Massachusetts. Along the way you'll encounter super-heated marshmallows, Don Knotts, a rock band called The Pickles that dons capes to fight for justice, and a parliament of killer owls. (In fact, if you leave with only one thing from this show, it should be the phrase "Owl him!")
Viva Los Bastarditos! had a reputation during the festival of being a top pick among performers of other Fringe shows because of its wild, anarchic energy. Turns out it was popular with everyone who saw it—it won this year's FringeNYC Audience Favorite Award.
If you're seeking well-structured, linear storytelling and uniformly great songs, this might not be your cup of tea.
But if you're open to a show designed to feel like it was written during a drunken party, come and meet the owls.
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Rating: *** |
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Heavily influenced by Tony Kushner's Angels in America, this 90-minute drama begins with spectacular writing:
Before we were human, we were birds. We were magnificent. We were born with wings, like angels, before America. Wings the length of my outstretched arms from fingertip to fingertip. Wings the length of infinite joy, of unconditional love.
Before America, when we had wings like angels, we lived with one foot on the ground and the other in the clouds. With our wings we traversed the spaces between space and time like they were nothing. Like we were born to it. Because, in fact, we were born with angel wings, before America. Knowing peace. Knowing how to fly.
But we took them for granted, our wings. We began to believe that they would always be, because they had always been. And so we woke one morning to find that they were no more. Instead of wings we found arms and hands and fingers. And our feathers, hundreds of thousands of long, white, beautiful—but ultimately useless—feathers lie scattered.
And so we learned to walk. And we learned to fear, and doubt. Because we were no longer sure of ourselves, of our place, of our inherent magnificence. We lost faith.
Yes, we still fly—with the help of pulleys and wires and harnesses and wings of steel. Technicians, so-called flight specialists, pull strings and we—eyes closed, fingers crossed, ignorant of our heritage—rise up into the air whispering prayers to God: "Oh please, don't drop me!" A flight of this kind—choreographed, mechanical, featherless—is a poor substitute for what we once knew. For what we once were.
Before we were human, we were birds. And we were free.
Reclaim your wings. Reclaim your wings...
Wow.
If this level of poetry was maintained, When Last We Flew would be a theatrical event.
Instead, though, it gradually devolves into tales of teen angst. A young man is struggling with being gay; a young woman with being African-American. While the stories start out strong, we quickly get their points; and after that the play becomes too repetitive and predictable.
The intentions here are certainly good ones; and the powerful opening demonstrates considerable talent. What's probably needed at this point is a tough editor, and/or multiple workshopped rewrites, to make the script tighter, deeper, and more surprising.
That said, if you're a patient soul, this is worth seeing as is for the solid first 30 minutes, and the various other parts that work.
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Rating: **½ |
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I've had friendly arguments about which show at the festival was the best this year, but there's little doubt about which was the most over-hyped. It's the one that sold out all tickets before the festival even began (and before anyone could see it...); and that has a title which ironically means truth.
Veritas has a terrific story hook; it's about an actual period in the 1920s when Harvard University went on a witch-hunt for students engaging in homosexual behavior.
The 9-man cast is vibrant, talented, and compelling, and they deservedly nabbed one of the FringeNYC Awards for Best Ensemble. There are also some fine dramatic moments scattered through the play, including a (mostly) strong ending.
That said, large portions of the script are a pretentious mess. And so are a number of the directorial flourishes (e.g., see photo above).
Plus the last two lines of the play undermine everything by essentially saying "Could be I got the historical facts wrong; but geez, research is hard..."
There is a great deal of potential here—including the possibility of a feature film—but only if the show is handled with humility and sensitivity.
It's therefore worrisome that the producers reportedly blew off the chance to participate in the Encore Series and receive much-needed feedback in favor of moving forward with a commercial run ASAP.
At any rate, if you didn't get to see this during the fest, don't sweat it. While the mix of great and dreadful elements was interesting, overall there were much better shows to catch—including The Twentieth-Century Way, which also deals with a historical witch-hunt for gays circa 1920, but via smarter and more disciplined writing and direction. (And, happily, The Twentieth-Century Way has opted to be part of the Encore Series...)
24. How My Mother Died of Cancer and Other Bedtime Stories
Rating: **½ |
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Honestly, if I were to choose a FringeNYC 2010 comedy about a mother dying of cancer for the Encore Series, I would've selected Lauren Olson's sharply observant, witty, and brilliantly performed Our Condolences (for my review, please click here). Olson clearly gave herself the time to process her feelings and experiences, and then turned them into honed art.
In contrast, How My Mother Died of Cancer... comes across as a product of feelings that are still very raw. That's not because it yells at us, but because it uses so many distancing devices that the effect is a kind of muffled scream.
For example, the play isn't about the author—whose real-life mother really did pass away from cancer—but about a young woman with the same loss. However, among the first things the character tells us is that she wrote the script of the show and submitted it to the Fringe Festival. She also tells us that her actual friends and family are playing the parts—except she doesn't exist, so her friends and family are all characters too. And yet they continually argue about the script, and about who's getting more stage time...
The most pronounced distancing effect is making this into a "comedy"—via a cancer dance (see photo above), a board game version of metastasis, a Wheel of Fortune-themed cancer show (within a show, within a show), and so on. This is contrasted with scenes in which family members—particularly the young woman and her father—periodically intrude into the farce with somber emotions, such as misdirected anger.
What results is a severe awkwardness between the play's characters—and ultimately, albeit less intentionally, between the show and the audience. (For example, early on we're told—via hackneyed song and dance—that if any of us find the play's approach in bad taste, we should leave because "it turns out that you're no fun.")
In some ways the awkwardness is the play's greatest strength, as it conveys the colliding emotions of someone abruptly struck with a life-altering tragedy. But it's also the main problem, because the story never really moves beyond it; and over the course of 90 minutes, it becomes awfully repetitive.
What helps make the passive-aggressiveness go down easier is the cast. Elizabeth Romanski as the young woman and Mike Boland as her dad are especially strong, and it's their work that anchors a play that at times threatens to fly apart from its artifice. Dylan Kammerer, Josh Hemphill, and Jim deProphetis as friends and family are also immensely likeable.
I can't quite recommend this show. But it's different, and very Fringe; and you may find that reason enough to give it a look.
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Rating: **½ |
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The most interesting aspect of this drama is the process that brought it to life.
First, it's reportedly based on something that really happened to a couple who are friends with the playwright. (I won't give away the surprise, but you might not find it all that shocking if you attend a lot of theatre...)
Second, it was developed through an organic process in which the actors improvised scenes that the playwright then cherry-picked and honed. As someone who regularly covers both worlds, I'm always fascinated by attempts to meld improv with scripted work.
In this play, the clear positive results were smart, believable dialogue; and a variety of nicely unexpected small moments.
At the same time, the clear victims of the process were well-executed plotting, structuring, pacing, and overall storytelling. Without these elements, the play lacks genuine weight and an emotionally satisfying ending. It also lacks characters we can believe in and care about—which means key scenes of pain come off as artifice that push us away instead of drawing us in. (For example, the guy next to me got laughs when after the conclusion he wryly commented, "Hey, same deal with my parents, and I turned out okay.")
So if you're looking to be entertained and experience catharsis, I can't recommend this.
That said, if you're a writer or performer, you might want to check out this creative experiment. Sometimes a heartfelt misfire can be more informative than an unambitious success.
26. Getting Even with Shakespeare
gettingevenwithshakespeare.com
Rating: **½ |
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Among the reasons Shakespeare is great are that he created complex, unforgettable characters; employed rich imagery and brilliant language; crafted tales that kept us on the edge of our seats; and made us feel deeply.
None of those qualities can be found in Getting Even with Shakespeare, which approaches the Bard's work on the most surface of levels.
This nerdy take on Shakes imagines that Hamlet, Macbeth, Lear, and Romeo & Juliet are being kept alive by the continual staging of their plays; and that they're furious at their maker because of the horrific ends they must experience, over and over, via each performance. The real-life author of this play—who places himself in it as one of its characters—then tries to help them by writing a revenge play targeted at the Bard.
While Shakespeare at his best wrote from the heart and guts, the writing here is very much from the head. As a result the laughs are mostly mild, and the emotional impact almost nil. For example, here's one of the more interesting bits, in which Matt the playwright describes his creation:
Matt: The play is a meditation on what would have happened had Beckett, a notoriously closed off individual, maintained a close relationship with the father of existentialism, Jean-Paul Sartre, and the two discussed Shakespeare in a French cafe.
Macbeth: So am I Beckett or Sartre?
Matt: Neither.
Macbeth: Then who am I?
Matt: Now you're getting it.
Macbeth: This is crap.
Matt: I have to disagree. Sure, I mean there is the whole "Last Tape" concept. But really it's more like Endgame or Godot.
Macbeth: You talentless little shit.
King Lear: Now, Macbeth, aren't you being a little harsh?
Macbeth: No.
The truth is actually somewhere in the middle. There are sporadic interesting ideas scattered amidst the 90 minutes, and a few fun moments—e.g., a genuine highlight is an actress warding off the potential curse of someone uttering the name Macbeth by spinning around three times while shouting "FUCK! SHIT! FUCK!" and then spitting over her shoulder (and as you might imagine, this happens more than once...). If you're a fan of Shakespeare, though, this play may well irritate more than entertain.
To be clear, I love spins on Shakespeare done right. In fact, my favorite improv troupe in the world is the Improvised Shakespeare Company, which makes up Shakespeare-style plays on the spot with absolute genius and hilarity. The group is based in Chicago but visits NYC periodically; you can keep an eye out for such appearances by regularly visiting my comedy site HyReviews.com.
And for a more serious takeoff on the Bard, consider picking up two volumes of Neil Gaiman's epic The Sandman graphic novels. The third in the set, Dream Country, imagines what Shakespeare's life was like when at the height of his powers, and how he related to his children; and the final tale, in volume 10's The Wake, explores Shakespeare's creative process. In-depth interviews with Gaiman about all the tales can be found in The Sandman Companion, a bestselling book I can highly recommend (because I wrote it...).
As for Getting Even with Shakespeare, if you're still curious about it, go see it. But know there are much better modern works you can find springboarding off the Bard.
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Rating: ** |
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This play about secretaries who let off steam by killing male lumberjacks was a special event when first produced in 1994. In 2010, though, the story feels old-fashioned. At minimum, the script should've been updated to make it relevant to what's happening right now in the worlds of both labor and sexual politics.
And even more fatal is that the very capable ensemble cast is largely wasted by direction that fails to hit the right comedic, sexual, and horror notes. The result is a show that feels more angry about oppression than joyful about rebellion, and so isn't sufficiently life-affirming and cathartic.
There are interesting ideas here, and talent on the stage; but laughs and thrills occur too infrequently to make an appointment with this version of The Secretaries.
28. Amsterdam Abortion Survivor
Rating: ** |
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New York is the most competitive city for stand-up comedy in the world. I've repeatedly seen comics from LA, Canada, the UK, etc. who think they're God's gift to laughter appear on a New York stage and receive a rude reality check. The issue isn't lack of talent, but of raising one's game to meet the standards of razor-sharp NYC audiences who've heard it all, and who can "get" a joke in a microsecond.
So with a city crammed with incredibly funny stand-ups performing every night, and often for free—and who are listed on my daily-updated site HyReviews.com, which is a sort of TV Guide for NYC comedy—it's unclear what the Fringe was thinking by importing someone from Amsterdam to essentially do a stand-up act.
Micha Wertheim is a very likeable comic, and he has a sharp and playful mind. If Wertheim regularly performed in NYC and absorbed its comedy vibe for a year or two, I expect he'd develop into a formidable comedic force here.
Regarding his current material, though, there were sporadic points when it made me laugh; but mostly, not. To my ear, it was simply geared to a less sophisticated crowd. (For example, one of Wertheim's better bits involved believing store signs saying "Free Wifi" were pleas for the release of a political prisoner with an odd name...)
That said, Wertheim is such a warm and personable comic that you may care to experience his style; and to get a taste of what makes folks laugh in laid-back Amsterdam.
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Rating: ** |
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This play begins by turning all the lights out. In the midst of the darkness, we begin to hear a man move around the seats; and audience members he comes sufficiently close to realize that he's virtually naked.
It's a thrilling and sexy start that lasts over two minutes.
But it's all downhill from there.
Once the lights come on, he spends the rest of the show trying to verbally convince a second guy to have sex with him—while continually exposing his upper body. We aren't given much reason to care deeply about either character, or about whether or not they do it. (And there isn't even much tension, because it seems a foregone conclusion how things are going to end...) So the 75-minute show mostly comes across as very, very extended foreplay; and Over and Over became a brutally accurate description of my perspective on the banter.
That noted, maybe I'm missing something. This show sold out its entire run; and it'll be extended via the Encore Series.
So if you're curious, check it out. (Just don't say you haven't been warned...)
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Rating: * |
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This musical set in a 90-minute group therapy session progresses from kinda dumb to monumentally stupid to "I want to rip my head off."
It's not the fault of the performers. For example, lead actress Miriam White is quite appealing. And by far the best part of the show is the graceful piano playing throughout from musical director Tom Brady.
But the jaw-droppingly inept book and lyrics make this production unsalvageable. If you stick through the whole thing, you may need several therapy sessions of your own to recover from it.
31. Marilyn Monroe: Wouldn't It Be Fascinating
erikzambrano.com/upcoming.html
Rating: * |
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From the Web site's single grainy image (above) to the typos in the program book to my request for a press kit receiving the response, "What, for this show?!", there were signs all was not well.
According to the production's description, we're to "follow baseball great Joe DiMaggio and glamorous Marilyn Monroe through a Butoh and Noh influenced sound and video dreamscape as they fall out of love and pursue their own dream-lovers while on honeymoon in Tokyo."
What we get are deliberately blurry images projected on a large screen while four badly-directed actors occasionally say a few lines that added up to no story or emotionally evocative vision I could discern.
The early days of FringeNYC were filled with shows like this—to the point where it was sometimes a sort of thrilling revelation that humans were capable of creating productions that bad. So, for me, this had a certain nostalgic value.
Beyond that, though, the answer to the title's question is no, it wouldn't.
FringeNYC 2010 Encore Series
This year's spectacular FringeNYC festival concluded on August 29th, but that's not the end of a number of its shows.
There were quite a few productions worthy of going on to commercial runs, and it's a sure bet at least some of them will.
And more immediately, 21 FringeNYC shows have been extended to run September 9th-26th, with the performances taking place at the West Village's Lucille Lortel Theatre, The Players Theatre, and the Soho Playhouse's Huron Club.
Organized by venue, the FringeNYC 2010 Encore Series shows, their showtimes, and their running times are as follows:
115 MacDougal Street (between West 3rd and Bleecker Streets)
Closest subways are the A/B/C/D/E/F to West 4th Street or #1 to Christopher Street
• Getting Even With Shakespeare : Tuesday 9/21 at 8:00 pm; Friday 9/24 at 9:00 pm; Saturday 9/25 at 7:30 pm; and Sunday 9/26 at 4:00 pm. Running time is 1 hour and 30 minutes. For a video teaser, please click here. For my review, please click here.
• Hearts Full of Blood : Thursday 9/9 at 9:30 pm; Friday 9/10 at 7:00; Sunday 9/12 at 3:00 pm; and Tuesday 9/14 at 8:00 pm. Running time is 2 hours. For my review, please click here.
• How My Mother Died of Cancer and Other Bedtime Stories : Thursday 9/9 at 7:00 pm; Saturday 9/11 at 7:00 pm; Sunday 9/12 at 8:00 pm; and Monday 9/13 at 8:00 pm. Running time is 1 hour and 30 minutes. For a video description from the author, please click here. For my review, please click here.
• Over and Over: Saturday 9/18 at 8:00 pm; Wednesday 9/22 at 9:30 pm; Friday 9/24 at 7:00 pm; and Saturday 9/25 at 5:00 pm. Running time is 1 hour and 15 minutes. For my review, please click here.
• PigPen Presents: The Nightmare Story : Friday 9/10 at 9:30; Saturday 9/11 at 5:00 pm and 9:30 pm; and Sunday 9/12 at 6:00 pm. Running time is 45 minutes. For a video teaser, please click here. For my review, please click here.
• Running: Thursday 9/16 at 7:00 pm; Saturday 9/18 at 2:00 pm; Sunday 9/19 at 5:30 pm; and Monday 9/20 at 7:00 pm. Running time (no pun intended) is 1 hour and 30 minutes.
• Saving Throw Versus Love : Monday 9/20 at 9:30 pm; Wednesday 9/22 at 7:00 pm; Saturday 9/25 at 9:30 pm; and Sunday 9/26 at 7:00 pm. Running time is 1 hour and 40 minutes. For my review, please click here.
• South Pathetic: Wednesday 9/15 at 8:00 pm; Friday 9/17 at 9:30; Saturday 9/18 at 10:00; and Sunday 9/19 at 3:00 pm. Running time is 1 hour and 15 minutes. For a video sampler, please click here. For my review, please click here.
• The Twentieth-Century Way: Thursday 9/16 at 9:30 pm; Friday 9/17 at 7:00 pm; Saturday 9/18 at 5:00 pm; and Sunday 9/19 at 8:00 pm. Running time is 1 hour and 40 minutes. For my review, please click here.
121 Christopher Street (between Bedford and Bleecker Streets)
Closest subways are the #1 to Christopher Street or A/B/C/D/E/F to West 4th Street
• Bunked! A New Musical: Sunday 9/19 at 5:00 pm; Monday 9/20 at 7:00 pm; Thursday 9/23 at 7:00 pm; and Saturday 9/25 at 4:00 pm. Running time is 1 hour and 40 minutes. For a poorly-shot video of one of the better scenes, please click here. For some of the best songs, please click here and here and here. For my review, please click here.
• The Hurricane Katrina Comedy Festival: Saturday 9/11 at 8:00 pm; Sunday 9/12 at 5:00 pm; Wednesday 9/15 at 7:00 pm; and Sunday 9/19 at 8:00 pm. Running time is 1 hour and 30 minutes. For my review, please click here.
• Jurassic Parq: The Broadway Musical: Thursday 9/9 at 7:00 pm; Saturday 9/11 at 10:30 pm; Friday 9/17 at 9:30 pm; and Saturday 9/18 at 10:30 pm. Running time is 1 hour and 20 minutes. For my review, please click here.
• Just In Time: The Judy Holliday Story: Friday 9/10 at 9:30 pm; Monday 9/13 at 7:00 pm; Tuesday 9/14 at 7:00 pm; and Wednesday 9/15 at 3:00 pm. Running time is 1 hour and 30 minutes. For my review, please click here.
• Lost and Found: Saturday 9/18 at 5:00 pm; Tuesday 9/21 at 8:00 pm; Friday 9/24 at 9:30 pm; and Saturday 9/25 at 7:00 pm. Running time is 1 hour and 50 minutes. For my review, please click here.
• Made in Taiwan: Friday 9/10 at 7:00 pm; Tuesday 9/14 at 9:30 pm; Friday 9/17 at 7:00 pm; and Saturday 9/18 at 8:00 pm. Running time is 1 hour and 20 minutes. For a video teaser, please click here. For my review, please click here.
• Pope! An Epic Musical: Thursday 9/16 at 9:30 pm; Friday 9/24 at 7:00 pm; Saturday 9/25 at 10:30 pm; and Sunday 9/26 at 4:00 pm. Running time is 1 hour and 30 minutes. For my review, please click here.
• The Secretaries: Monday 9/13 at 10:00 pm; Wednesday 9/15 at 9:30 pm; Wednesday 9/22 at 9:30 pm; and Thursday 9/23 at 10:00 pm. Running time is 1 hour and 30 minutes. For my review, please click here.
• Viva Los Bastarditos!: Sunday 9/19 at 2:00 pm; Monday at 9/20 at 9:30 pm; Wednesday 9/22 at 7:00 pm; and Sunday 9/26 at 7:00 pm. Running time is 1 hour and 50 minutes. For my review, please click here.
• When Last We Flew: Thursday 9/9 at 9:30 pm; Saturday 9/11 at 5:00 pm; Sunday 9/12 at 8:00 pm; and Thursday 9/16 at 7:00 pm. Running time is 1 hour and 30 minutes. For my review, please click here.
15 Vandam Street (between 6th Avenue & Varick/7th Avenue)
Closest subways are the C/E to Spring Street or #1 to Houston Street
• Faye Lane's Beauty Shop Stories : Thursday 9/9 at 9:30 pm; Sunday 9/12 at 6:00 pm; Wednesday 9/15 at 3:00 pm; Friday 9/17 at 10:00 pm; and Thursday 9/23 at 9:30 pm. Running time is 55 minutes.For a video preview, please click here. For my review, please click here.
• Amsterdam Abortion Survivor: Friday 9/10 at 9:30 pm; Sunday 9/12 at 8:00 pm; Thursday 9/16 at 10:00 pm; Friday 9/17 at 8:00 pm; and Sunday 9/19 at 8:00 pm. Running time is 1 hour. For a video preview, please click here. For my review, please click here.
Below are the 20 (of 21) FringeNYC 2010 Encore Series shows I've seen from beginning to end, in rough order of personal preference, with each production assigned one to four stars using the following rating system:
**** = Transcendently Great
*** = Solid & Worth Seeing
** = Unless Your Relatives Are in the Cast, Think Twice
* = "I Wanted to Kill Myself"
Please click any underlined title to jump to my review of the show:
• Just In Time: The Judy Holliday Story ****
• Saving Throw Versus Love ****
• Made in Taiwan ***½
• Faye Lane's Beauty Shop Stories ***½
• PigPen Presents: The Nightmare Story ***½
• The Twentieth-Century Way ***½
• Lost and Found ***½
• The Hurricane Katrina Comedy Festival ***
• South Pathetic ***
• Pope! An Epic Musical ***
• Jurassic Parq: The Broadway Musical ***
• Bunked! A New Musical ***
• Viva Los Bastarditos! ***
• When Last We Flew ***
• How My Mother Died of Cancer and Other Bedtime Stories **½
• Hearts Full of Blood **½
• Getting Even With Shakespeare **½
• The Secretaries **
• Amsterdam Abortion Survivor **
• Over and Over **
You can also check where a show is placed on my list of rated & ranked shows of the entire FringeNYC Festival by clicking here.
Unfortunately, I had to miss Running due to an intense post-Fringe book deadline (it's titled The Complete Idiot's Guide to Thyroid Disease, and is slated to be released in February 2011.) However, I'll be keeping an eye out for other FringeNYC 2010 revivals & mini-runs now that the book is done.
Tickets for FringeNYC Encore shows are $18 each at the door.
Alternatively, tickets can be purchased online for $18 plus a $3.75 service charge via Web site FringeNYC-Encores.com or by calling (866) 468-7619.
If you have a FringeNYC 2010 discount card for participating in the festival (e.g., as a volunteer or performer), it can be used for all Encore shows.
The FringeNYC extensions are a great chance to catch shows missed during the festival; and also an opportunity to take friends to productions you saw during the festival and loved.
P.S. Extra FringeNYC Extension Canceled: The acclaimed FringeNYC 2010 production Miss Magnolia Beaumont Goes To Provincetown had arranged for its own extension running concurrent with the Encores, but these additional performances have been canceled. The production hopes to reschedule in the near future.
FringeNYC 2010 Award Winners
At the traditional closing night party of the festival—which this year took place at Manhattan's Gramercy Theater at 127 East 23rd Street on Sunday, August 29th—FringeNYC Producing Artistic Director Elena K. Holy presented the winners of the FringeNYC 2010 Overall Excellence Awards. They were selected based on the votes of numerous judges who, between them, saw every show at the festival.
Each year I strongly agree with some awards and enormously disagree with others. You can make pretty good guesses about both based on my list of ranked shows. But either way, receiving a FringeNYC Award is a genuine honor. (And, for that matter, so is being selected for the FringeNYC Encore Series.)
Please note that multiple awards were given in most of the categories, so every production listed below is a FringeNYC Overall Excellence Award winner. Within each category, the winners are listed in alphabetical order. If a show is underlined, you can click it to pop up my review.
Outstanding Unique Theatrical Event (2 winners)
Daddy Day
Ground to Cloud
Outstanding Solo Show (5 winners)
Faye Lane's Beauty Shop Stories
Driving the Saudis
Miss Magnolia Beaumont Goes to Provincetown
Scared Skinny: A One (Hundred Pound Lighter) Woman Show
Viva La Evolucion!
Outstanding Play (4 winners)
The Hurricane Katrina Comedy Festival
The Momentum
PigPen Presents: The Nightmare Story
Outstanding Musical (2 winners)
Jurassic Parq: The Broadway Musical
Outstanding Playwriting (4 winners)
James Asmus for Hearts Full of Blood
Stephen W. Baldwin for My Name Is Ruth
Harrison David Rivers for When Last We Flew
Matt Saldarelli for Getting Even with Shakespeare
Outstanding Music & Lyrics (3 winners)
Jeff Bienstock for The Morning After/The Night Before
David Chesky for The Pig, The Farmer, and the Artist
Justin Moran & Christopher Pappas for Pope! An Epic Musical
Outstanding Actor (7 winners)
Jake Ahlquist in Richard 3
Jared Houseman in Art of Attack
Geraldine Librandi in Lost and Found
Rory Lipede in When Last We Flew
Tyler Moss in Terror SuperHighway
Deanna Pacelli in 23 Feet in 12 Minutes: The Death and Rebirth of New Orleans
Marina Squerciati in Just in Time: The Judy Holiday Story
Outstanding Ensemble (4 winners)
The Timing of the Day
Outstanding Direction (6 winners)
Lucy Cashion for AK-47 Sing-Along
Kym Gomes for By Hands Unknown
Josh Liveright for Alternative Methods
Lillian Meredith for Hamlettes
Divya Palat for A Personal War: Stories of the Mumbai Terror Attacks
James Presson for Richard 3
Outstanding Dance (2 winners)
Claire Porter/Portables for Namely, Muscles
Trinayan Dance Theater for Swaha: Rituals of Union
Also worth noting is the annual FringeNYC Audience Choice Award, which goes to the show garnering the most audience ballets (included in each production's program booklet). The winner this year was Viva Los Bastarditos!
Shows That Sold Out Performances
Please note that selling out a single performance doesn't necessarily mean a show is hot, or vice versa.
For example, a production in a small venue might sell most of its tickets to family and friends for the debut performance but struggle for the rest of the festival.
At the same time, a production in a large venue might consistently sell lots of tickets but never fill all of its many seats. (Then again, it might; for a memorable example from a past FringeNYC, please click here.)
For that matter, a production might not attract the type of folks who buy in advance and yet frequently sell out performances via at-the-door purchases. The latter aren't reported by FringeCentral and so can't be tracked here.
That said...it's always nice to sell out a performance in advance.
Please also note that the hottest shows are likely to receive an added performance or two via the festival, or extended runs via the FringeNYC Encore Series in September.
The following 36 shows sold out the performances noted via advance ticket sales during the festival:
Shows That Received Added Performances
FringeNYC keeps an eye out for shows that become highly popular and sell out performances, and provides a select few with additional performances.
This year, Veritas—which sold out its entire run before the festival even began—received an added performance on Thursday August 26th at 3:30 pm. Tickets for the latter quickly sold out as well.
Further, 20 shows were selected for extended runs post-festival in September. For detailed information on these Encore Series shows, please click here.
One performance was canceled. The reason, according to the producers, was "due to the Universe." (Your guess is as good as mine...) Anyway, info is below. The show's other four performances took place as scheduled.
For whatever you want to know about FringeNYC—plus a bunch of resources you may not have even realized existed—please check out the following:
Opinions about fast food are way more subjective than theatre reviews. That said, if you're seeking quick nourishment before racing to your next show, here are some personal favorite eateries located in FringeNYC venue neighborhoods:
In addition, be sure to check the bottom half of your FringeNYC Venue Guide Map. You'll find over a dozen eateries providing discounts ranging from 10% to 20%—with some exclusive to FringeNYC audiences.
None of these stores have any idea I'm saying this, by the way. But if you're hunting for the best shows, you might as well consume the best fast food while you're at it.
Please click the links below to jump directly to what you're after:
Introduction to FringeNYC 2010
Best Video Promos & Sneak Peeks
Previous Fringe Currently Playing Off-Broadway
Shows That Sold Out Performances
Shows That Received Added Performances
HyReviews.com Insider Freebies & Discounts
Other Sites:
FringeNYC 2010 Coverage, Page 1
Copyright © 2010 Hy Bender
Email: hy@hyreviews.com
