Tag: fringe shows

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Fringe Shows Hollywood Fringe Festival Theatre Women in Entertainment

Our favorite shows at HFF17

Well, the 2017 Hollywood Fringe Festival is in the books, and what a magnificent event it was this year.  There were 375 shows and more than 2,000 performances during the 17-day run, and we had the privilege of seeing 37 of those shows during our short nine days in Los Angeles.  Here are our top 10 shows.

10.  The Rise and Fall of Dracula.  This was our first exposure to immersive theater, and we thoroughly enjoyed the experience.  The show was wonderful created by Cassandra Ambe, perfectly executed by her cast, and was a true feast for the audience.

9.  Under the Jello Mold.  Jennie Fahn is the consummate performer, who brought this story to life under the expert directorship of Tom Cavanaugh.  The story was so moving that my wife immediately texted her mom as soon as we left the theater.

8.  The Spidey Project.  Theatre Unleased outdid themselves again, and both of their productions made it into our Top 10 list.  We loved the songs, the performances and the cast of this show, which brought this origin story new life.  Well done!

7.  Three Can Keep a Secret.  The other Theatre Unleashed production, which was even more fun because of the audience interaction.  Great job of playwriting Mr. Crafts.  Perfectly casted and well done.

6.  Hey Hollywood My Hustle Has ADHD.  Rasika Mathur was amazing in this delightful show about coming to terms with a particular brand of mental illness that I am all too conscious of.  We laughed and cried at her dramatic show, and the fringeship that came of it.

5.  The Girl Who Jumped Off the Hollywood Sign.  This show did not disappoint from the hype and buzz we heard, and we were extremely glad that we got to see it.  It was historically accurate and the amazing voice of Joanne Hartstone was a joy to our ears.  Thanks for coming from ‘down under’ to bring your magic to this year’s fringe.

4.  Chemo Barbie.  No previous fringe show has ever moved me the way this one did.  Hats off to Heather Keller for her amazing courage in sharing this very fresh story with us, and for giving us the inspiration to make each day our best day.  This is what Fringe is all about.

3.  Shakeslesque.  What else can be said about the amazing ladies (and gents) of Cherry Poppins?  Alli Miller and Sarah Haworth Hodges have assembled the cream of the crop and have once again delivered a memorable and joyous good time.  It was so beautiful to see them get the recognition they deserved with their two Freak awards for Best Cabaret and Top of the Fringe.

2.  Turbulence.  Speaking of amazing, how about those guys and girls at Robot Teammate?  For the second year in a row, they have delivered a stunning original musical that has made even the local music scene stand up and take notice.  Congrats on your numerous awards, including Best Musical.

1.  Mexistani.  Sofie Khan is amazing, both as an actress and a person.  Her show demonstrated that we still have a long way to go towards acceptance of people, especially those of mixed heritage.  But if nothing else, her show gave us hope that with people like Sofie leading the charge, we have a great chance of getting there.

We also wanted to give kudos to two venues that went out of their way to make Fringe special – Studio/Stage and Sacred Fools.  Even though they were “off the beaten path, Studio/Stage’s amazing line-up of shows made it easy to schedule and spend a block of time at the venue.  Sacred Fools made sure that patrons were well taken care of, proving free water and snow cones to help alleviate the heat.  Hats off to both of you!

Last but not least, that you to the participants, to the new fringeships from this year and the renewed ones from previous years.  You make Fringe the special place that it is, and the reason we drive 3,000 miles every year to be a part of it.

 

 

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Fringe Shows Hollywood Fringe Festival Theatre

Ten most anticipated shows at 2017 Hollywood Fringe Festival

We have been covering the Hollywood Fringe Festival since its inception in 2010, with the exception of 2015 when work prevented us from being there.  During that time, we have seen a boatload of shows, most of them good, with some great and some not so great ones thrown in.  We look forward to the schedule being announced on May 1, so that we have time to comb through the offerings and formulate our schedule to best view as many of the shows as we can.   We truly love the new Scheduler feature on the Fringe website which has made creating this year’s schedule much easier.

This year are also privileged to be able to present our first award, the Larry Cornwall Award for Musical Excellence, which will honor a non-musical fringe show that best incorporates music into the show.

Based on our experience with certain companies and actors, we seek them out because they have traditionally given some of the best performances, and this year is no different.  Here are our Top Ten most anticipated shows at this year’s festival.  We are including the venue name in our description.

10.  Hot Dates (3 Clubs).  We picked this show because of the title, and because we absolutely love Deana Barone.  We know that Barone always brings out the best in her clients, and this show just sounds like a lot of fun.

9.  Chemo Barbie (Studio C).   Like the previous show, we picked this show in part based on our previous relationship with the director, Jessica Lynn Johnson, who has directed some of the best theater we have seen at the Fringe.  We do love solo shows, and Johnson’s clients have some of the most compelling stories.

8.  Nosferatu (Studio/Stage).   Who doesn’t like a classic horror story?  We are intrigued by the twists in this particular production, such as a female in the lead role, but we have total faith that Michelle Holmes will deliver a stunning performance.  This should be a great show.

7.  Lovesick (Sacred Fools).   This is another Jessica Lynn Johnson show, and it truly has us pumped for the Fringe.  Although we are not familiar with the work of Gabriela Demarco, she has demonstrated in her marketing that she has great potential.  We look forward to another great show here.

6.  Under the Jello Mold (Ruby Theatre).   Director/producer Tom Cavanaugh is another Fringe veteran that has consistently brought great shows to the Fringe, and we have no doubt that this will be another hit.   This is also one of the shows being considered for the Cornwall Award.

5.  The Girl Who Jumped Off the Hollywood Sign (Lounge).  The fact that this show has won awards at other fringes was a compelling reason to add it to our list.  We also love the Golden Age of Hollywood, and look forward to their interpretation of that time.  Last but not least, this show is also up for the Cornwall Award.

4.  Nothing Bad:  A Werewolf Rock Musical (Studio/Stage).   What would Fringe be like without a horror-themed rock musical?  Michael Shaw Fisher and his company are not doing one this year, so we had to find another one to take its place,  This one looked good for a number of reasons, and we are truly looking forward to being “rocked.”

3.  Three Can Keep a Secret (Studio/Stage).   Theatre Unleashed has consistently delivered great shows, so this one was a no-brainer.  We love Greg Crafts and look forward to seeing one of his own plays.  We are also looking forward to the remount of his previous show, The Spidey Project, which will give TU another opportunity to do what they do best – sing.

2.  Turbulence (Sacred Fools).   We fell in love with Robot Teammate last year when they delivered one of the best shows in Thug Tunnel.  We are confident that they will do it again with this show.

  1. Shakeslesque (3 Clubs).   Our most anticipated show this year is another no-brainer.  Cherry Poppins delivered a mega-hit last year with their show, and have consistently offered LA some of its best entertainment value over the past year, with consistent sold-out shows.  Not to mention the fact that the infamous Mr. Fisher is in the cast of this show, and the incredible talents of the Cherry Poppins ladies, especially Alli Miller and Sarah Haworth Hodges, this show is a can’t miss opportunity to see how the stories of Mr. Shakespeare translate into burlesque.

See you at the Fringe!