Tag: The Runaway Clone

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Awards Hollywood Fringe Festival Theatre Women in Entertainment

Top ten shows at HFF 18 and Indie Voice Awards for Theatre

The 9th Annual Hollywood Fringe Festival has been put to bed (with the exception of those shows selected for encores) and we are safely back in Montana, so it is time to reveal our favorite shows of HFF18, as well as our winners for the Indie Voice Awards for Theatre.  You can find the “official” list of winners that were handed out on June 24 here.

We saw a total of 46 shows during the 13 days we were at Fringe.  So many of them were great, and we wish we could give credit to more, but here are our favorites.

TOP TEN SHOWS

10.  Met Again.  Once again, Theatre Unleashed delivered a breathtaking drama of infinite worth.  The duo of Julia Plostnieks and Michael Lutheran were stunning in their portrayal of a loving couple who had ups and downs during their lives.  This one left us with tears in our eyes.

9.  Blind Spots.  This was the only show we saw at the beautiful Stephanie Feury Studio Theatre, and it was definitely worth the trip.  The show was female written with an entire cast of females, and they demonstrated by their amazing performances that they are definitely forces to be reckoned with.

8.  The Parisian Dream.  Cabaret Versatile is the master at creating interesting shows, and this amazing French Cabaret was definitely one of their best.  It was told through mime, skits, song and dance, and it represented the historic Assistance League Playhouse well.

7.  With my Eyes Shut.  Esther Mira led a strong cast and told the story of two people with Asperger’s Syndrome who were learning how to function in life.  Through incredible dancing, music and physical theatre, they told the story as lovingly as they could, and made us proud to be part of HFF18.

6.  SQUIRREL!!  Jessica Lynn Johnson directed and Sarah Rose Reynolds delivered a stunning and revealing story of dealing with ADHD.  Reynolds even wowed us with her singing abilities, on top of her hilarious telling of her life story.

5.  Stripped.  Another great Johnson directed show featuring Julia Cavanaugh as the exotic dancer with a heart of gold.  Like Reynolds, she has an excellent singing voice, and totally tugged at our heart strings as she told the story of her life.

4.  The Word.  Victor Isaac is a comic genius and he puts it all on display in this comedic romp through the discovery of how to forgive yourself.  This one truly deserved its Fringe recognition.

3.  Doctor Nympho vs. The Sex Zombies.  The triumphant return of the Michael Shaw Fisher rock musical claimed three Fringe Awards, and was truly one of the highlights of HFF18.  Just seeing the entire cast safely navigate the small stage at Three Clubs was an event worthy of recognition.

2.  Play On!  A one-woman musical event, Laura Jo Trexler stole our hearts and our ears with these amazing original songs about the heroines of Shakespeare.  She also showed her stage presence and skills as she brought the songs to life, with nothing but herself and a grand piano.

1. The Women of Lockerbie.  We think it is a travesty that this show was not even nominated for a single award at Fringe.  This amazing cast brought the story of Pan Am Flight 103 to life by showing its effect not just on the passengers but those in the town of Lockerbie, Scotland as well.

INDIE VOICE AWARDS FOR THEATER

We agreed with some of the awards given out by the community, but not all of them, so here are the shows we would have given awards to:

In addition, we would also award these shows:

What were your favorites?  We would love to know.

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Fringe Shows Hollywood Fringe Festival Reviews See it or Skip it Theatre Women in Entertainment

HFF18 day 12 – see it or skip it

Friday was a chance to take in a couple of musicals, and to finally get Scott Golden off my back.  He’s been riding me for two years because I had not seen any of his shows, so I finally bowed and went to see him at The Broadwater, Second Stage.

TITLE OF SHOW:  The Runaway Clone

VENUE:  Broadwater, Second Stage

REVIEW:  OMG – Scott Golden can sing, and act, and so can the rest of this amazing cast.  Pamela Eberhardt has written a masterpiece of comedic musical theater, as well as stealing the show with her fabulous portrayal of Laura, maker of clones.  This show was truly one of the best parts of HFF18, and The Unknown Artists deserve all the recognition they can get.  The harmonies created by the amazing cast, which included Golden, Emily Clark, Jeff Scot Carey, Quinn (Eberhardt), Peter Carrier, Shannon Gerrity, Parissa Koo, Adriana Colón, Lucas Alifano and Lindsay Zana was only topped by the incredible voice of the cherry on the top, Katherine Washington as the Runaway Clone.  We attended the show with several of the Cherry Poppins gang, and like me, they were all in awe of this performance.  Hats off to this entire ensemble cast for helping us truly escape the madness of this world and getting us lost in The Agency and a world of clones.

RECOMMENDATION:  This was their closing show, but you can be sure they will receive an encore extension.  Make sure you rush to the Fringe site and get your tickets as soon as they go on sale.

We met one of our nearest and dearest friends, Rosine Avedissian Correa and her husband, Ronnie, for drinks at the Plunge and had a chance to catch up before heading over to the Main Stage for the second musical of the night.

TITLE OF SHOW:  Parallel Worlds

VENUE:  Broadwater, Main Stage

REVIEW:  Parallel Worlds is unlike anything we have ever seen at Fringe before.  It is a unique blend of film, stage play and rock concert that shatters the boundaries that limit so many other Fringe shows.  The premise is simple – a rock band is brought in and commissioned to write a soundtrack for a film, but their music creates a parallel world where the story line of the film changes.  Elise Testone from American Idol gives a powerful performance as Tabitha and Casey Lee Hurt does likewise as Miles.  They are the lead singers in an incredible band that features Angelica Abrams on keys and backing vocals, Shareef Addo on bass, Fabrizio Cavallaro on drums and Braden Lyle on guitar.  Shawn Reaves as J.B. and Marci Miller as Ella are our on-screen lovers, and their performances are breathtaking to behold.  Quite frankly, this show is too big for Fringe, and deserves more time to allow the audience to be swept up into their world.  It is a world worth visiting, and we would love to see just how far this one can go.

RECOMMENDATION:  We strongly encourage you to visit their website, and be on the look-out for their next performance.  It could very well change your life.