I haven’t been to many Fringe shows that ended with everyone in the audience asking for a picture of the performers. Then again Hello, Hedgehogs! deviates from the norm in a bunch of ways. Its solo performer, Ellie Shinman, must not have heard the dictum “never share the stage with small children or live animals!” Or if she did, she let it be one more rule to be broken. [Read more...]

If Bruce Lee had played Lite-Brite as a youngster, Illuminate is the kind of show he may have conceived. Instead kudos go to Johnny Shryock, producer, director and composer of Illuminate, who performs with an incredible cast: Jamie Noguchi, Charles Shryock IV, Nick Oben, Mike Stahly, Brad Lust, and Zach Stahly. Together they wrote and choreographed the production. They are also black belt instructors. [Read more...]

The premise is enticing: A Day at the Museum is a wordless glimpse of various characters passing in front of three images in a gallery. The set design creatively positions three frames where the stage ends and the front row of seats begins so the audience has the perspective of the women in the paintings: it’s as if we are the art looking at visitors who walk by. Some stop, some stare, some barely glance at the images on the wall. [Read more...]

Picture this: there’s an artist (painter/actor/musician/dancer) you admire and one day you hear about less savory details of their private life. Does it change your opinion of their work? Do you dismiss the information as rumor started by a rival? Are you Machiavellian and believe the end justifies the means, no matter what lives are destroyed in the name of great art? [Read more...]

To borrow a phrase from Gene Kelly in “Anchors Aweigh”, The 2^nd Annual Fool for All, directed and devised by Matthew R. Wilson, is not for grouchers, groaners, cranks, and moaners. It’s a feel-good show designed for people who appreciate silliness and folly: 43 actors have created a total of 9 scenes (4 on view each night) using Commedia dell’Arte characters to tell tales linked by avian themes and puns. [Read more...]