Fringe Festival full of fare to whet theatergoers' fancies

By ANTHONY DEL VALLE
LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL

 

I came away from the eight-play Vegas Fringe Festival amazed at how much higher in quality local acting has become. People in the smaller parts often demonstrated the charisma and talent to tackle lead roles. Where have these people come from?
It helps to enjoy the productions if you think of most of them as works in progress. If you are looking for perfection, you will be disappointed. But it's a potpourri of possibilities. I was more excited by what these shows could be than what they were. And that made for an enormously satisfying marathon.
Here's a brief look at the plays in order of preference:
■ Olde English Productions' "Iphigenia in Orem" (part of Neil La Bute's "Bash") contains just about the best dramatic performance I've seen in 15 years of local reviewing. Shane Cullum, under the smooth, unobtrusive direction of Gus Langley, makes small talk to a male stranger in his hotel room. The strained chit-chat soon evolves into a confession of a horrific crime. Cullum makes the monologue seem like a two-character play because he established a relationship with the unseen stranger. He weeps, laughs, fidgets and all the while never seems like an actor going for an effect. Cullum embodies the torment of this man in a way that I suspect few actors could. Grade: A
■ "Asphyxiation/Masturbation," written, directed and co-starring Test Market founder Ernest Hemmings, is a multi-media bit of fun that seems to want to suggest nothing more than that the medium is the message. Two young men (Hemmings and Alex Olson) perform a series of skits involving various kinds of conflict. The challenge is that all the sound effects have been pre-recorded and the actors must stay in sync. Of course, the funniest moments are when the dialogue is a split second off. The performers are blissfully funny, with Hemmings in particular showing a surprisingly wide range of effortless characters. I have never before seen him so free. The evening could use some cohesiveness, and the final 10 minutes or so feels repetitive. But it's a beautiful bit of nonsense. Grade: B+
■ "Expanding the Relative: Pondering Einstein," directed by Timothy Burris for Endless Productions, is a humorous look at a man's philosophy about what is relative. The man, in the form of actor and writer Eugene Markoff, looks peculiarly like Einstein, and there's a good reason why. Markoff's performance is a marvelous blend of academic earnestness and little-boy innocence. Burris gives the script a surprisingly lyrical quality with sound, light effects and two stagehands whose movements have been carefully choreographed. The script could use some serious editing, particularly in the final fifth or so, when its themes become heavy-handed. But the project deserves Markoff and Burris' further attention. Grade: B+
■ "Dick Johnson Private Eye," by Poor Richard's Players, is a mixed bag. The original script by Maxim Lardent and Mark Valentin has the feel of improvisation but doesn't make for much of a play. However, director Lysander Abadia has staged the movement exceptionally well. Trouble is, this is supposed to be a radio drama, so what is all that movement about? I'd love to see this again just for Abadia's stage know-how. But isn't it time we gave Philip Marlowe spoofs a century's rest? Grade: C
■ "Roles for Women," an original comedy by Erica Griffin for Table 8 Productions, is about a group trying out for a community play. There are lots of "in" jokes, and obvious ones. I can't imagine anyone outside the theater wanting to see this. Griffin's plot turns are too carefully planned, and by the time we get to the women screaming at each other and turning over tables, I couldn't figure out why I was there. Director Troy Heard gets a couple of solid performances from a mostly expert cast. Grade: C
■ "Soul," an original drama by Michael O'Neal for Chaos Productions, grabs your attention immediately. A young man stands center stage pondering the big questions. In the second scene, an abusive druggie is forcing a needle into the arm of a homeless woman he hopes to sleep with. The relationship between the two scenes doesn't need explaining; it fits perfectly. But, unfortunately, the story grows obvious and uninteresting. Director Jason Nino gives us some intriguing visual images, but he doesn't tone down the melodrama. Still, this is another of those projects I'd love to see remounted after some work. Grade: C
■ "Fringe Shorts," is three playlettes by different groups, each offering at least one yummy element. "Kissing Hank's Butt," directed by Thomas Chrastka, is an amusing absurdity about an absurd religion. Mick Axelrod makes a likable nerd, and Mario Mendez projects the comic attitude of a masculine Pee-Wee Herman. "Maranatha," directed by Chrastka, features a skillfully subdued performance by Chris Fune, as a man who claims to be - and might well be - the son of God. "Nutshells," an original by Brandon Oliver Jones (with no director credited) explores a conformation between a man and his female shrink. Nichole Unger and Tony Foresta give mesmerizing performances, but Jones' script is too simple. He has an ear for dialogue, but he hasn't yet learned the value of subtext. Grade: C
■ "Open Meeting," by A.R. Gurney, directed by Frank Mengwasser for Las Vegas Little Theatre, brings up the rear. But it's by no means a stinker. A public meeting becomes a free-for-all, with three officials trying hard to cope with an "incopable" situation. Dustin Sisney brings a welcomed, natural presence to his role as the young man. And the script has its share of laughs. But Mengwasser doesn't modulate the performances, so it doesn't take long before you get tired of the screaming. Grade: C-
Anthony Del Valle can be reached at vegastheaterchat@aol.com. You can write him c/o Las Vegas Review-Journal, P.O. Box 70, Las Vegas, NV 89125.