NOW THAT'S ENTHUSIASM

 

An expensive car seen outside of one of the main venues of the St. Lou Fringe.                      

LAST FROM THE ST. LOU FRINGE - MONKEY IN A COCONUT

My memory of the details of show after show fades with time, so I'll let the players' own description suffice here: 

Abby Bentley’s Monkey in a Coconut is a musical comedy solo show about the true story of a second-grade student, a coconut implanted with a monkey embryo, and a search for the truth. The show grapples with big questions: “Can I trust authority?” “Is evolution real?” “Will this coconut hatch?”

Time to get back out on the streets of The Lou. 

 

AT THE ST. LOU FRINGE - WINDING DOWN

Not much more to go, since I shot barely 20 of 40 shows. These are two of the last from Sunday. First, Henchmen, about executioners, literally headsmen, in Tudor-ish England. The man on the left in the second picture looks the role to me but the one on the right seems more like he is wearing traditional Italian priest's garb (think Father Guido Sarducci on SNL, https://youtu.be/lWBhsiBMOIo?si=xhgNPkbXp29mEMam). I can't remember what the woman was about. Toward the end, the man in black tells the man in white that it is his turn to be executed. No reason was given that I could tell.

Then we have Improvsburg, done by two women from a small city in Indiana. Hey, it's got its own improv company! Improv often leans into audience participation and the group was sadly small on a Sunday morning. However, St. Louis' peripatetic theater critic, Tina Farmer, volunteered and got the job done. 

 

AT THE ST. LOU FRINGE - MAGIC SYNAPSES WITH JAMES HIGHGROUND

When I spoke to James Highground before the show, he said he would describe himself (at least in this presentation) as mentalist rather than a magician. Not sure what that means. The act involved manipulation of numbers, words, images and sensory perception. I have shot a lot of magic shows at The Fringe over the years and I have yet to capture how any of them do it.

                          

AT THE ST. LOU FRINGE - KING JOHN

Powerful stuff. Matthew Windham presents a solo condensed version of Shakespeare's King John. It's one of his least produced plays, but seeing this makes you wonder why. Windham cleverly switches roles with the simplest of props - white and black chess kings for the contestants to the English throne; a pawn for the ordinary people caught in between; and ornate fan for Lady Constance; and a small teddy bear for Prince Arthur, who threatens John's claim to the  throne. Abuse of power comes as no surprise.