Sub-Total
2023 Audience Reviews
Member Reviews
The following reviews were submitted by Fringe Member: Alexander Gerchak
Company: The Brothers Dangus
Show: The Brothers Dangus Vol. 2: The People v. Dango (A Court-Mandated Parable)
Venue: Rarig Center Thrust
The Brothers of Dada Return
When I heard that the Dangus Brothers were to make a return to the fringe I was elated; their debut volume last year was easily my favorite show of the festival last year. They do not disappoint in the second installation, the show is unmitigated mental debauchery. Where last year's show centered more firmly on a surreal pseudo mysticism born of a depraved mind (e.g. hot hot moon), this volume has committed fully to the scatological. It double and triples down when others would say it shouldn't but it absolutely must, giving the show its power. This production was also a little more beholden to plot than the previous; I would argue Dangus thrives when it eschews plot and embraces chaos. What's most impressive about this ensemble is how it manifests the stupid and inane and makes it look all so unconsidered, when the opposite's true. The powers of smart staging and strong attention to detail are put towards the unconscionable, and we're all better for it. Go see it, I eagerly await the next volume.
Company: Flavorade Foucault
Show: Shark Grant
Venue: Rarig Center Xperimental
Stupid, Absurd, Brilliant
You walk into Shark Grant truly not knowing to expect, confronted only by the music stylings of a solitary DJ off in the corner, playing a beat that gradually goes off the rails only to be anchored by the occasional disembodied utterance of "SHARK GRANT". A stoic MC donning a captain's hat steps out to begin the show, revealing that the MC is in fact a multibillionaire clutching the fates of hapless souls who should come to state their case for their artistic endeavors, accompanied by two other rich celebrity "Sharks" that'd be at home in any other shark-business themed reality show. The show only escalates from there, for the show I saw in the best of ways. The sharks are equal parts belligerent and oblivious, peppering their contestants with the dumbest of questions. Games are played. Sharks are thrown. The highlight lies with the contestants however, each presenting what can only be described as a fever dream's conception of art. For me, there was Crocodiles on meth. Communist Toon Town. Telepathic stand up. Each show has a different set of panels, keeping the improv fresh and unhinged. I offer my endorsal to this production, and I should hope you enjoy as much as I did.