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CapFringe V. 8, weekend 3, INITIATE. The climate surrounding Fort Fringe is, suddenly, fit to sustain human life. The State of Our Union is strong. I’m worried that Pacific Rim is going to leave cinemas before I get a chance to see it. Wait… can you guys hear my thoughts? Oh, no. Blank slate. Blank slate. Drift.
Just go see some shows tonight, as recommended by the slightly trained but highly reliable agents of the Fringe & Purge Action News and Commentary Squad.
The Continuing Adventures of John Blade, Super Spy (Warehouse, 6 p.m.)—-“…license-to-klls it! Choose to accept this mission! You’ll feel Bourne Again!” I told my friend Twitter upon exiting this hilarious, fisticuffs-filled James Bond parody, having apparently been possessed by the spirit of Gene Shalit. John Blade is, if I may allow myself to quote… myself (again) the Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead of action flicks. Seeing their Friday-night midnight show would probably be better, but seeing it this evening right after work is a lot better than not seeing it. (Hear the PurgeCast with the playwright, director and much of the cast of John Blade.)
H Street Housewives (Fort Fringe – Redrum, 6:45 p.m.)—-Seasoned senior FPANCS agent Ian Buckwalter was bullish on this satire of Bravo’s spoiled-spouses cable TV empire and the rapid gentrification of H Street NE. “In the same way that one doesn’t need to know Portland to get the lampooning of hip, DIY, progressive urban culture that Portlandia serves up, there are plenty of bigger-picture trends that H Street Housewives hits on, from urban chicken coops to airport mens’ room trysts to arguments over the merits of private vs. charter schooling. Just also be prepared for hyper-local jokes about streetcars and putt-putt bars,” he writes.
Disco Jesus and the Apostles of Funk (Baldacchino Gypsy Tent, 7 p.m.)—-Ready for another messianic rock star? “When searching for the right hyper-charismatic, funkadellic love god to play his Funky Savior, playwright/co-composer/ Vaughn Irving (along with co-composer Paul Foreman and director Doug Wilder) magically discovered…well, himself,” veteran agent Ryan S. Taylor reports. “Irving certainly has a lanky, self-effacing charm and decent enough pipes. But do I believe him as the rock star God of Funk, sexually irresistible to all women and men alike?” For that matter, do you?
Wiggerlover (Gearbox, 8:15 p.m.)—-James Anthony Zoccoli’s warm solo show about growing up in a mixed-race home in late-70s Chicago is perhaps a little more pedantic than is strictly necessary, but that’s no firing offense, says talented rookie agent Alexis Hauk. “What works: Pop-culture references galore—-Magic vs. Byrd, Apollo Creed vs. Rocky, etc. Rich, odd little details about family, like how his grandmother could ‘cure anything with vitamins and took a very long time to get ready to go shopping,’ or how his stepdad looked like Artis Gilmore of the Chicago Bulls and loved peach juice.” Specific is universal! Give it a shot.
Waiting for Orson (The Shop, 8:45 p.m.)—-Our Greg Benson flipped for Ian Leahy’s play about a man awaiting a visit from an extraterrestrial at New York City’s Penn Station, which, says he, wrestles “with the big questions about life, sanity and the universe while still remaining grounded and, dare I say it, human.” And there’s no man like hu-man. Go.
Detective Pimbley and the Case of the Rich, Dead Lady (Redrum, 10:30 p.m.)—-“It’s a pure funny delivery machine,” opined our prolific Brett Abelman in his review of this Dead Men Don’t Wear Plaid-style sendup of hardboiled detective fiction from the Impressionable Players, anchored by a great, deadpan comic performance from Noah Langer. I saw it last night, and I loved it like down-on-their-luck private eyes love ceiling fans.
Although, full disclosure, I’m pretty partial to ceiling fans myself.
ALSO RECOMMENDED TONIGHT: & Afterwards, Cabaret XXXY: Who Do You Think You Are?
Happy Fringing, everybody!
Disco Jesus and the Apostles of Funk photo by Paul Gillis; courtesy Capital Fringe