Sunday, June 17th was the fourth day of Fringe and was a day of dance and magic in shows and a day of travel with a daily vlog that takes us from Ireland to Australia.
Having trouble watching the video? Watch directly on YouTube instead.
You might have noticed that I took on some of the vlogging here on day 4. Couldn’t let Matthew and Kurt have all the fun. In today’s video I talk to the wonderful and exuberant Tess Mc Manus of Donkey Derby about putting her show together, moving to Canada from Letterkenny, Ireland, and her start in show biz, before hitting her with some very random questions. After that, Matthew and I, talk to Tim Motley of Dirk Darrow: NCSSI fame about his show and what he’s enjoying about Ottawa, coming in on tour from Australia. Plus we introduce you to a couple of the volunteers who make Fringe go ’round.
If you’re not familiar with the vlog “style” of video-journalism, see the brief note in day one’s article for an explanation.
Tim Motley is Dirk Darrow:NCSSI at Ottawa Fringe 2012
Today was my first real day back at Fringe since Thursday’s open, and while I would have loved to have spent it doing nothing but seeing shows, there was work to be done. We spent a good part of the day, shooting seventeen reviews that you’ll see starting to go online Monday. Because of how charmed I was by her performance in Donkey Derby the night before (coupled with meeting her last Wednesday) I tracked Tess Mc Manus down for the conversation you partly see above. Up until now, our vlog participants have been pretty random but I knew I’d wanted to talk to both Tess and Tim Motley and expose them to more of Ottawa so there you have it.
First show Kurt and I saw was Aerial Allusions in which the dancing was fantastic, the acting less so. Fortunately, the show is mostly dancing, some of it on a ladder - take that pole dancing. Kurt also saw I’m Not Crying in the Bathroom and 100 First Kisses, both of which he loved. Matthew and I checked out Ex Cathedra which was a captivating show despite an actor illness resulting in it being downgraded from a performance to a dramatic/staged reading. Proof positive that the most important foundation of any show is the content. End of the night, I went solo to Christopher Bange’s The Fat Guy Show, which was a comedic little love story interspersed with magic and mime. The sad thing is that there were only four of us in the audience (what’s up with that?) but we made do with the intimate group.
Tess Mc Manus hides behind the poster of her one-woman show Donkey Derby
The highlight of the day, and maybe the fest so far was Caithream Celtic Dance Fusion’s A MacSummer Night’s Dream. This was a great light show to take in. A sincere re-imagining of A Midsummer Night’s Dream told entirely in dance, excepting a few quick monologues. Very fun and worth it if you enjoy dance at all. On a personal note, it’s very different watching dance up close rather than from way back on the little screen on my camera. This is the show I’d first think of catching a second time if cost (time cost, especially) wasn’t an issue.
Not really any new shows being hyped. Alien Predator and Space Mystery continue to be ones a lot of people are talking about. Little Orange Man got a couple of strong recommendations. Of course, today on day 5, four new shows open including the much hyped Little Lady and the sure-to-be-a-hit Vernus Says Surprise by local superstar Ken Godmere. Hard Times and Fishbowl also open today, both of those in Academic Hall.
EDIT: Made a 3am-type mistake and said both Little Lady and Vernus says SURPRISE were running in Arts Court Library which wasn’t true, so I deleted that sentence.
Before I sign out, if anybody reading this wants to chat on the daily video log and promote themselves, email me at mackey©productionottawa•com. We’ll set it up.
And that’s day 4. One week left to Fringe. What’s still on your must see list? Anything on your must see again list? Who do you want to see us talk to in our vlogs? Let me know in the comments below.
About Allan Mackey
Allan Mackey is editor-in-chief of Production Ottawa, which, really, is too fancy a title. He also acts as show producer for Should You See It, making sure you get your answer in just about two minutes every time. He writes stuff and occasionally turns that stuff into movies. Keep being awesome!
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