The Toronto Fringe Festival 2016: a very subjective sampling

by Drew Rowsome

One of the tragedies of the summer event onslaught is that the Toronto Fringe Festival seems to consistently overlap all the festivities (and the recovery period) surrounding Toronto Pride. This year, like every year, there are a multitude of fascinating plays at the Fringe, lots I want to see, more than any human could attend even if fringing full time. In no particular order, here are a handful of productions that have caught my eye, I hope to see as many of them, and of the others I hear of as the festival kicks into gear, as possible.

Toller: Toller Cranston is a gay icon. He was a flamboyant figure skating genius, a media whore, a renowned painter and by many accounts a witty, troubled, bitter queen. Sky Gilbert (The Terrible Parents, A Few Brittle Leaves, My Dinner with Casey Donovan, To Sky Gilbert at 60), who writes and directs Toller, is a theatre icon (when will he get the retrospective he so richly deserves?) with a particular knack of delving into the heart, soul and sexual quirks of our gay forefathers. David Benjamin-Tomlinson (Gash) plays Cranston and while he is compelling on his own (Queering Blind Date at Buddies in September should make good use of his charisma and genial quick wit), with Gilbert and a meaty role, Toller is a must-see. Gilbert and Benjamin-Tomlinson worked together previously on Dancing Queen.

Out: A One-Man Gay Odyssey: Greg Campbell (Heart of Steel, Firebrand) has best ensemble Doras from his work with VideoCabaret and he is the ensemble in Out, playing Mary Poppins, Mary Hartman, Anita Bryant, the "Indian" from The Village People, various characters from The Boys in the Band and many others He also plays the main character around whom that delightful collection revolves: a 17-year-old boy who "comes out of the closet in Montreal in 1977. While keeping it secret from his parents, he celebrates his new gay identity, goes to discos, joins a Gay Youth Group, and sleeps around. With his two best friends, he goes to New York City for Gay Pride Day." Out is directed by Clinton Walker (The Love Crimes of Frances Lark, Gash!) which is a recommendation in itself.

Behold, the Barfly!: Justin Haigh dazzled with his contribution to Circle Jerk and he has assembled a huge and gifted cast including Jeff Hanson (The Bone House, Shrew) and Sarah Thorpe so Behold, the Barfly! is a good bet despite its vague, but very comedic, advance blurb. invitation to: "peer into the pickled subconscious of a slumbering barfly and behold the wonders within: Mirth! Merriment! Mediocre poetry! Murder-mystery! Demented musical numbers! A Christmas pageant like no other! The erotic appeal of the metric system! Problematic face painting! Sober contemplation of life choices! Benedict Cumberbatch?" And bonus points for being presented at The Monarch Tavern so there will be alcoholic beverages.

Cam Baby: Playwright Jessica Moss is a Fringe veteran with awards and hits under her belt. Currently she is studying under the tutelage of madcap gay genius Christopher Durang which can only add to the merriment and sexual explosiveness. In Cam Baby a pair of enterprising deviants record videos of the women they rent an room to, until beauty standards and that demon love interfere with their perversions and profits. Nothing says comedy like a sex tape gone wrong.

Dance Animal: Toronto: This tip was slipped to me a theatre tastemaker who has never steered me wrong. Seeing him at an opening means that the audience is in for an experience, it may be outside of the norm, but it will be memorable. From what I can deduce, Dance Animal: Toronto appears to be A Chorus Line for furrys (which is enticing in itself). Various dance animals (including of course, Dance Capybara) form a tribe, tell their stories, and under the guidance of Dance Tiger (director/choreographer Robin Henderson), express themselves and their love for Toronto's culture through dance. Dance Shetland Pony (Michael MacEachern) and Dance Peacock (Leighton Williams) intrigue but I personally am curious about Dance Octopus (Kevin Vidal). 

Tarot Live!: Irrepressible Jesse Stong attempts to replace Madame Zaza, The $2 Psychic as Canada's Top Psychic. Stong is a fun and fearless performer but I can't vouch for his psychic abilities. Audience interactivity always makes me nervous, it will be fun to see Stong think on his feet, quip and tell the future. That is unless Madame Zaza gets to him first: she sees the competition as bedazzled to death in a dark alley.

And just because I can't resist the titles, concepts or creatives:

Romeo and Juliet Chainsaw Massacre
Weird: The Witches of Macbeth
Dario et la Diablesse: A Caribbean Musical 
#Mannequingirl: The Musical (directed by Michael Rubenstein)
A Glass Hive (aka The Comedy of Errors (adapted and directed by Bruce Dow)
Lyricas Presents: Creature Slaying in the Key of G 
Mullet's Ghost Story
Blind to Happiness (directed by Johnnie Walker)
Orson/Shylock