Liam McKinnon

What a great night at.... Book Club... 😉

In Waking Life is a mix of improv and scripted comedy where we meet two normal ladies who can't wait for book club, but once the doors are locked and the coast is clear, those ladies reveal they are the Synsk Sisters: Cora Ethe_real Synsk and Granish Amethyst Synsk.

Much of this show is getting to know these wonderfully joy-filled, spiritual sisters and that honestly worth the price of a ticket. The enthusiasm and energy of Cora and Garnish is infectious and you just want to smile every time they talk to you and encourage your questions.

And when the show turns to more scripted material or when they express genuine moments of hurt feelings, you understand where they are coming from and you are with them as they express themselves.

Being on the side of two larger-than-life personalities that or so vocal about who they are and how they feel can be a challenge; it can almost be overwhelming (speaking as an open & emotional person myself). But I never once felt that way. In-fact, when I had the privilege to speak to the sisters about MY problems, I just wanted to be as quick as I possibly could be so that I could hear everything that they had to say.

I only have one note, but it is a note I will happily remove or amend if I ever see this show again.

The personalities of our two psychics are so strong, quick-witted, and confident with the audience that being able to listen to what they have to say to the public (not exclusively from the questions that are submitted, but just their casual interactions with us as well) is where I felt the true power of this show. Pulling out of that to the 3rd act of the show was where I felt something missing, if only because what had came before was so strong.

But in our audience we had a few people who had a return visit, and thus I state again that my note could be amended.

If the stars aligned and I could see this again I would be happy to because charming, charismatic, and effervescent performers are something rare to find in any individual artist, let alone two partners in the arts. And being able to see the Nordish Synsk sisters perform again and again and exploring their highs and lows together with all of us would be an absolute delight any time, all the time.

So here's hoping I see you all again at.... book club... 😁

Every year at the Edmonton Fringe, for myself, there is a show... a show that I did not intend to see but I am able to see and it surprises me both in how it entertains me and how I happen to be able to watch the work of the artists that I have yet to interact with on the Fringe Grounds.

After working days at the fringe, my mind is poor and I had misplaced an earbud case during my fringing and performance for the day. I had time to explore multiple venues and after seeing Fear Fables at the Next Act Theatre I returned to what I HOPED would be the venue for my earbud case. Alas... it was not.

However, as I was about to walk out, one of the performers had seen one of the shows that I had worked at and they had a phenomenal time. They also said such kind words about myself which surprised the heck outta me: Being a performer, I know that the last couple of minutes are when you want to get yourself focused or, at least, when there is an expectation from your creative heads to be focused. This wonderful person took time away from their focus time to say not only kind things about myself, but my whole company's production and also shared an interest to speak more when the show concluded.

Rather than walk out to the next venue I said, "Well that was the nicest thing anyone has ever said to me before a show.... I might as well support theirs as well!!" And BOY what a show it was!

Stroke of Genius is a show that many people get within the first 5... minutes?... seconds??... But what I liked is that main speaker of this lecture (Shane Mayforth) does not approach this lecture's subject topic with a plodding feeling of, "It's about Masturbation, I know it, you know it, here are the jokes about it, and we are done." The excitement, appreciation, and severity that he has with the class at moments reminding us that we must participate or be docked marks kept me on my toes and focused throughout.

You start to actually study the intricate details of the lectures topic which would be a glowing review if this was a serious lecture but, with the topic being that of masturbation, what you are intently focusing on makes you feel absurd and then you find yourself laughing both at the very clear gestures, short-hand, and diagrams being shared and laughing still because you need to make sure you put it to memory so as not to fail your grade score average.

Vulva Va-Voom does a great job in probably my favourite moments in the show which were the examples used in the lecture showcasing masturbation pantomime through the silent era of select silent films. These moments were utterly hilarious particularly one involving a tragically lost film that just had me in stitches.

At the risk of losing a new friend (should they read this) I want to share three things that I feel, for me could have contributed positively to the plays intended effect, at least as far as I can interpret what the effect of certain moments were.

The first one is in the lecture tone. I think the entire lecture structure is great, no notes (Even the magic number for the last slide was perfect.) My only observation was that there were moments when I felt there could be more passion behind the analysis.

There was intention and a direct pacing to clearly deliver many of the masturbation jokes, but the passion that comes from a raw presentation - the kind of presentation that is 'I need to talk about this or I will die' - was last for me at moments.

The second and third thing are connected: The antagonistic force that threatens the presentation and our Professors hard work did not feel as stakes heavy as I felt it could be mainly because it is auditory. Using my knowledge from the lecture (of which I now have a certificate) the believability of the stakes was much lower for me.

I think this could have been remedied with an on-stage, in-person individual walking onto the stage to address the professor directly. It would have had the same stakes level that I think any professor has fear of when their administrator walks in PLUS it would add a level of humour to having someone walk in while you are (pantomime) masturbating.

Those are major moments, yes, but no enjoyment of the show's central premise and goal was ruined for me. Any notes I have are not criticisms of the main driving force of this play which is, again, a Professor making you appreciate the manufactured history on one of the most shameful things many junior high, high school, and (still) adults ever could admit. Putting this in a classroom setting is straight from the Monty Python class of comedy and while elements could certainly be tightened in it, it was a wonderful play to stumble into and well worth the time to pay attention to; especially when my fellow performers took the time to watch the goofy nonsense I got up to this festival 🤣🤣 🙌

This show F$#%in' Rules dude!!

Mortis X and Emmonia have produced a drag show that not only had me going crazy in my seat, but their incorporation of drag artists with different showcases, interests, and talents makes this one production I will not soon be forgetting.

I'm new to being an audience member for drag and burlesque shows; three years ago, shows like these would not be on my priority list when starting my first-draft of my Fringe list. This year, it was number TWO of the top five shows I had to see and it did not disappoint.

From Mortis' opening performance that set the space-themed exploration of thrills and chills up perfectly (and introduced a really awesome subversion on burlesque) to Emmonia's IN.CRE.DI.BLE taking over as host of the show, I new that me and my seat neighbours were in for a wild and twisted experience.

But as metal as this production was, it was really well orchestrated and organized. Each performance is highlighted as a chapter in the Fear Fables and I love that because it made me feel each act had a underlying message of "You thought that was freaky and fabulous, wait until you see the next one."

And I must commend everyone of the performers; J**z Elle, Art Official, MX Jackson, CallMeKeeks, Romulus, and Damien Ghoul you were all excellent, and each of your showcased pieces had standout moments throughout, and many of them felt like fully formed anthology horrors in their own right.

The tech was also excellent PARTICULARLY the lighting. Throughout the show I adored how every scene and performer was lit. The only thing that made me wince on a technical level was the sound felt pretty heavy through the microphones and speakers at the top of the show, but I attribute that to my ears opening up at a noon showing, although I did notice that any speaking that was not in a mic needed to have full projection from the performers so they could be heard.

But does that detract from the show in any way? No. Would I want it to be adjusted? Not if it would make me head-bang less to any of the songs featured.

The last thing I want to highlight is CallMeKeeks piece, specifically because it mad me cry. As a horror fan, I know that good horror or thrilling pieces of media are not solely based on shock, but they make you think, they make you interested in the world and society you are a part of and engage critically with your community. Chapter 4 had a reveal that just hurt me in the best way because the hurt was an acknowledgement of a truth told through a fantastical scenario, which awakens your mind, again, to your society and community.

Cheers to all the Fear Fables crew and thanks for making this production such thrilling and special experience!

Best friends, best friends, making me laugh!!

Nat and Chrissy (Performed by Nat Feehan and Chrissy DeWitt) is a sketch comedy show that really lets you feel the love that two friends have for their art and the love and appreciation they have for an audience. Each segment of the show was, for myself, adding another layer of delightful joy either to their own isolated portion of the show OR to the overall construction of reoccurring bits.

It would be wrong of me to reveal any of the bits that occur but one of my favourite moments in the show reminded me of my favourite sketch from Saturday Night Live: The Delicious Dish Radio Show Christmas Special.

For those that don't know, that sketch is famous for the driest deliveries of the dirtiest jokes you've EVER heard about Christmas treats; however what makes that sketch live rent-free in my heart is the understanding that there are poor souls driving on the snowy roads on their way to Christmas parties with their families and imagining the mouth a-gapped faces of everyone unfortunate enough to listen to that particular broadcast.

My favourite moment from Nat and Chrissy took me to those places of comedic understanding. Intelligent and layered humour on the simplest of premises.

On occasion, I did ask myself "Is repetition of bits and moments making me feel entertained or am I just pulled out of the moment?" But as I was getting to that point, they pulled me back in and I, no exaggeration, started crying of laughter from how far we had gone and was, again, delighted with where we were at.

I have not known Chrissy or Nat for long at all and have only seen them kill it at Weird Al Kareoke (ALSO on at the Edmonton Fringe) but what I could inferred about them from this show is that they love comedy and making a connection with an audience. That connection, by the way, is not antagonistic.

To any aspiring comedians out there that feels being against the audience, berating, or putting them down sets them up for success in their performances, let Nat and Chrissy: Everything is on the Table stand as an example that the opposite is not just true, but makes the audience what to give you their laughter and love from the beginning to the end 🙌

You don't need a chaperone for this one! Wit and Whimsy is one of the most unexpectedly hilarious and heartfelt improv experience I have ever had. As a professional improviser myself and someone who as taken notes and made an effort to make myself better in being a socially conscious and considerate comedian and stage partner, this amazing cast of performers makes it look effortless and was truly inspiring!

Their opening suggestion grab was delightful and compelling, after a genuine land-acknowledgement from the B.C. based performers they requested qualities one might associate with someone that we all love, immediately putting us into the romantic mentality.

They also incorporated an oracle card pulling to contribute to the main theme of the show; I dabble in the tarot sphere of reading so I have often associated Oracle Cards with 'levity' or 'lightness'. Here, however, giving power to these cards by having them be the expected theme of the show is something, I feel, should be commended.

Often what separates great improv from "expected" or "noticeable" improv (I'm avoiding saying bad because, typically, the metric of criticism comes from how well audiences can see that this is all made up on the spot) is cohesiveness and a thematic thorough-line. People can look at any form of structure given to an improv show and falsely criticize it for being "planned out". But this suggestion grab involving the oracle cards was an indicator that we were about to witness a show performed by expert story-tellers - Story-tellers who know that, in-order to make-up an entire romance juggling multiple performer personalities that also is expected to be funny and unexpectedly moving, you NEED NEED NEED a thematic structure to tie your impulses together.

And tie together they did. I have been a part of shows where we care for the secondary side characters but RARELY do I see it. It was truly the highlight of the show when the father and mother of one character, who appeared only to give a small level of stakes and comedic relief also had a romantic resolution that was honest to the characters and comedy they had established AND was true to the theme set up initially. Who know that drinking bath water to calm one's nerves could be one of the most honest romantic gestures.

And the main characters were also a delight to watch; from the stuffed suited male characters (presented by the all femme presenting cast) to the female characters that covered a full spectrum of personalities. Each individual had clear identifiers that made me excited to see who would come out from behind the curtain next.

When the moments that revealed the show was truly an improvised show occurred (Breaking on the humorous lines that you didn't expect yourself to say, or not being able to find the opening in the curtain to make your exit) It never pulled me out of the experience. If anything, I laughed even harder because the emotion that motivated the exit was so charged and, truly, which of us has not tried to storm out of a room that we couldn't find the exit out of? 🤣

This was recommended as an A+++++ improv show to me. I'll go one-step further: Wit and Whimsy is an improvised theatre show that encourages me to go to more and more Fringe shows. It is the kind of production that makes me excited for the festival and proud as an Edmonton Artist that this festival brings performs from all of the country and world to share their art with all of us!