Camryn Sunshine

Holy Moly. LIVE IN HELL. What a rich text.

As the audience took their seats in Performance Works pre-show, our eyes rested on a comedically oversized cardboard Amazon delivery box. I've seen plenty of theatre; obviously, in it waited this one-woman-show's one woman. Suspense set in. Once the lights came down and the Devil Herself emerged, a sly grin didn't leave my face until well after curtain call. I felt like I was in on the joke. This masterpiece had unfolded before me, all for me.

"Commitment to the Bit" and an utter lack of shame are common traits in actors, but Marita Michaelis outdoes all competitors. This is a very silly and very crude play, but throughout - inbetween bouts of raucous laughter - I found myself marveling at the nuance and sophistication with which this show explores the Nature of Evil and the mollified complicity of living in the Imperial Core.

LIVE IN HELL could've easily been another fun-but-forgettable Fringe romp through personal anecdotes about dildos and vacations to Barcelona. It's something more. It's hilarious. It's surprising. It meets our moment in the fires of 2026.