By Crystal Wood

If Mooney on Theatre had our own Pick of the Fringe system in place, I think I would nominate The Naked Ballerina for it.

Continue reading The Naked Ballerina (Sarah Murphy-Dyson) – 2010 Toronto Fringe Review →

By Crystal Wood

Metro is the kind of show that will leave you bouncing in your seats.  It’s all fast-paced choreography and young, energetic dancers who clearly love what they’re doing.  And it shows.

Continue reading Metro (by Linette Doherty) – 2010 Toronto Fringe Review →

by Michelle Barker

The story of an ex-playwright cursed with a farcical life comes to the Toronto Fringe

I really thought that this show was going to be a drama when I went to see it.  Something about the definite article The just screams drama to me.  The Aquarium is actually a romantic comedy.  And it’s making audiences laugh and feel romantic at Factory Theatre right now. Continue reading The Aquarium (Good Egg and Triple Take Productions) 2010 Toronto Fringe Review →

By Megan Mooney

Okay.  Cactus: The Seduction is a friggin’ weird show.  Luckily, it’s also a friggin’ awesome one.

This is a show that’s been selling out everywhere it’s gone, and the buzz clearly followed it to the 2010 Toronto Fringe Festival.  I got there close to 20 minutes before the show started and was glad I had pre-booked my ticket.  I’m pretty sure they were already sold out.

What’s particularly impressive about that is that it was the first performance of Cactus in Toronto at this year’s festival.  Sometimes it seems a bit like pulling teeth to get audiences out to the first show of the festival.  Everyone wants to wait for reviews to come out so they can choose which of the 150+ shows they’re going to go to.

If you’re looking for a traditional narrative, this isn’t the show for you.  But if you have a sense of humour that sometimes trends towards the more base pursuits, and don’t mind a touch of the absurd, then you may very well pee yourself laughing at this one.  Which would perhaps fit perfectly into this show.

Continue reading Cactus: The Seduction (Jonno Katz) 2010 Toronto Fringe Review →

By Darryl Pring

There are two kinds of sketch troupes.  Those who rely on dick/fart jokes and those who don’t.  Charles is the latter kind of troupe. Charlie Stockman and Chuck Armstrong lean toward high status, smart writing rather than getting an easy laugh in their piece at the Toronto Fringe Festival – Relentless.

I attended the Canadian premiere of this Seattle based duo at Factory Theatre’s studio space at 10:30pm on the first day of Fringe, with eight other hopeful audience members.  For the most part it was entertaining.  But with a house that small it is next to impossible to have a hot show.

Continue reading Relentless Sketch Comedy (Charles) 2010 Toronto Fringe Review →