Thank you Edmonton.

This has been an experience to say the least. We had our final show today at noon, and we shared our last day with a great audience. We were nearly sold out, and the energy was high. We loaded up our set, and now we are catching the last couple of shows, and enjoying the last couple of moments that we can with the incredible people we have had the chance to meet while on the tour.

Between Winnipeg, Calgary and Edmonton- I did a count, and found that I have had the opportunity to watch 64 shows, that’s including four outdoor performances. There is no circuit like this in the states so to have this experience, to see this many shows, to visit different cities of Canada, has been one of those life affirming treats.

Nothing is a blur it is all very carefully and thankfully contained in my mind and memory. Many, many thanks to the City and people of Edmonton for supporting the performance art world.

For now Edmonton; good-bye and good-night

Thank you, again.

Greetings, Fringers.

In past columns, I’ve touched on the subject of how the Edmonton Fringe has changed over the years that I’ve known it. It’s ten years since I first played Edmonton, and most of you by now know that Dreamscape is this year returning after a six year absence.

I thought long and hard about coming back to the Fringe. I had nothing against it. In fact, I have lots and lots of happy memories of my time at the Canadian Fringes, and Edmonton in particular. In fact….it was really at the Edmonton Fringe that I first started getting to know Tina, who is now my partner, and is expecting our child in February. Yes, Edmonton has a LOT of memories!

So why the doubts? Well, during the six years we’d been away, I’d heard a lot of negative press about how the Edmonton Fringe had been changing. Horror stories. Particularly up for criticism was the whole Online Ticketing thing. People were saying that it had killed the atmosphere, and that the public only turned up on the Fringe Site to see particular shows. There was no party atmosphere, and the street traders and performers were losing out big time.

And that is one of reasons why we decided only to do the Edmonton Fringe. We wanted to see if it was still as much fun as we remembered. And, let’s face it, we wanted to see if we were still the same people who could have as much fun at the Fringe as we used to.

Our friends at Purple Fish were quite keen to give it a go, and that sort of nudged us at Dreamscape to also apply. It would be an adventure. We had done many a Fringe together in the past, and it would be great for both companies to be working alongside each other again.

Well…it didn’t quite work out that way. Tina was in both productions anyway, but when the Purple Fish team found they couldn’t make it over, they suggested that they produce the show, and that I take over in the cast. So, it’s just two of us over here, rather than four. But all the same, we could still have a good time….right?

RIGHT! It has been fantastic. Sure, being in two shows was hard work, and meant we didn’t have time to enjoy other aspects of the Fringe as we might have liked. But we really have had a great time.

Most importantly, those negative reports of the Edmonton Fringe have now been dispelled from my mind. It’s just as much fun, if not better! Already Tina and I are talking of future projects. The online ticketing is fantastic, particularly as they still have On-Site Ticket sales (VERY important!). And I love the way that companies can check their pre-sales, though I would love to know if there was also a way of checking the running total of one’s income (”have we broken even yet? have we broken even yet?….The Artists’ chant).

Oh…there is one piece of the Edmonton Fringe that I miss. Where is “Cowman”? Does anyone remember “Cowman”? “Cowman” was a street entertainer. His act? Well, I guess it’s all in the name really. He dressed up as a cow, stood on his head, and played a Kazoo. And that was it. Pure Fringe! Where else? Yes, I lament the absence of “Cowman”. Maybe he’s moved on to pastures new…as it were. Sadly missed. But as for the rest? It’s still the best party in Canada! Let’s KEEP ON FRINGING!

A la prochaine!

FERNANDO

Greetings Fringers!

Who is the most important person in the Theatre?

When I used to teach at a Drama School in England, I would often ask that question of my students, early on in the course. The answers were diverse, but usually fairly predictable: The Actor, The Director…sometimes they would think a bit more broadly and suggest The Technician….or the more financially orientated might suggest The Producer. Others, of course, would realise that it was a trick question, and would try to second guess me, and suggest The Cleaner, or The Ticket Seller. Of course…they are all wrong.

The most important person in the Theatre is….the member of the Audience.

Actors are so quick to forget this. They can think of themselves as the Star on the theatrical Chistmas tree. All other people are there to support them, for they are the real TALENT of the show. “This light isn’t focussed properly! That bit of carpet needs to be fastened down! I can’t work under these conditions!”….you’ve heard it all before.

For their part, Technicians often learn to treat actors with a degree of contempt. Pampered egos who couldn’t get a proper job. Back in England, I have done many tours as an actor, and the Technicians and Stage Management generally remain polite but aloof. But I have also toured as a Stage Manager…and the moment you walk into the theatre you are welcomed by the Tech Staff, shown the Green room, and treated as a colleague and equal. Same person, different job!

But back to the audience. Without the audience…none of us would be here. There would be no theatres. There might be plays…but only as academic reading exercises. Everything we do, in theatre, is for the AUDIENCE.

So why do some actors have such contempt for the audience? If they’re not responding as the actor wishes, they are a “Bad” audience. If there aren’t enough of them, the actor feels they don’t have to put in as much effort. And so on…and so on…

But not in Edmonton! One of the beautiful things about this Fringe is that there really is a nice rapport between the Public and the Artists. We expect to have a small audience at times, and so we give the same show, with the same effort. After all, those 30 people might well recommend us to 130 more! Likewise, isn’t it nicer to have 30 people who are really INTO the show, than 100 who aren’t really enjoying it? True, it doesn’t help finances, but we all like our show to be LIKED, don’t we?

Criticism can hit us hard in this game. We can fall into the trap of taking it far too seriously. A friend of mine in England once toured a one-man show. He recieved 20 reviews: 19 of them positively GLOWED, but one was critical. Guess which one stuck in his mind, overshadowing all the rest?!! But somehow, that form of feedback doesn’t seem so personal here at the Fringes. People see us on or around the site, and come up to us to say how much they enjoyed the show. That means a lot: they didn’t have to do that.

True, the people who come up to you usually do it to say something positive. But in the past I’ve also got into discussions with people who’d seen the show, and had criticsims to make. It’s wonderful that they feel they can broach their thoughts with you. As Artists we should be welcoming it. And isn’t it so much easier to discuss critical shortcomings of one’s work with a real person, face to face, rather than just read it coldly as the written word?

Vive la Publique!

A la prochaine!

FERNANDO

Greetings fellow Fringers!

Yes, I’m back on the subject of Reviews again. I did warn you, didn’t I?! Thanks to those of you who sent feedback or otherwise made their feelings known following my last visits to this subject. At that time, I deliberately wrote BEFORE the reviews for our shows had come out. There was good reason for this: it would prevent me being labelled the “embittered artist” who had had bad reviews. As soon as that happens, people use it as an excuse to ignore anything the “embittered artist” might have to say.

Actually, it didn’t quite work. One person still tagged me thus, even though there had been no reviews, and I certainly wasn’t embittered! However…now that the reviews are out, how do I feel? Well….fine, to be honest! In fact, the reviews have been so incredibly diverse (for both shows), that it only goes to reinforce the fact that it is all OPINION.

OK, so there a four papers in Edmonton which seem to give good coverage to the Fringe. The Sun seems to have taken more of a back seat these days. The excellent Colin Maclean is doing his best, but can only see a limited number of shows. So, no reviews in The Sun for us this year.

As for the rest, well…for “Full of Sound and Fury’ we got 2.5 stars from the Journal. So that means the show is mediochre. But wait…we got 5 stars and “Pick of the Fringe” from Vue Weekly. So that means the show is excellent, right? Good, bad, good, bad. 2.5 stars. 5 stars. But now let’s look at “Red Wine and Canvas”. Vue Weekly gave us 1 star, and the Journal gave us 5 stars. Awful, excellent, awful, excellent? What on earth does it all mean?

It means….people are human. Even reviewers. They have opinions and differing tastes, just like the rest of us. Look a little further. The Online “Edmonton Journal” allows people to comment on the reviews. “Full of Sound and Fury” has received some amazing support there, very positive indeed. But “Red Wine and Canvas” has had someone completely disagreeing with the 5 star review, and finding the show “painful to sit through”. Opinions, all opinions.

Then look at the 30 second reviews. More opinions. It’s great.

Hats off to the Journal for allowing the public to post alternative reviews. It shows a healthy willingness to be contradicted. Likewise, the 30 second reviews really give the public chance to have their say. But be careful: these Forums (Fora?? Forae?) can be misused. It is not unknown for Artists and Companies to post their own reviews, extolling themselves to the heavens. My word of advice here is…DON”T. The open public forum is a wonderful tool which has been created to allow ordinary people to voice their opinions. It’s not there for Artists to advertise, stroke their own egos, or rail at perceived injustice. If the system is abused too much, it will be removed, and we will all be the worse off for it.

Needless to say, Dreamscape has never made up its own reviews…but I know of companies who do, including an British company who fabricates both reviews and star ratings. Egos, always egos.

So, back to those reviews. Some have been good, some have been bad. In an audience of 140 you’re unlikely to delight every single person. Equally, you’re unlikely to disappoint every single person. People are different….and thank goodness for that, or every show would be working to the same formula.

I don’t object to any  of the words written in any of the reviews of our shows. But yes, I still do object to the “star” system.  A review is an opinion, but by giving it a number, we somehow turn it into a “FACT”. But Art really isn’t about facts. It’s about abstracts. Isn’t that its beauty? Let’s leave the facts to the Accountants.

A la prochaine!

FERNANDO

Good morning Fringers!

Don’t you just love the word “Penultimate”? I mean, it’s such a useful word, isn’t it? The only other way you could express the same meaning is: “The one before the last”, or “second to last”, or something like that. “Penultimate” makes it sound…I don’t know…more cool!

Anyway, here we are on the Penultimate day of the Fringe. Where has it all gone? Eleven days of Frantic Fringe-ing, eleven days of fervent flyering and persistent postering, and now the party is nearly over. Penultimate. But hey! That means we still have TWO DAYS TO GO! Let’s party! The fun is not yet over! Mind you, by the time you get to read this, it will probably be nearly the final day. The ULTIMATE!

Well, at least I managed to get to a few more shows over the past couple of days. “Manners for Men” by Justin, from Screwed and Clued, was very entertaining. A bitter-dark comedy, but nicely told, and with great commitment to Physical Theatre and Mime. Very well done…and a nice blast from the past: happy memories of performing “The Mysterious Mr Love” in that venue way back in 2002!

We also managed to catch “Boxhead”; a tale for children about a boy who (quite literally) loses his head. We so much wanted to catch this show partly for the Physical Theatre and Mask work (both of which Tina is particularly interested in), but also because we kept on meeting the hard-working Todd around the Fringe site. In fact, he was one of the first Fringe Artists we met this year. The show was a lot of fun…and most importantly: the kids loved it!

Next show up was “Pitch Blond” over at the Cabaret Lounge. Again, an interesting and thought-provoking play, telling a true story from the American “witch hunt” years. Nicely performed, though a little self-restricting through extended use of recorded soundtrack, which rather limited how much the show could be adapted to allow for the different reactions of audiences. However, it was still a good show, and maybe all the more disturbing because of the fact that in some ways we’re not so very far from that sort of thought-bullying today.

And then, of course, we managed to see “Full Frontal Nudity”. A title suited to any half-decent Fringe, but in fact there was nothing of the sort in the the drama. Directed by the lovley Jim de Felice, it featured a cast of 4, and some nicely judged performances, and delightfully simple staging.

Sadly, we weren’t able to fit David Belke’s “The Maltese Bodkin” into the schedule, but we’re hoping to get to see his new work “A Final Whimsey” tomorrow, before our final show.

And that, as they say, will be that. The end of another Fringe. I may not have seen as many shows as I have managed to see in the past, but I’d have to say that all the shows I’ve seen have been good. Some, indeed, have been excellent. And which of all the shows I’ve seen has been the best? Well, I can’t really say. It’s all only a matter of opinion, after all…

A la prochaine!

FERNANDO