Summer 2002

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September 24, 2002

The Federal Bureau had the opportunity to present three new solo shows at the recently completed Edinburgh Fringe Festival in the beautiful and historic capital city of Scotland. For those of you who are unfamiliar with this festival, it is simply the granddad of all theatre/performance festivals. It is now in its 37th year.

The Fringe Society reports that almost 900 companies performed 22,000 shows during the month of August. There were over two hundred venues and it is accurate to say that the entire city is turned upside down to accommodate so many visitors.

Solo shows were well represented. A fair estimate is that there were between 225 and 250 new solo shows represented. That's quite impressive. Of these, perhaps 60 percent were solo comedy
performances, though many of them were theatrical in nature and not strictly stand-up acts.

Feds director Joe Ajlouny attended 19 different solo shows. Each one was clever in its own way. The elements that make a solo show work (writing,
acting, music, tech, costumes) often cause the viewer to forget that only one person is on stage. These elements "become" the other characters against whom the solo artist performs. Of the shows he attended, several stood out for their quality and effectiveness. They are:

1. The Last Man in Europe by Michael McEvoy; a stage bio of author George Orwell.
2. The Tragedian by by Alister O'Loughlin; about19th century actor and company manger Edmund Kean.
3. Truth or Falsetto by Ernesto Tomasini; a secret history of the Italian Castrati.
4. Talking Cock by Richard Herring; the men's answer to The Vagina Monlogues.
5. Slaves of Starbucks by Peter Aterman; a magnificently creative indictment on American cultural imperialism.
6. Goering's Defense by Ross Gurney-Randall; the Nazi's version of events.

The variety of these and other shows is far too great to fully describe in this brief summary. The showcase of talent that is the Edinbrugh Fringe Festival continues to grow and inspire. More information about these and others can be found at the Fringe's official website: www.edfringe.com

A closing note, it was ironic to learn from a report in The Stage magazine that theatre people are less likely to be married or attached to a
significant other than any other profession
polled. Wonder why?