The Toronto Fringe Festival has officially begun! After a delightful launch party on July 4^th, the productions got underway on the 5^th and the Fringe started in earnest. I was able to catch two shows on this delightful opening day, and look forward to many more in the coming days.

MAZE by Greenlight Theatre

Make sure you’ve got your tissues handy for this compelling and heartfelt drama. Written and directed by Duncan Rowe, MAZE is a look at family, love, and loss through a young woman’s attempt to escape a maze so she can see her family again.

The opening image is profound; the main character is seen asleep (though she’s actually standing) but is flanked by two foreboding masked characters. As she awakens into the maze, she is driven forward by her desire to get back to her family. The story blends moments of the woman’s present and past as the dream-like maze blurs her sense of reality. The final scene is where I really started to feel the tears welling up; the family gathered around their matriarch as she’s in the hospital, trying to find the words to say goodbye to someone they’re not ready to lose. It’s a universal suffering we all bear and yet it never seems to get easier.

Stellar performances are given by the whole cast, particularly from Tia Baum and Darius Rathe, who star as the young woman and her future husband. Baum truly must take the audience with her through the story they’re telling and she does a wonderful job.

You’re going to want to make sure that this show makes it onto your to-see list for Fringe this year. It’s beautiful, moving, and the kind of great work I adore seeing at the Fringe. For more information and tickets, visit: MAZE | Toronto Fringe Festival (fringetoronto.com)

The Exorcist: An Operetta

If you’re a fan of horror movies, do I have the composer for you! Eli Pasic has taken the legendary film “The Exorcist” and turned it into an operetta for the ages. A one-man production, The Exorcist: An Operetta will leave you possessed with joy and laughter…and hopefully no other spirits or wraiths.

Pasic is an impressive composer, using classic operetta tropes to create a new take on a well-known film. The songs are catchy, jaunty, and very, very funny. Interspersed between the songs is Pasic’s narration of what the action on stage would look like, as well as him doing bits of dialogue. This means that he’s playing at least 6 characters throughout the story, and yet each one is perfectly distinct in his delivery. Throw in the tidbits about operetta traditions and the practicalities of staging something of this magnitude, and you’ve got a delightful evening of entertainment.

I enjoyed the venue where The Exorcist is located as well; in a redone Victorian house, it’s the perfect setting for a spooky tale! Whether you’re a fan of musicals or horror or both, there’s something for everyone at The Exorcist: An Operetta. It’s a small venue so make sure you get your tickets before they sell out! For more info and tickets, visit: The Exorcist: An Operetta | Toronto Fringe Festival (fringetoronto.com)