It was another long and exciting day at Fringe! I love the social aspect of Fringe and being able to connect with other reviewers, performers, and my readers (yes, you!) while I’m out and about. I’ve met some wonderful people over the past week as well as running into good friends. It makes the journey all the more fun!

June – Uriah’s Granddaughter Productions

Prison’s not your typical place to form a friendship, but that’s exactly what happens to June in her final days of incarceration. June, written and directed by Gillian R. Edwards, details the last weeks of June’s life as she is put on trial for the murder of her lover, a wealthy businessman. As her friendship with her jail guard blossoms, we also become aware of the complicated circumstances leading up to June’s arrest. A powerful story beautifully told, June is a great offering at this year’s Fringe Festival.

We’re introduced to the men in June’s life, her friend Geoff and her lover Richard, through the stories she shares with her guard Parker. June and Parker share common rural roots, and as they each divulge more secrets to one another they become greater friends and confidants. This moving story is brought to life by a talented cast: Jesse McQueen, Bonnie Anderson, Jacob Klick, and Daniel Christian Jones. McQueen stars as the titular character and she does a masterful job at keeping us on our toes; never quite knowing her full feelings until she finally breaks down in the final scene. Anderson’s performance compliments McQueen’s perfectly and the two have a light and friendly chemistry on stage. Jones gives a passionate and emotional performance as June’s bestie Geoff. Klick’s performance is excellent, making him the possessive bad-guy the audience loves to hate.

What I enjoyed the most about June is how humanely the story is told; there is one moment in particular where Richard has a moment alone with the audience and it forces us to change our perspective on the whole issue. It complicates things which makes it more realistic; life doesn’t usually give us just pure bad guys versus good guys, everyone has the potential to be a little bit of both. By the end of the play, I wasn’t sure how I felt about June, nor did I have any certainty of her innocence in the whole thing. It’s masterful writing and made for an outstanding experience.

There are still two performances left! For more info and tickets, visit: JUNE | Toronto Fringe Festival (fringetoronto.com)

The Parliament of Poets – Apollo’s Troupe

How would you describe modern life? Could you word it like Virgil, or Du Fu, or Shakespeare? In The Parliament of Poets, all of the greats from all over the globe, past and present, are assembled to consult with the God Apollo on what modern life is like. A dramatic reading of his epic poem, Frederick Glaysher takes the audience to the moon and back with The Parliament of Poets.

I found the poem itself fascinating; the idea of being able to assemble the greatest poets from across the globe, even those who are from millennia ago, is a dream. And the whole thing did have a dream-like quality to it, with time and space being fluid and ever-changing. The writing itself is beautiful, and Glaysher reads it and performs it with the passion of a creator sharing their work. I do think that the introductory sections could have been cut down a bit for time, as there was much time taken up discussing who all was on the moon at their first summoning and the actual adventure itself was truncated. The overall message is one I think is very important: a universal celebration of life. From the moon, you can’t see boarders, you can’t see political lines, you just see Earth as a whole, and if we all started to take a more universal, humanistic world view, the world could be a better place.

There are still a couple of chances left to catch this epic tale! Glaysher is also selling copies of the poem before the show! For more information and tickets, visit: The Parliament of Poets | Toronto Fringe Festival (fringetoronto.com)

James and Jamesy: Easy as Pie – Alastair Knowles

There’s plenty of clowning around happening at Factory Theatre with James and Jamesy: Easy as Pie. Classic clowning meets existential wisdom in this hilarious show about facing your fears. Bringing joy to audience members young and old, James and Jamesy: Easy as Pie is pure delight from start to finish.

I truly wasn’t expecting this show to get as deep and existential as it did, but that made me love it all the more! James helps Jamesy attempt to overcome his fear of taking a pie to the face, so they travel into Jamesy’s brain to try and help. What made me smile was that the solution was to ask for help when you need it; a message I know I certainly need reminding of and I think a lot of us adults do too.

Aaron Malkin and Alastair Knowles bring James and Jamesy to life, their excitement radiating from them throughout the performance. You can tell that they love what they do, and have fun with one another while on stage. They broke character so many times during the performance and it somehow made them even more charming and funny.

I’m so glad I was able to catch a performance of James and Jamesy: Easy as Pie and I hope you did too! I’m also hoping that they’ll come back for another Fringe, I’d love to see what other adventures James and Jamesy will get up to! For more information, visit: James & Jamesy: Easy as Pie | Toronto Fringe Festival (fringetoronto.com)

Maggie Chun’s First Love and Last Wedding – Helen Ho

Maggie Chun’s life gets turned upside down when her middle-school crush (and possibly the love her life) turns up at the hotel/chapel where she’s getting married. A queer coming of age story about going after what you want, Maggie Chun’s First Love and Last Wedding is a heartfelt comedy you won’t want to miss at Fringe this year.

Written by Helen Ho and directed by Julia Edda Pape, Maggie Chun’s First Love and Last Wedding is full of farcical twists, witty dialogue, and a touching story about true love. I loved that the small town in which Maggie is seemingly stuck is called Windser, ON; I grew up in a small town near the real Windsor, ON and could relate heavily to the small-town experience described in this play.

Jobina Sitoh gives a stand-out performance as Maggie Chun; she makes us totally fall in love with Maggie and want the best for her. Julia Rapai also gives a stellar performance as her crush Charlie Regan. Her charm and humour leaves no room to wonder why Maggie adores her. The cast of this show all give stellar performances and bring a hilarity and honesty to the piece. They all worked so well together and made it an unforgettable experience.

There are still a few more chances to catch Maggie Chun’s First Love and Last Wedding at the Fringe! For more information and tickets (which trust me, you’ll want to snap up), visit: Maggie Chun’s First Love and Last Wedding | Toronto Fringe Festival (fringetoronto.com)