I’m having such a fun time at the Fringe Festival once again this year! I had the whole evening at Daniels Spectrum, seeing three shows in the two Native Earth venues. I ran into some friends from uni, had a lovely time with my fiancé for his last day of shows, and even got to watch some of the Switzerland vs Colombia game with some folks from the neighbourhood.
Photo by Caspian Keys
Spiritual Bob is Trapped in Paradise! – C&C Theatre Company
“What is wanted?” Sister Jackson’s phone greeting already has me in stitches, yet it also gets to the heart of what Spiritual Bob is Trapped in Paradise! is all about – what is it that you really, truly want? What will you choose if you can have everything you’ve ever wanted, or the safety of what you already know? Spiritual Bob is Trapped in Paradise!, written and directed by Caspian Keys, will have you laughing and crying in equal measure, and has an ending you simply won’t see coming!
Between the pre-show music and the stylized cover for the program, Spiritual Bob is Trapped in Paradise! is ready to take us all to church, but not just any church, the Mormon Church. It follows the story of two sister missionaries who are suddenly trapped in time and space, and yet in this void they are given opportunities to change their future. The big question is, will they take the leap?
Claire Rice and Nicky Nasrallah (aka Selena Vyle) star as Sister Jackson and Sister Lewis. They have great chemistry on stage, playing off one another well and really letting their friendship shine through. I love how Nasrallah has his full beard the entire show; it has us suspend our disbelief for most of the show, while also showing us Sister Lewis’ secret the whole time. I also love how Rice’s character is so accepting of Sister Lewis; this is the kind of love we need to see in the world.
I really wasn’t sure what to expect from Spiritual Bob is Trapped in Paradise!, and yet I think it’s one of my favourite shows I’ve seen at the Fringe so far. Funny, heartwarming, and thought-provoking, it’s everything you want in a play!
https://fringetoronto.com/fringe/show/spiritual-bob-trapped-paradise
Assembly Süggested – RYMN
Wouldn’t it be great if there was an instruction manual for friendship? Just find this bolt, use this allen key, and you’ve got a friend for life! Unfortunately, Joule learns that this isn’t the case. Rymn Wadhwa’s Assembly Süggested uses Wadhwa’s personal experiences to create a surreal and moving story about the pitfalls of friendship, particularly in your early 20’s.
Joule is studying to be an Engineer, and she’s a very methodical young lady…except for when it comes to her personal life. But when she meets Violet, everything changes. The two click immediately, and Violet even agrees to help Joule build some furniture. Everything seems to be going fine, if not intentionally a little slowly, but somewhere along the lines, the instructions start to get quite personal. Should the girls listen to the what the booklet says? Or is their relationship past repair?
An element to Assembly Süggested that I really like is how it’s not shy about telling us that this is one point of view of this story. Though there is a narrator type figure for most of the play, it’s easy to tell her bias towards Joule. Yet that’s how we all see our own stories, isn’t it? We can only truly know our experiences of a moment, and not what someone else’s side of things looks like. I also like that this is about the breakdown of a friendship; I think the loss of a friend is highly underrated, particularly in the media. And especially when things don’t end amicably, it can be devastating.
Emma Scoble, Ruby Jaclyn, Brianna Newman give excellent performances in Assembly Süggested. Their nuanced and vulnerable portrayals of Joule and Violet make for a captivating and heartrending production.
Assembly Süggested reminds us that there is no instruction manual for life, or love, but we can always give it our best.
https://fringetoronto.com/fringe/show/assembly-suggested
Photo by Marc J Chalifoux
110% Wizard – Key Creations
Are you ready to have your mind 110% blown? Because Keith Brown’s 110% Wizard is here! A beautiful mix of storytelling and magic, 110% Wizard will make you question the very fabric of reality itself.
Brown is a charming performer, greeting the audience at the door as they come in, speaking to the audience before the show starts, and making sure to talk to everyone after the show. This also translates into his magic, where he handles the audience members with kindness and never forgets a name. You truly feel like you’re a part of the show whether you’re on stage or not.
For 100% Wizard, Brown chronicles some of the challenges he’s faced touring on cruise ships at the beginning of the year. From lost luggage to developing a new show on the spot, to a haunted dining room, it sounds like it was quite the adventure. Yet within this story, he’s able to show some absolutely physics-defying tricks which I will be thinking about for weeks, if not longer.
My fiancé was looking forward to this show from the moment the 2026 line-up was announced, and it was his final show of the Fringe. We both left laughing, and yet also feeling like we have no clue what’s real and what’s not any more. It’s our favourite part about a Keith Brown magic show – we’re never quite sure if it’s all illusions, or if the man can do actual magic. I guess you’ll just have to find out for yourself!
https://fringetoronto.com/fringe/show/110-wizard
Cover Photos: Photo by Caspian Keys featuring Claire Rice and Nicky Nasrallah. Assembly Süggested poster art by Shelley Vaz. Keith Brown – Photo by Marc J Chalifoux.
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