When reading that we were required to see a fringe show, I felt like a bad theatre lover. I did not know what in the world fringe was but a quick google search explained it. Fringe theatre is theatre that is not on the West End and is smaller in scale, not in one of the bigger/main theatre spaces. I wanted the majority of my experiences to be of theatre while I was here, so without realizing it, I had already watched a fringe show. Now, four weeks in, I have been to three. How exciting!
The first fringe show I experienced was Sophie’s Surprise 29th at Underbelly Boulevard, a little nook near Piccadilly Circus. I knew nothing going in, just that the show was going to be a cabaret of sorts. In hindsight, I am glad that I went in with little to no knowledge. It made the experience magical and so much fun! We entered the incredibly intimate space to birthday party decorations and a giant cake that had a 29 on it. Happy birthday, Sophie!
The performers came out a couple at a time, in costumes and in character. They interacted with us as audience members, painting a scene of being at a surprise birthday party for Sophie. Who is Sophie? Well, a woman in the audience was chosen by the cast and they sent her backstage. I do not think it was communicated with her that she was now going to be the main character and they sent her out to us where we were told to scream happy birthday to her. A surprise indeed!
The entire show was incredible! I have never been to an interactive theatre experience before, so this was a fresh start for me. We were involved in a decent amount of the show. The plot of the story is, obviously, a surprise birthday party for Sophie, but all of the friends in the cast are performing for Sophie. I do not remember the character names, but their names are rather mundane because they were more so character archetypes or stereotypes. The nerdy girl was in love with the clown (who appeared naked on stage at one point, I am not joking!) but he thought she was a dork. She changes her whole look to make him like her and he does. The ditsy blonde did not really have a storyline whatsoever. The goth girl and goth boy are a thing but the jock likes the goth girl. The goth girl has to pick between the two and the Sophie of the night picks for the goth girl. Justice for goth boy our night…
Yes, the plot really is not that great, but the show is about the spectacle of the whole thing. It was all one big circus act: a duo doing acrobatics on roller blades, a woman doing HAIR SUSPENSION, a fire performance, aerial straps, trapeze work, and so much more disguised in a silly plot. It was fun, hilarious, and an experience to say the least. I have so much respect for each of the performers because they each brought such a unique story with their talents and (literal) strengths. I was in awe the whole time with a giant smile or was laughing so hard I thought I was going to pass out!
Moving on, the next show is No Love Songs at Southwark Playhouse. This unique musical follows the lives of Lana and Jessie, who meet at a bar and fall in love. They quickly have a baby and the story follows along their struggles in parenthood. Jessie is a musician and leaves to tour with his bandmates to make ends meet for Lana and their baby. This leaves Lana to care for the baby alone, her family not nearby enough for the support she desperately needs. Lana falls into a spiral of postnatal depression and eventually tries to commit suicide. Jessie happens to be coming home and discovers her and this puts a massive strain on their relationship.
I was interested to see how a musical with just two characters and a man with a keyboard would work and was pleasantly surprised. This idea stemmed from Kyle Falconer and Laura Wilde. This play is based on their real life experiences into parenthood and struggling with all that ensues. Anna, who played Lana, did an incredible job of fully immersing herself in her character. She felt real and palpable to me. I adored her from the beginning and felt so deeply moved by her performance. John, who played Jessie, did an incredible job as well. He felt real to me, like a dumb man who did not appreciate someone he loves enough, but I still loved him in his flaws. The songs and dialogue blended so well together, when we would go into a musical piece, I never was taken out of the moment.
My only complaint was not about the show but rather the grumpy old man next to me the whole time who was annoyed that my seat got upgraded next to him. He complained to his wife very openly that he did not like that I sat next to him “too aggressively”, despite the fact that I simply sat down. Ugh. Anyway!
The last fringe show I experienced was English at Kiln Theatre. The story follows several individuals who are trying to learn English. Their native tongue is farsi and they currently reside in Iran. The different characters have different reasons to learn English: Roya wants to talk to her granddaughter, Elham wants a specific internship for medical school but has to speak English, Omid wants a sense of identity, Goli wants the knowledge, and Marjan teaches for a sense of purpose. Each character was portrayed by the actor with so much light yet a sense of heaviness that felt genuine.
Nadia, who plays Marjan, and Serena, who plays Elham are major standouts for me. The delicate balance of strong characters clashing is definitely no easy feat, yet Nadia and Serena did such a wonderful job of that specific dynamic. Marjan had so much love for the love of language yet the displacement she felt being back in her native country could be a story by itself. Elham’s frustration of trying so hard to learn something yet struggling so much is something that I really resonated with.
The tech aspects of it were interesting. I thought the set was simple yet effective. The choice to make the time changes very quick and sharp with a score and sound effect were incredibly effective for me. It was also very impressive to see the actors snap so quickly to the next blocking segment. To have a whole play set in a fixed or single location can be boring visually, but it never felt that way for me. The lighting, blocking, and generally sense of movement made the space feel fresh the whole time.
These three shows have been up on my list of shows that I have got to see in London thus far. Yes, I still have some left, but all three of these shows were so memorable and inspiring. I have said this previously, but I am so incredibly thankful for this experience. I love theatre so much but have not got to experience as much theatre in the States as I would like. This trip alone outnumbers the amount of theatre I have seen in my 26 years of life, so I truly feel so fortunate to be here and experiencing these wonderful shows.
Until next time.
Cheers!
Theatre in London U of A 