The last day of our time at the Fringe arrives. We wake, we move, we walk. A long walk at that. There's been a substantial amount of moving things around on this one. From the first day to the last, with bonus moves in between.
Keeps us healthy.
But the new place is nice. Quiet. Clean. I dig it. Lisa digs it. We dig it.
And so, after setting up our things, we take a stroll down this lovely street to see a dance show called Midsommar.
It's fucking amazing. Beautiful. Wild. Original. I don't know if it's inspired by the movie and I really don't care. It's brilliant.
We walk into the space. First thing we notice: There is dirt on the floor. Dark, loamy, the kind of dirt life pops out of. Also, there are all these young girls on the stage. They could be anywhere between 14 and 30. There is a wildness to them. A danger. They all seem to be anticipating something that will be happening soon. They also all have laurels of flowers in their hair. They keep looking out into the audience as we walk in. Some smile. Some flat out stare. One of them walks up to Lisa, places her crown of flowers on Lisa's head. One by one, all the dancers place their flowers on someone in the audience. And then the dance begins. Music pulsates. The dancers perform this ritual of spring and life and power and fear and it's transportive. It's like a dream of that party you went to after dropping acid.
It's enthralling and kinetic and I love it.
Next we stroll over to ZOO Playground to see Sam Bate's new play Sessions. This is a serious play about serious things, and it's beautiful in every sense. The writing is spot on, organic, funny, real, fast-paced and on point, at times brutal and at other times brimming with empathy and insight. The acting is some of the best I've seen at the Fringe. Ever. Kudos to Sam Bates for both writing and directing, Adam Halcro for his incendiary turn as George, Naytanael Isareal for his rock solid portrayal of David, Finlay Murray for a subtle but powerful design, and Stacey Cullen for producing this fabulous, numinous new play. Go see it if you can!
So, now I am full of two brilliant shows. Nothing left to do but give our final performance of Banned at Fringe. The house is full. The cast is primed. We've been up and down and all over the past ten days. We are ready. We go out and give the best performance yet. The audience by the end is yelling and hooting and hollering, and I feel both elated and sad. Elated at the show tonight, sad that now that we've cracked it and I think could do it for a while quite well, it's time to pack our bags and head to points unknown.
We have a cast drink atop the Johnny Walker building, which is lovley. The views are stunning and we are all in high spirits. After, some of us head to Greenside HQ for their end of the week party. I see a lot of people I've met this week. Meet some more. Talk with others I met last year who now feel like old friends. Which of course they are. Somehow it's past midnight and time to go, and we walk for over half an hour, through a town still dancing, past theatre's going dark, down some of the prettiest streets you will every see, to our quiet room and sleep.
In the morning, some take the high road, some take the low. Lisa and I take a car and head to the Highlands.
More on that soon.
Here's a song. It's Sinatra. One for My Baby. The baby in question being the show we just closed. One for my baby, and one more for the road.
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