Fringe Reviews

“KILL ME NOW” – THE TEACHING CONFESSIONS OF AN UNDERCOVER CREATIVE
Mermusetmc, St. Catharines, ON
The Gasworks
Have you ever felt that your profession is holding you back from who you were meant to be? KILL ME NOW: THE TEACHING CONFESSIONS OF AN UNDERCOVER CREATIVE is one woman's journey through a career that never seems to quite fit, a dream of the path not taken, and the challenges of teaching.

Created and performed by Tammy McLeod, KILL ME NOW is a deeply personal storytelling piece, this show draws from over 25 years of experience in the teaching profession. Through 13 different stories, the artist takes audiences through the challenges, frustrations, and sometimes harm found in a lifetime spent in the classroom. Teaching isn't for the faint of heart and this story is an unfiltered look at how challenging it can be. The artist always finds humour in her situation and always moves on to the next challenge even crossing oceans in the process.

This show will resonate with educators and former educators who recognize that their career isn't for everyone and artists who have struggled to balance creativity with practicality and questioned whether they are on the right path. While the stories highlight the many difficulties of the profession, at its heart the show is about one person's search to reconnect with the creative identity that has been always calling and the emotional cost of not being able to do so.

McLeod brings a strong commitment and presence to the stage, guiding the audience through a complete hour of storytelling. Interludes of dancing and lip syncing allow the audience to reflect on each vignette. Each story builds on the last, creating a clear journey from a young actor encouraged to pursue a different path, through decades of teaching, and toward the possibility of embracing creativity once again.

The title KILL ME NOW perfectly captures the overwhelming moments explored throughout the piece, and the frustrations of unexpressed creativity, but the story ultimately leads to a new beginning, hopefully one that is a better fit. It is a candid look at the realities of a demanding profession and the desire to reclaim the passions that may have been set aside along the way. KILL ME NOW offers a personal and thought-provoking theatrical experience.
- Crystal Rose Haygarth

1 MILLION SERVED: YEARS WELL WAITRESSED
Outport Productions, Hamilton, ON
The Staircase | Elaine May

Created and performed by Wanda Carroll, 1 MILLION SERVED: YEARS WELL WAITRESSED feels like sitting down at a kitchen table for a cup of tea with a professional storyteller. Carroll welcomes the audience with warmth, humour, and even a plate of cookies, immediately creating the atmosphere of an old friend sharing stories across the table.

This charming, self-described “kick ass” Newfie waitress serves up a generous collection of tales drawn from her remarkable 35 years in the restaurant trade. During that time, Carroll has encountered every imaginable kind of customer and witnessed countless small human dramas unfold over coffee, meals, and unpaid bills.

The performance is structured around a menu of stories. Audience members choose which selections they would like to hear, allowing every show to follow a slightly different path. Carroll delivers each tale with the confidence and timing of someone who has spent decades reading a room, handling difficult personalities, and keeping customers entertained.

The format gives the production a relaxed and spontaneous quality. Carroll may be alone onstage, but the audience becomes an essential part of the evening. Their choices shape the show and encourage her storytelling.

Her tales include first dates, family celebrations, heartbreaks, awkward encounters, demanding customers, and unexpected moments of kindness. Beneath the laughter is a genuine appreciation for the people she has met and the lessons she has learned.

This may be the only Fringe production that feeds both your stomach and your imagination. Carroll serves every story with undeniable Newfoundland charm.
- Ray Z Rivers

A SEANCE SPECTACULAR WITH THE MYSTICAL MEDIUM WOLF SISTERS FROM THE GREAT WHITE NORTH
Ghosts Are Everywhere, Hamilton/Toronto, ON
Mills Hardware

Writer/Performers: Carly Ann Billings, Cecilia O’Grady

With one of the many shows with long titles in the Fringe, I feel the key word here is “Spectacular”. Annie and Lizzie are two mediums who are also sisters, that put together a seance show, complete with dowsing rods, talking boards, and other mystical items. We find out later that they are creating illusions for the audience, and for the most part, this is an “act”. The show starts off with the big energy that Billings is known for and has the appearance of a “carnival show”, so I feel I am not really spoiling that part. We come to know that one of the sisters claims that this is her “last show” and what follows is their conflict.

Billings and O’Grady characters have different auras, and both give very entertaining and good, although occasionally disconnected, performances. There is also fun use of sound and lighting designs. There are moments of transition, where we take a time shift to the past, as we learn of their history together, as well as a third unstaged character, Katherine.

Following along with the conflict, we ultimately turn to family love vs romantic love. There are several subjects being explored here, and perhaps with some polishing this show would become a little tighter. There are a lot of hilarious moments throughout and is a very enjoyable experience. Given the promo material and title, it was easy for me to miss that this was a comedy, and was expecting more of a mystical, perhaps dark themed show. However, I was pleasantly surprised with what was presented and look forward to if any further versions come forth.
- Luis Arrojo

If you've ever wished you could attend a Victorian séance with more laughs than nightmares, this is your chance. A SEANCE SPECTACULAR is an invitation from the Wolf Sisters to join them not merely as audience members, but as participants in their connection with the great beyond. Come along for a journey filled with laughter, sibling squabbles, touching moments, and just enough goosebumps to keep you on the edge of your seat.

Created and performed by Carly Anna Billings and Cecilia O'Grady, this immersive adventure transports audiences back to a more mysterious time as they step into the sisters' travelling séance. From the moment the performance begins, the fourth wall dissolves, inviting the audience to participate not only through their reactions but, for a lucky few, with onstage involvement as well. Rather than simply watching the story unfold, we become part of it.

The Wolf Sisters are wonderfully realized characters whose personalities and antics won me over quickly. Through cleverly staged flashbacks, we discover how the sisters came to travel together as mediums and glimpse the relationships and rivalries behind the spectacle. Billings is especially memorable as the elder sister, delivering impeccable comic timing, while O'Grady provides the perfect counterpart, creating a partnership that feels both genuine and delightfully chaotic.

Exceptional sound design and lighting become a third character in the production, transforming the theatre from a playful parlour performance into a genuinely immersive supernatural experience. Whether heightening the comedy or creating moments of real suspense, the technical elements work seamlessly with the performances to keep the audience fully engaged.

Packed with laughs while offering moments of connection, conflict, and heartfelt reflection, A SEANCE SPECTACULAR is much more than a ghost story. Local historical references add an extra layer of fun for Hamilton audiences, making this a show that is funny, touching, and just spooky enough to leave you wondering what might be waiting beyond the veil.
- Crystal Rose Haygarth

AWAKE AND DREAMING
SJMD, Hamilton, ON
The Westdale

AWAKE AND DREAMING, based on the novel by Canadian author Kit Pearson, is an ambitious new musical making its debut at the Hamilton Fringe Festival. Presented at the historic 1935 Westdale Theatre; the production combines childhood fantasy, family drama and psychological insight in a story about belonging, imagination and the complicated realities of growing up.

The musical was adapted by Shreya Jha, a McMaster pediatrics resident who is also an award-winning composer and playwright. Jha previously studied music and neuroscience before entering medicine, and her creative work has often brought together science, health and storytelling. Her experiences caring for children have clearly shaped this adaptation, particularly its sensitive treatment of childhood adversity.

Rather than presenting its young protagonist simply as a child who must overcome hardship, the musical explores how instability and neglect influence her fears, relationships and understanding of the world.

Eleven-year-old Theodora “Theo” Cafferty lives in Vancouver, British Columbia, with her unreliable young mother, Mary-Rae. An enthusiastic reader, Theo escapes into books about loving, seemingly perfect families. When her mom begins a new romantic relationship, Theo is sent to live with her aunt Sharon in Victoria.

During the ferry journey, Theo meets the Kaldors, a cheerful family with five children. After wishing that she could belong to them, Theo mysteriously awakens as a member of their household. For a time, she believes she has finally found the secure and loving home she has always imagined.

The fantasy eventually begins to disappear, and Theo awakens back on the ferry at the precise moment she left. Living with her aunt, she becomes determined to discover whether the Kaldors were real or merely a dream.

Theo eventually finds the family but learns that they do not remember her. She also discovers that they are not perfect. Like every family, they experience disagreements, disappointments and ordinary difficulties.

The mystery deepens with the appearance of Cecily Stone, the ghost of a children’s author who once lived in the Kaldor home. Cecily’s unfinished story and Theo’s desperate longing combined to create the imagined life, which faded when the author could not find an ending.

The production features at least twelve original songs, a six-member band that includes strings, and a talented cast capable of handling both the music and movement.

At 90 minutes, AWAKE AND DREAMING demands more attention than the average Fringe show, but the investment is worthwhile. With echoes of ANNE OF GREEN GABLES and a charming 1990s Vancouver Island setting, this is a thoughtful and joyful musical about childhood, family and learning that imperfect love can still be real.
- Brian Morton

BILGUISA SPEAKS UP
New Harlem Productions, Hamilton, ON
Backroom @ Ringside

BUILGUISA SPEAKS UP is well staged with two chairs facing the audience, offering a simple setting for the most important conversation in the lives of two star athletes - football players and sisters Bilguisa and Saluimata Simpore. Although we only see Bilguisa Simpore, played with heart and grit by Nicci Pryce, it’s easy to imagine why Saluimata would be silent facing a decision of this magnitude.

In the wake of accusations that the sisters are men (made by opponents they defeated in order to qualify for the World Cup), FIFA is requiring them to submit to gender testing and inspection. The Simpores face the decision of whether to submit or walk away from the World Cup and the game they both love.

Pryce’s powerful performance offers a view into Bilguisa’s hypothetical conversation as she comforts, cajoles and reaffirms her solidarity with her sister Saluimata by reminding her how badly Sal wants to play. Saluimata moved from Burkina Faso and Ivory Coast’s teams before joining Equatorial Guinea and Pryce moves between emotions of heartache, tenderness, anger and resolve with deftness and only one prop - FIFA’s paper statement, which twice mentions dignity, while asking for testing the sisters perceive as undignified - something that ultimately motivates them to withdraw from the World Cup and their dreams.

Mentioning the Iranian woman team’s hijab debate and the Italian team’s groping scandal, Pryce’s heartache as an athlete reaching the pinnacle of sport only to withdraw moves into an empowering rap through playwright Donna-Michelle St. Bernard’s surprising and heartfelt script. The play ends on notes of hope and empowerment.

Appropriately timed with FIFA’s World Cup, the play shines under the direction of Ravyn Wngz, who drops us into the world immediately and moves us on a bittersweet journey of emotions. This is for anyone who has faced a no-win decision with grace (or wished they had) or needs a 20 minute pick-me-up.
- Victoria Sullivan

CHURCH BOYFRIENDS & OTHER IMPURE THOUGHTS
Alison Fishburn, Paris, ON
Theatre Aquarius Studio

This production is a one woman show written and performed by Alison Fishburn, and directed by Sara E. Culley.

It is a remount of an original play that debuted at the Hamilton Fringe back in 2023; it’s a hilarious asking of a question that I’m sure all of us have asked at one point; what does an evangelical Christian teenager have to do to get laid?

In this fifty minute play; Ms. Fishburn gives us a slightly modified story of her high school and university years as she tries to reconcile her strict religious upbringing with her maturing sexuality. With sometimes startling visual aids and hilarious honesty, we follow her first stumbling attempts at intimacy with young men in high school to more complex relationships in university.

We laugh with her as she deals with reluctant boyfriends and roommates all too happy to save her from her sinful ways. We celebrate her victories as she takes own her own journey to freedom and independence. This is a show you should see again, even if you saw it 3 years ago, it certainly deserves to be seen by fringe devotees, and their friends.
- Julian Nicholson

DND LIVE: CAMP DIENOMORE
DND Live, Hamilton, ON
The Staircase | Bright Room

Review July 18 - 5:15 Staircase - Bright Room

DND LIVE: CAMP DIENOMORE is a must see for lovers of the game “Dungeons and Dragons”. The play had a cast of five lively and very enthusiastic performers, including Carlyn Rhamey, Claud Spadafora, Cal Simmons, Mykola Paskaruk, Alan Alizadeh, and Josh Koenig who delivered their lines mostly improvised based upon the game mechanics of a table top RPG.

In the real world, the actors sit at a long table with microphones throughout the whole production. But if anyone imagined that watching people play a game for an hour might be boring, they weren’t in the crowd I was in. The audience cheered and laughed almost the whole time.

There was some actual audience participation, inviting folks up to occasionally roll a dice but the audience clearly wanted more chances to join the action. The room was so enthused it seemed everyone wanted to be in on the game instead of just watching it.
- Ray Z. Rivers

DOUG FORD, WE WON’T TOUCH THE GREENBELT
Tim Katty Productions, Burlington, ON
Mills Hardware

Tim Katty is a brave performer. With a title as forward to name Ford immediately, will very possibly draw those Ford supporters, I cannot imagine and have no idea what would happen in such a case.
Tim gets on stage playing Doug Ford himself. This is a bit of a reach, as Tim has little physical attributes that match with Ford, perhaps a wig or something more than a suit would convey this, but to appreciate the show, you have to get past that.

What follows is mostly a one-note barrage of information, that portrays Ford as someone, who just doesn’t care about the common Ontario human. Repeatedly, Ford, just, does, not, care. Throughout, there are inconsistencies, for example, “Ford” states he knows nothing about something, but then rattles off facts about monarch butterflies and other wildlife. Which perhaps fits. And to appreciate the show, you have to get past that.

The speech has some breaks where Katty breaks into songs, only one of which had musical accompaniment, although much of the songs (and speech) are repeated phrases, almost, like mantras.

Along the same lines, Tim’s vocal performance is extremely good. His projection and articulation are more impressive than some seasoned stage performers I have seen. Though there are many facial tics to be observed, and swaying involved, which I would have preferred a performance more grounded, but to appreciate the show, you have to get past that.

The show is written certainly with those who agree with an anti-Ford bias, which could possibly be preaching to the choir, and there is a certain absurd/satirical/surreal aura to it all. I would not look to this show for entertainment, but perhaps those looking to listen to one person’s point of view of the current provincial government’s leader.
- Luis Arrojo

FELT CUTE, MIGHT OVERSHARE LATER
Kristi Boulton Presents..., Hamilton, ON
The Staircase | Studio Theatre

Have you ever had a painfully embarrassing moment that seared itself into your memory? A moment so “cringe” it's unforgettable? Well you are not alone, so has the talented and hilarious storyteller Kristi Boulton, several of them in fact and she would like to share these moments with you through the magic of puppetry.

Felt Cute takes us through several formative moments in Kristi’s life, beginning in childhood and moving into adulthood. Kristi and her alter ego Puppet Kristi share her tales of misfortune with the hilarious, vulnerable, and relatable storytelling style that we have seen from this veteran Fringe and local theatre artist before. Boulton is the writer, director and performer of this piece with Marc Nascimento as Producer and Rose Uscenica to complete the team as technical director. This piece is another thoughtful addition to Boulton’s growing body of comedic and touching storytelling.

Through Puppet Kristi we revisit these awkward, embarrassing, and deeply personal
memories so effortlessly that it often feels as if there are two artists on stage in this one
woman show. This clever theatrical device allows the audience to laugh with the artist rather than at her and lets the universally relatable humour land naturally without diminishing the
vulnerability of these tales. While Puppet Kristi allows us to laugh at the absurdity of life’s misadventures, Boulton herself steps forward to share the lessons those experiences left behind.

If you know that part of the universal human experience is feeling absolutely mortified and that the best comfort is learning to laugh at your own bad luck and the bad luck of others in communal understanding then this story is for you. Fans of personal storytelling and shows that balance laughs with moments of genuine emotional honesty don't miss FELT CUTE, MIGHT OVERSHARE LATER at the Staircase Theatre. I left the theatre reminded that the moments we’d most like to forget are often the ones that help shape us into who we become.
- Crystal Rose Haygarth

FINDING JAMIE
Zac Williams, Toronto, ON
The Staircase | Elaine May

FINDING JAMIE is an engaging storytelling show led by an affable and immediately likeable narrator. He is the autobiographical onstage alter ego of performer Zac Williams, a gay writer and actor originally from Caledonia, Ontario. Williams has previously created the solo comedy plays BLOCKHEAD and JACK GOES TO THERAPY, the latter of which became a hit at the 2024 Edinburgh Fringe Festival.

In FINDING JAMIE, Williams plays James — a queer elementary school teacher attempting to educate, encourage, and occasionally wrangle a group of students as they approach their Grade 8 graduation ceremony. The immediate crisis unfolds during a chaotic one-day field trip to the local zoo. When a student named Jamie, who is struggling to understand his sexuality, suddenly goes missing, the four teachers accompanying the class scramble to locate him.

What initially appears to be a comic story about an exhausting school trip gradually becomes something deeper and more personal. The play explores childhood memories, particularly those formative years between Grade 1 and Grade 8, when friendships are intense, identities are beginning to emerge, and even small moments can leave lasting emotional scars.

The narrative repeatedly moves between the present day and 1999, when the teacher himself was Jamie’s age. As the two timelines begin to echo one another, we see a young person confronting feelings of attraction toward other boys, searching for a best friend who will understand and accept him, and enduring the bullying and social isolation that can accompany coming out as queer during adolescence.

Williams handles these shifts in time with clarity and warmth. His humour keeps the production light and accessible, even when the material moves into more painful territory. The parallels between the teacher and the missing student give the play its emotional strength, suggesting that adults often recognize fragments of their younger selves in the children they are trying to protect.

There is also a Hamilton connection to the production. Although Williams now lives in Toronto, he graduated from McMaster University approximately a decade ago, making his appearance at the Hamilton Fringe feel something like a return home.

There is a great deal to admire in FINDING JAMIE. Williams is a confident and personable storyteller, and the final revelation, which I will not spoil, provides the production with a genuinely satisfying emotional thrill. This is a thoughtful, funny, and compassionate tale, very well told. It certainly deserves an audience.
- Brian Morton

FINDING JAMIE is a well-executed and authentic play. And it’s very funny. Zac Williams plays a number of characters in this play, with a lot of energy and enthusiasm. By the end of the show, the well-earned sweat was visible on his shirt.

The main character is a James, a thirty two year old, single, gay teacher who is on a field trip to the zoo, with his best-friend teacher, another teacher who is the object of his affection, and their principal. Problems ensue when James cannot find one of his students, Jamie, who is also gay. There are many standout scenes in this show, but perhaps my favourite was when James and the object of his affection help rescue their principal from the Kangaroo pit.

What I loved about this play was how therapy-informed it was. Without preaching, the play gives the audience a great lesson in how we may be able to find our lost inner child, and how we can soothe all the unprocessed trauma of childhood that seems to control our lives and shows up as adults as fear and anxiety. This is a show that can help change your life, if you let it. And it will make you laugh.
- Bryan Boodhoo

FIRST BITE TO LAST LAUGH
Bull & Blossom Initiative, Hamilton, ON
Mills Hardware
Director: Rianna Ford
Producer: Dante Williams

This Fringe entry seemed a little hard to define from its promo. It is what it seems it is, at least in my predictions. There is food and drink available in the show, and we are presented with three standup performers. The food is an extra charge ($25 that night) which is optional, but not required. As I am here to provide a review, I felt obligated to purchase some so that I could give you the full experience. But also, I was a bit hungry. And afterwards, I was quite full.

To my understanding, the show will ebb and flow depending on the day, so what I ate, would be different at each show, with different local food providers. What I chose was labelled “prosciutto and manchego” and I feel the majority of food choices will be similar charcuterie type offerings. There are vegan/vegetarian options as well. The standup performers from what I understand, will likely rotate and shift as well.

Going to the opening night 10 pm show, I wondered if the subject matter would change depending on the time slot. I wondered because the subject material was quite mature. Be wary though if you are bringing younger ones, or those sensitive with certain subjects.

Overall, absolutely hilarious standup performers and I felt energized after a full evening of Fringe reviewing. What also stood out for me, was the dynamic vibe I got, from the moment I entered the space, to the leadup and emcee introduction, and throughout the show and even afterwards.

I felt like I was at a house party with friends, and even though I didn’t know any of them, I was welcomed with open arms. From the food, to the comedy, to the atmosphere, I will happily want to experience more.
- Luis Arrojo

FOR WHAT WE LABOUR
Hiccup Productions, Hamilton, ON
The St. Luke’s Mission

FOR WHAT WE LABOUR is a tightly-written and expertly performed, farcical comedy that turns Greek tragedy on its head.

The audience enters the world of the House of Elliminestai the learn that Anthisma, played by Trish Seecharan, is the only heir or the only heir of the house. But she has a problem, she wants to leave the island…and she’s pregnant with the child of a passing sailor, who had visited the island eight months ago. The pregnancy is unwanted, and it might have just been hidden long enough not to cause any waves. But, Pyknos, played by Johnny Thirakul, the baby daddy, is coming back to town, out to recapture his gambling losses from the woman who took it from him.

Director Tamara Kamermans has decades of experience, and she brings her prodigious talents to the production. It never feels too heavy, and she brings out the best in the cast to create some truly hilarious moments. Of course this couldn’t be done without a great script. I was shocked to learn that this was playwright Renata Ona’s first produced script; it’s tight, creative, and makes Classical theatre accessible. It shows a lot of sophistication that many first-timers could only dream of achieving.

It’s hard for me to pick standout performances. I should name everyone in the cast. However, for me, I will pick, Seecharan as Anthisma, and Ona as Hamartia, the narrator. Seecharan keeps the play centred and moving around the wonderful chaos that surrounds the show. The narrator character, has the unenviable jobs of inserting exposition to link the various scenes together so the audience can make sense of the complicated hijinks. She does so with energy and pizzazz without overwhelming the show.

People who love theatre, particularly those who watch everything from Aeschylus to Jackie Sibblies Drury, will love this show.
- Bryan Boodhoo

GO
Pitchin’in Productions, Toronto, ON
Mills Hardware

Creator/Performer: Laura Piccinin

If you thought this was based on GO Transit, you would be wrong. It is about one woman’s solo journey to walk 336 km along the east coast of Newfoundland in the summer of 2021.
A simple pitched tent, a backpack, a travel journal and Laura, greet you as you enter, and the show starts with a... burst of energy.

The theatricality of this show is excellent. Piccinin is very, very skilled as a performer, hardly (if any) a dull moment through the entire 90 minutes. Theatricality can cover other things easily sometimes when perhaps the energy is a bit off, and the crowds are small. You will certainly be entertained with this show, and the female audience appeared to be even more entertained. This does not mean as a male, that you won’t be.

Perhaps it was the small crowd, the late time, opening night nerves, but I can’t help but have felt a lack of connection which could resolve itself as the Fringe goes on. This, I feel, has a lot to do with a staccato rhythm of delivery, and not clearly defining who this performer was talking to and why. I understand if that was a part of it, embracing an arms-length stance out of necessity. There was a sense of wanting validation, and conveying the struggles of being a strong woman, but I don’t think it’s that simple. The show really shone (shines?) to me about 40 minutes in when the delivery changes intermittently and I felt that connection, as well as the part of the story about Dave was memorable. Also some wonderful statements throughout, that Piccinin let land. It seems like this is a true tale, with “chapters” divided by dates in the journal. There are numerous anecdotes, which could be trimmed to make a tighter show, as they come and go with no lasting significance.

Also, new information at 80 minutes into the show, I found exhausting. A visual representation of the trek would’ve been appreciated, just to gauge how far there is to go, and/or how far it has come.
Still, you can’t miss this show. A stellar performance by a stellar performer, showing not just a hiking journey, but the same journey as a reflection of life. Sit back, enjoy, and let it linger afterwards.
- Luis Arrojo

HOPE & JOY
Hope & Joy, Toronto, ON
Theatre Aquarius Studio

Written and performed by Krystal Hope and Morgan Joy, this original play a re-creation of moments in the relationship between housemates Krystal, who has Down syndrome, and Morgan, who does not.

The show, at times humorous, at times dramatic, uses story, props, hilarious costumes, music, and lighting to take us on a journey through the highs and lows of the bond between the two women. This performance is not so much a play as a deeply personal look into the lives of the two people on stage.

When I say deeply personal I mean DEEPLY personal. You will laugh at things that never in your wildest imagination did you think you would find funny. There is such honesty and integrity in what is happening right before the audience’s eyes and ears.

I’m not going to give anymore away, you have to experience it yourself. It is brilliant, heart-warming, and eye opening. Anyone who enjoys the fringe should include this in their list of must sees.
- Julian Nicholson

HOW TO LOVE A FASCIST
Lucky Penny Productions, Toronto, ON
Mills Hardware
Creator: Cassie Cao

Certainly, this is one of the more intriguing titles that I felt was in this year’s Fringe. It is slightly vague, perhaps on purpose, so while I had my theories, I wasn’t sure what to expect, but I was game. What we received as an audience was quite different than expected, and actually, was much better.
Reading the website blurb, we know Cassie Cao is a standup performer, so comedy was expected. Absolutely, there are a lot of laughs, but one of Cao’s earliest lines is “welcome to my TED talk”. There are definitely other emotions involved.

What follows is an engaging, very polished story and performance, that had me invested greatly throughout the show. It is simply told, not a lot of movement or sound or lighting design needed. One of Cassie’s many strengths is conveying her mental and emotional moments at the varying stages of the story. As well as building the conflict within it. We (or at least I) briefly learn about game theory, error term, and various scenarios used in her studied field of economics (or perhaps econometrics but mostly focused on game theory for the purposes of the show). The story ingrains various important topics into it and incorporates them into the whole. These topics are well thought out, yet don’t take over the narrative.

It would be very easy to assume this show is another “how to find romantic love in this crazy world” production, and perhaps those looking for that goal may find it here. But this show is so, so much more. To me, it examines what you give, and what you get. And I predict it will be one of the most polished and best shows to see in this year’s Fringe.
- Luis Arrojo

I CHOOSE YOU
Reactor Theatre, Hamilton, ON
The St. Luke’s Mission

Has anyone else wanted an Ugly Sticks Reunion? Well, you got it, mostly. Some of the key founding members (Tyler Brent, Leonard A Cain, Charles Lo Manto, Douglas Millar) of the troop are back, and they are in good form.

The play starts with a mission. The Hero is taken on an unwanted quest to capture all sorts of creatures great and small, with, wait for it, a Pokémon ball. From there, the play goes on to what these experts know best (or at least very well, as they have a plethora of talents among them). There are so many stand out parts, and so many great sketches. One of my favourite moments was when one of the characters discovers that the best place to store a knife is the place where he was just stabbed. This is genius in short form.

They also integrate the staging and sound work very well into this fast-paced romp. And it’s actually fascinating to see how fast the actors can leave one part of the venue and come back, with a costume change, in a matter of moments.

This is highly recommended for anyone who misses the Ugly Sticks, or wants a fun romp through Pokémon land.
- Bryan Boodhoo

ICARUS IS FALLING
Sheep’s Clothing Theatre, Toronto, ON
The Players’ Guild of Hamilton

By Owen Carter and Brianna Russell
Starring Owen Carter, Boro Milosevic and Adrian Pavone

The lesson drummed into our heads for thousands of years of listening to the Icarus myth is that we humans should not fly to close to the sun. We should know our place. We are not gods. We are meant to remain on this earthly coil.

Lost in our understanding of the tale is that it is ultimately a father-and-son story, one of jealousy of the father’s talents coexisting with the need to move out from under the father’s influence. Owen Carter and Brianna Russell’s solid retelling of Icarus won this year’s Hamilton Fringe Festival new play contest. It’s told in iambic pentameter, the same writing style we know from Shakespeare, but using modern phrasing, so no worries about understanding what’s happening (beyond perhaps the actors’ projection issues).

Daedalus (Boro Milosevic) is a successful artisan imprisoned in a labyrinth after murdering his nephew. The incident, which Icarus (Carter) witnessed, strains their relationship beyond the normal father-son conflicts with Icarus wanting nothing more than freedom. According to his father, Icarus has “all the wisdom of youth, meaning none at all.”

One day, on the roof of their labyrinthine home, Icarus meets Helios, the sun god. What follows isn’t so much a teen wanting a decent tan – Icarus wishes nothing more than the sun on his skin for his birthday – but a homoerotic flirtation that leads to love. Icarus retreats increasingly from his father’s attempts to touch him, physically and emotionally, allowing himself instead to be enticed by the flattery of Helios.

Icarus initially rejects the gift of wings presented him by Daedalus, seeing them as signs of escape and not the freedom he desires. “I will be so happy to forget you, to never see your face again,” he tells his father.

When Daedalus discovers his son’s desire to be with Helios and live as a god in immortality, he confronts Helios admonishing him for leading his son on. “When the sun sets, he is just a boy,” Daedalus says. And there is the astonishing, and very real, truth: Icarus is in love with nothing but himself – another lesson in the Icarus myth.

We know the end of the story: the wings, the soaring flight, the melting wax, the descent to death. But this retelling feels necessary in these times filled with egotistical tanned men.
- Raymond Beauchemin

Winner of the Hamilton Fringe New Play Contest, ICARUS IS FALLING proves itself a worthy winner with a story that is emotionally compelling. Playwrights and producers Owen Carter and Brianna Russell reimagine the familiar Greek myth through a fresh contemporary lens, exploring the burden of legacy, the complicated dynamic between fathers and sons, and the intoxicating lure of the Gods. Written in iambic pentameter, the language feels surprisingly accessible, lending the dialogue a rhythm without sacrificing any clarity.

The performances from Owen Carter (Icarus), Boro Miloŝević (Daedalus) and Adrian Pavone (Helios) are committed and nuanced, finding tenderness and tension within the relationships. Rather than presenting Icarus as merely reckless, the play asks what drives someone to risk everything for the promise of immortality and love. The result is a character who is both tragic and deeply relatable. Abigail Sullivan’s direction gives a quietly powerful ending to a moving piece of theatre that invites reflection while celebrating the resilience of the human spirit.

The designers' choices all work well to convey different locations, wind, sky and sun. Every design choice serves the story, allowing the text and performances to take centre stage.

ICARUS IS FALLING is a smart, beautifully crafted new work that honours the original myth while discovering something urgent and contemporary within it. It is a moving meditation on legacy, family, love, grief, and the courage and cost of choosing your own path. We know what Icarus's fate will be, yet we mourn with his father and lover in a moving, bittersweet ending that sticks with you, even outside under the sky.
- Victoria Sullivan

INTO THE SWING OF THINGS
Eric Jeddry, London, ON
Backroom @ Ringside

With the stage set up as a restaurant kitchen, performer Eric Jeddry, uses two masks to portray the characters of Cliff, an elderly kitchen manager with 40 years experience, and Tyler, a young man starting out as a dishwasher, who wants to be a musician. We, the audience, are applying for a job to work in the kitchen under Cliff, who uses Tyler as an example of what not to do. But the more Cliff talks about Tyler and his circumstances, the more Cliff realizes Tyler is just a kid trying to get by after losing his mom. Then we meet Tyler, who explains how hard Cliff is on him and that his real passion is making music, a sample of which he raps for us. As Jeddry switches back and forth we realize Cliff and Tyler both just want to survive and be happy. Don’t we all?

They are two bookends of the same story, one at the end looking back on someone who is at the beginning looking forward, full of hopes and dreams. It’s a beautiful story of the human experience and what changes over time when more of the story of life has been revealed.

The energy of Jeddry in this show is fantastic. Jeddry switches back and forth between Cliff and Tyler, carrying on a conversation with the audience, as the characters and between the characters, no small feat for someone whose face is always covered in a mask. It doesn’t take long for the masks to disappear and faces to appear. Jeddry’s voice is so expressive and engaging, I will swear those masks moved rather than staying fixed.

This show makes me wonder why we don’t offer more mentorship roles in every profession - what would someone at the end of their professional journey say to someone at the very beginning? What wisdom has time granted them that would save a newcomer heartache, time, stress, or mistakes? See this show and you might find out.
- Victoria Sullivan

This is a one-person show that invites the audience into the world of a chaotic world of a golf course kitchen in the Niagara Region. It’s fast-paced, fun, and asks for audience participation. So, if you want that, sit near the front, and if you don’t the back is probably the place for you.

Eric Jeddry, according to IMDB, has been doing this for a while, at least a decade, and his mastery over the material shows. Jeddry uses two masks to personify two diametrically opposed characters in the kitchen, the old hand Kitchen Boss, and the newer Dish Washer. The use of these masks is particularly effective and delightful. His use of props is also exceptional, using objects for numerous purposes, which keeps the audience very engaged.

The energy of this show is deniable. He fully personifies the two diametrically opposed characters, and he works well with the audience. Although his characters may seem like archetypes at the start of the show, Jeddry manages to breath a lot of life into these two characters, and there is some change in them by the end of the show, particularly the Kitchen Boss. You can’t help but think that these characters, perhaps a water-downed version of them, exist in real life, trying to fit their work in the backrooms of the kitchen into the larger fabric of their lives. You may never look at your restaurant food in the same way again!
- Bryan Boodhoo

INTRO TO ADULT ACTING
We Tried Theatre Inc., Burlington, ON
The Players’ Guild of Hamilton

By Lisa Marie Morris
Starring: Kevin Barnes, Andrea Didtrek, Corey Long, Connor MacPhee, Lisa Marie Morris, Gugu Mpofu, Stacey Rivers

A few years ago I was laid off from my job in journalism and thought, WTF, let’s try acting. So I found an adult acting class – kind of a redundancy in name, no? aren’t all adults, being adults, acting in some way? – at a local professional theatre.

I enjoyed myself so much I later took another. And even a musical theatre class. (The dance teacher was smart to keep me in back.) To watch “Intro to Adult Acting” and see a group of actors, all former classmates from the same acting seminar (who I had seen perform scenes from “Murder on the Orient Express” just last fall) felt familiar in so many ways.

Morris does a wonderful job recreating what an adult acting class is like, from the physical warmup movements to vocal exercise and tongue-twisters, as the teacher Marla (Stacey Rivers) emphasizes that although one’s physical presence is important, it’s all about voice and diction. This leads to a fumbling say-this-aloud-five-times-quickly “red leather yellow leather” and “unique New York” escapade that descends into a hilarious take on various New York accents and DeNiro-esque movements. Though I swear someone was doing Newark.

There’s a lesson in upstage and downstage and stage left and stage right, some mime work, and then a mirror game where, while looking directly at an actor in front of you, you follow each other’s movements. It’s like that great Lucille Ball-Harpo scene from “I Love Lucy.” There’s some subtle flirtatious work here by Amelie (Gugu Mpofu) and Bjorn (Kevin Barnes).

As with any group of strangers coming together for an extended period of time, there’s the awkward get-to-know-me part and then eventual breakdown and rebuild. The individual characters are well drawn, each with their own stated goals, and obstacles, and some off-colour humour from the teacher that IRL would probably get her ass fired.

What I learned in acting class is something akin to watching a well-executed soccer play: You trust that your co-star or teammate is going to be where you need them to be at exactly the point you need them to be. After the actors finish their last rehearsal for their end-of-year performance, Marla tells Conor (Conor MacPhee): “They’re ready and they don’t even know it.”
Yup, and we’re ready to see more from this fun and funny group of fledgling thesps.
- Raymond Beauchemin

IT’S A LIVE MIXTAPE
Skywav Broadcasting, Hamilton, ON
The Westdale

Playwright, Performer: Brett Klassen
Designer, Performer: Aisha Barrow
Performer: Tarek Funk

One of the things I love most about the Fringe is the sheer diversity of artistic offerings that audiences get to sample. This particular production, created entirely by Hamilton artists, is an energetic fusion of rap, hip hop, soul, electronic music, dance, poetry, and political commentary.

Supported by DJ and producer Onglish, played by Brett Klassen, the performers deliver their material over a pile of irresistible beats, accompanied by wild, colourful video clips projected onto the enormous screen behind them at The Westdale. The result feels somewhere between a theatrical performance, a live concert, a dance party, and an experimental radio broadcast.

The Skywav Broadcasting crew is putting on a show, although everyone involved is apparently sick, disabled, or struggling to keep the broadcast on the air. Onglish attempts to craft a live mixtape divided into two distinct sections. Side A features rapper Tarek Funk performing politically charged material about disability, identity, colonialism, and futurism. Side B becomes a dance-filled Electro-Mandé-Soul set featuring singer-songwriter Eye-Sha.

Tarek Funk, a Palestinian Canadian performer with a remarkable command of poetic language, offers powerful raps about his grandfather and the Nakba, the mass displacement of Palestinians that began in 1948. Other songs focus on Hamilton, including the ongoing effects of gentrification, rising rents, and the ways artists are increasingly being forced out of their homes and communities.

He also takes aim at oligarchs, kleptocrats, and billionaires who treat political office as though it were their private playground. It is a tight and compelling set of intelligent raps that genuinely has something important to say.

The second half belongs to Gambian soul singer Eye-Sha, performed by Aisha Barrow, who brings joyful movement, expressive vocals, and an obvious passion for performing. Her music draws upon the rich cultural traditions of Gambia, a small West African country bordered by Senegal and the Atlantic Ocean.

I took a popular music course out at McMaster University back in 2004; which is where I learned what little I know about rap and hip hop culture. I came to appreciate the importance of freestyling, creating poetry and rhymes spontaneously while responding to a musical groove. It is an extraordinary skill, and it was clearly evident throughout this production.

This talented trio truly rocked the house, encouraging the audience to sing along and shout out the call-and-response sections. IT’S A LIVE MIXTAPE is a masterful show created by performers who know exactly how to involve an audience.

Highly recommended by this old man who still enjoys experiencing new things at the fringe.
- Brian Morton

KARL THE CAT AND THE JUNKYARD PACK
Playdough Productions, Toronto/Ottawa, ON
The Staircase | Bright Room

Written and performed by Jesse Lewis and Rachel Van Staaluinen

And now for something completely different! Is a phrase that has been seared into my brain for decades now…

KARL THE CAT AND THE JUNKYARD PACK is essentially a profanity-laden, adult-themed puppet show, accompanied by two live musicians who serve as the “bottlers”: guitarist Charlie VanStone and keyboard player Kat Wilkie, positioned on either side of “the booth.” Using a Punch and Judy-inspired stage setting, this production tells a brilliant and engaging story about a cat who lives in a junkyard.

As someone who is owned by several cats myself, I instantly connected with this compelling and beautifully told story about a group of animals who make their home among the discarded objects of the junkyard. There is a dog, a crow, a rat, and Karl, the cat from the title of the play. Together, they become friends, supporters, and eventually participants in an unlikely space mission.

You see, Karl has decided that his greatest ambition in life is to visit the Moon.

The journey may prove fatal. The example of the Russian cosmonaut dog Laika reminds us of that possibility. Laika was a stray from the streets of Moscow who made history in November 1957 as the first living creature to orbit the Earth aboard the Sputnik 2 spacecraft. Her mission was always intended to be a one-way trip.

Karl’s journey may be equally dangerous, but the play argues that the attempt is still worthwhile. It is about living your dream and finding meaning in what might otherwise appear to be an ordinary life.

Using scraps of metal and other objects found throughout the junkyard, Karl’s friends help him construct a rocket ship capable of carrying him into space. I will not spoil the ending by revealing whether or not he reaches the Moon.

As the saying goes, it is the journey, not the destination, that matters in life. This entire production is ultimately about the struggle to get somewhere, and the friends you make and keep along the way.

The audience and I laughed heartily, sang along with the brilliant songs, and were deeply moved by the conclusion of the play. The result is an almost perfect production, and one that is completely different from anything else being offered at this year’s festival.

Check it out and see what I mean. It is well worth the journey.
- Brian Morton

KARL THE CAT AND THE JUNKYARD PACK tells a familiar but comforting story about ambition, friendship, and discovering that there really is no place like home, even when home happens to be a junkyard.

Karl is a curious cat who dreams of something larger than the life he already knows. Surrounded by a close group of animal friends, he begins to imagine that his true purpose must exist somewhere beyond the boundaries of the junkyard. Karl and his companions are presented as adorable, soft-spoken hand puppets, each with a distinct personality. Jesse Lewis and Rachel Van Staaluinen, bring warmth and gentle humour to the performance, creating characters that are immediately likeable. The puppeteers are supported by talented musicians Charlie VanStone on guitar and Kat Wilkie on piano. Their live accompaniment adds considerably to the production’s relaxed atmosphere and gives the storytelling an appealing homemade quality.

The play is calming, cute, and consistently charming. It is the kind of Fringe production that encourages an audience to settle in, relax, and enjoy the simplicity of a story well told. The puppets also successfully draw the audience into the performance by inviting everyone to sing along, creating a sense of participation without placing anyone uncomfortably in the spotlight. Like so many stories about longing and adventure, the play follows a character who believes that fulfillment can only be found by leaving everything familiar behind. Karl eventually discovers that purpose is not always found in some distant destination. Sometimes it is already present in the daily routines, friendships, and responsibilities that give a life meaning.

With its colourful characters, clear message, and gentle storytelling, KARL THE CAT AND THE JUNKYARD PACK could easily work as a wonderful children’s production. A few adult words in the dialogue make this particular version better suited to older audiences, but the spirit of the play remains playful, affectionate, and family-friendly. This warm-hearted puppet show is likely to leave audiences smiling and perhaps looking at their own homes, friendships, and everyday lives with a little more appreciation.
- Ray Z Rivers

LOVE & CRAÍC
Squirrel Suit Productions, Hamilton, ON
The Staircase | Studio Theatre

If you have ever traveled to somewhere new only to find you learned as much about yourself as the place you visited then LOVE & CRAÍC is for you.

This story is full of “craic” (pronounced “crack”) which we discover is an Irish slang term for fun or having a good time, but as any traveller will tell you, travel is full of its ups and downs. Created and performed by storyteller Carlyn Rhamey of Squirrel Suit Productions, this story follows one woman’s exploration of Ireland, Scotland, and England as she searches for adventure, historical mystery, and perhaps a little bit of herself along the way.

Rhamey captures us with her funny, awkward, and genuine moments and is a storyteller who effortlessly brings audiences along for the journey. Through several adventures we learn a bit about the history and natural beauty she discovered but even more about what she learned about herself and her relationships with those around her.

Like many great journeys, LOVE & CRAÍC is not just about seeing new places it is about gaining a deeper understanding of ourselves and the world around us. Rhamey explores the unexpected lessons found in travel, she gets lost, she sees the things she long imagined but in a different light, she meets memorable strangers who become friends. The history of the places she visits are complicated, sometimes challenging, and often very different from different perspectives and so too are the relationships that she explores.

Whether you are a seasoned traveller, someone who dreams of exploring new places, or simply someone who enjoys a beautifully told story, LOVE & CRAÍC offers a warm, funny, and moving hour of theatre. Rhamey’s storytelling invites us to reflect on our own journeys and the connections that make life meaningful and reminds us that travel is not just about the destinations we visit, but about the people we meet, the stories we collect, and the ways those experiences change us.
- Crystal Rose Haygarth

MARK II
Thomas Bates Productions, Oshawa, ON
The Gasworks

Written by and starring Tom Bates

In the beginning was the word. And the word was: after.

As in “after” his unexpectedly moving 2025 Hamilton Fringe Festival performance of “Mark I”, Tom Bates returns to the Gasworks with Part 2 of his one-man retelling of the Gospel of Mark. “After”, as in “After six days, Jesus took Peter, James and John up to a high mountain …” and Bates begins this concluding performance with the story of the transfiguration.

“After”, as in following Part I and its tale of the Jordan River baptism, the beheading of John the Baptist, Jesus’ selection of his 12 followers, the miracles – many of which astonish Jesus’s apostles – the quotes that echo still today (“what does it profit a man to gain the whole world
only to forfeit his soul”?), what is there left to say? Plenty, of course.

You don’t have to be Christian to know some or even most of these stories. They’ve been part of our Judeo-Christian-Islamic culture for 2,000 years. Bates hits all the greatest hits in a feat of memorization and physicality.

The miracles (the healing of the lame, the blind) take the backseat to the lessons in Bates’s telling of what amounts to the last few months of Jesus’ preaching and life. “The greatest commandment is this: There is no God but God and to love your neighbour as yourself.” “The
spirit is willing but the flesh is weak.” “Be on guard for one knows not the day or the hour.”

Bates comes into his own as a writer and performer when he embodies the various characters in the last week of Jesus’ life. There are the apostles at the Last Supper, the chief priest (“Do you not hear? This is blasphemy”!). The crowd shouting, “Crucify him”! And the simple, understated answer to Pilate’s question: Are you the King of the Jews? “I am.”

A brief shoutout to Bates’s lighting scheme. The play begins with the transfigured Jesus standing atop the mountain in a bath of white. The parables and miracles are in a light Mary blue, with a yellow halo of a spot on Bates. The Last Supper and the trial before the harisees and Pilate are lit in lilac, moving toward red. With his cry of “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me”, it’s lights out on Jesus and the rise of a cacophonous synthesized music. Finally, with the rolling away of the stone and the re-emergence of Bates, the light returns to blue then white.
- Raymond Beauchemin

MEDICALLY STRANGE
Phoebe Taylor, Hamilton, ON
Backroom @ Ringside

After realizing her chronic pain is not actually normal despite being told for years by doctors that it was, writer and performer Phoebe Taylor takes us on a journey through what an ideal visit to a doctor would look like and what she hopes her medical life will be one day. As someone conditioned to accept her chronic pain, Taylor oscillated between comedy and female rage at a system designed to hear and treat a male patient. While this sounds serious, the audience was roaring with laughter at Taylor’s jokes and physical comedy.

A quirky, fun and very funny ride with a message, Taylor shines as everyone's best friend. She’s vegan, she has bangs. Using her low tech setup and props to add to the humour, she draws a comparison to the female experience in a medical system and fantasizes about doctor visits where she is the object of the doctor’s obsession for her sexiness, a thin veil for the desire for her medical case to be scrutinized with the same seriousness as the female form under the male gaze.

Under Jacque Wills’ expert direction, Taylor deftly navigates between comedy and drama, truth and dramatization, acceptance and pain. Taylor is a bright star in the fringe and this show is a must see for anyone who's ever been in pain. Or a vegan. Or has bangs. My only complaint is the show isn't longer - twenty minutes with our new best friend isn't long enough.
- Victoria Sullivan

NO DIE! – OR: HOW I LEFT AMSTERDAM AND ALMOST DIED IN AFRICA
Fedor Comedy, Amsterdam, Netherlands
Mills Hardware
Writer/Performer: Fedor Ikelaar

Coming from the Netherlands, we have another long-titled comedy show of a new anthropologist and his journey to Sierra Leone. Ikelaar very comfortably, tells us the story in the manner of standup and storytelling that we see at most Fringe shows. Fedor is affable and approaches us in an informal manner. There is a slight note of an accent, but is more than easily understood, and we get used to it effortlessly.

After a brief introduction and explanation of getting into anthropology, we find out the fairly innocent reasons Ikelaar decides to go to Sierra Leone, to aid in their plight. Fedor is very good at painting the picture of the situations with his descriptions. He makes it quite easy to get drawn into the story.

There is very much a self-awareness of who he is, what privileges he has, and a nonchalant willingness to move forward in the plot. This ties into the informal yet reflective style Fedor uses. Some of this could be explored more but could risk interrupting the pace of the plot being laid out here.

Some loose ends are tied up, the story comes back around to the present, and although quickly, it is satisfying. I feel the story could've been longer, but thankfully it wasn't. Without spoiling anything, by the end, the purpose of the story is revealed. A piece of advice that one could dwell on and perhaps find encouragement.
- Luis Arrojo

NOTES FROM UNDERGROUND
A Drama Studio, Mississauga, ON
The Players’ Guild of Hamilton

By Moazzam Reza, Amirah Farooq and Martin Tsvetanov, adapted from the novel “Notes from Underground” by Fyodor Dostoevsky

Starring Moazzam Reza, Sagal Hussein, Klein Wilhelm, Luke Huffman, Patrick McEwen, Colin
Crawford and Roy Mondal

“I’m a sick man,” writes the unnamed main character of “Notes from Underground.” He ain’t kidding. The Underground Man writing out notes of a possible memoir or confession at his desk by candlelight, recalls events of forty years previous, calling himself a sick man, an evil, repulsive man with no clue as to what ails him. “My liver is sick,” he writes. He is full of spite.

Maybe Dostoevsky was onto something. The liver has long been tied to our emotional health. Negative emotions like stress, fear, anxiety and trauma are believed to disrupt the liver’s function. Were the Underground Man a doctor, the physician could be called on to heal himself. Instead, he’s a lowly government clerk in 1860s Russia. He’s writing his confessions knowing they’ll amount to nothing because, he is sure, his own life has amounted to nothing.

The play veers soon enough to the past, Underground Man’s recollection of himself as he was in his early 20s. There are several key recollections that mirror, or illustrate fully, the repulsion he feels with himself. The first is his interaction with four former schoolmates. There’s a clear class difference between them. Underground Man attempts to settle scores, pointing out their fakeness, attempting to pop the balloon of their airs, but he is weak and can’t.

Another, and perhaps the most painful, is his relationship with a prostitute named Liza, portrayed with curated understatement by Sagal Hussein. Moazzam Reza’s Underground Man delivers a moralizing screed about love, death, marriage, families, poverty, whores that both crushes Liza and causes her to realize the pain Underground Man himself is feeling. His description of a son suckling his mother’s breast is alone worth the price of admission.

The play ultimately asks if one can be truly honest with oneself when one self-contradicts repeatedly, when one is so full-on confrontational with reality. Why do we write our own stories? Because we must. Why do we dare adapt such works as “Notes from Underground”? Because.
- Raymond Beauchemin

PAOLA BROWN: THE TOWN CRIER OF HAMILTON
Paola Brown, Hamilton, ON
Fringe On The Streets

PAOLA BROWN - THE TOWN CRIER OF HAMILTON is a powerful show that harkens to real world issues - past and present. This show is a genre you don’t see often in Fringe - Historical fiction! It follows the real-life man of Paola Brown trying to do his town-crying while being heckled by a series of modern day onlookers. One stand out facet was the costuming; it was absolutely incredible! Paola’s historically accurate outfit, complete with billowing cape and gold-trimmed tricorne, was so enrapturing. The modern hecklers, too, were expertly styled to encapsulate the groups they represent. The two older men who represented blue-collar workers looked so quintessentially “Hamilton” I swear that they could have been pulled right out of the earth!

In the show, Paola Brown rings his bell, desperately trying to get people to sign a petition to save his friend, Jesse Happy, from being handed over to the Americans to be re-forced into slavery. The hecklers combat him, with modern apathy and ignorance. They also inject some levity and humour into the show, throwing modern slang and references at a man from the 1800s. As Canadians, we tend to think of slavery as two things: 1. An American problem, and 2. A problem of the past. This play reminds us that neither of those facts are true. Did you know that the original owner of Dundurn Castle owned slaves? I’m ashamed to say I didn’t until today. Through the contemporary hecklers,

Paola reminds us that slavery is very much alive and well in our time. For-profit American prisons and sweatshops in 3rd-world countries are just two of many versions of modern-day slavery that are alive and well today. Paola teaches us about the real-world actions of the real Paola Brown and Jesse Happy. This show is anti-capitalist, anti-racist, and incredibly pro workers’ rights. It is educational, and even as someone who already knows a lot about modern-day labour injustices, I still came away learning things.

The most important message of the play is simple: it worked for Jesse Happy. A petition was enough to save his life. We, every day citizens, can change the world together. This whole show is one giant call to action: be the change you want to see in the world. Sign that petition. Stand up for yourself and your fellow humans! Change can happen!
- Francis Wallace

PLEASE LEAVE WHEN IT’S TOO MUCH
Whatsoever Productions, Cambridge, ON
Backroom @ Ringside

A QR code is already on the screen as the audience takes their seat, inviting them to find out their fate based on a series of questions with four possible outcomes. The Patient, played by Aman Gil, is already on stage seated in a chair, wearing sunglasses, waiting. The Boss, voiced by playwright and director Amanda Tkaczyk, lets us know that end of life care is available using AI technology and allows you to choose your own ending. As the audience, we don't have to choose as the Patient experiences all four potential outcomes throughout the performance. Gil uses the space well to set an atmosphere that is disconcerting and deeply human and that fact that she is alone on stage, as we all are when we take our final journey, is poignant.

This piece asks the question of whether you would want your last moments curated and what experience you want to have, during this play and in life. Additional voice work from Johnathan Calma and Liv Hope is delivered so well we don’t miss their physical presence. There is collaboration at the heart of each scene under Tkaczyk’s direction as the performers had a large role in creation of the scenes. Although the script does not change, how you choose to experience it can.

This is one show where you might get an impromptu talk-back from Tkaczyk and Gil after the show if you have questions. I highly recommend asking about the creation process for this piece, as PLEASE LEAVE WHEN IT’S TOO MUCH is an immersive experience born of chance and circumstance and is experimentation and collaborative creation in its purest forms. The show was selected by lottery. The actors were cast by lottery. Gil stepped into her role with no prior acting experience and we’re captivated throughout the show, asking questions about ourselves, our ending, AI and ethics.

What this play really does is hold a mirror up for you to look in and I was surprised by what I saw. Tkaczyk says we’re constantly scrolling, where you have no choice what you see, but you can always leave when it's too much. Your decision remains your own.
- Victoria Sullivan

There is a lot of thought and work that has gone into this short offering that runs just shy of 15 minutes. At the beginning of the show, the audience is invited to scan a QR code on screen and choose what kind of ending they would like. It was a fun experience that I did several times, and without ruining it, it’s very interesting to see how this short quiz works, and what it actually says.

From there, the audience is informed that the ending they have picked is not the end to the performance per se, but the end of life at the virtual hands of AI, who assists with palliative care.

The play is filled with video, dance, some live speech and a good amount of dance, which is enhanced by the use of costume to great effect. I would have liked to see a little more interaction between the live performance and the video. It was a bold choice to choose the actor as lottery-selected performers.

The play is a thought piece that delves into the use of AI in our society. Given the short runtime of the show, the audience is invited to discuss their own thoughts on AI with the creator, Amanda Thaczyk. Thaczyk has created a safe and inviting space to discuss and listen to some very interesting opinions and ideas about a very important topic in our society.
- Bryan Boodhoo

PROJECT FATHERING: GENERATIONS
Project Fathering, Hamilton, ON
Fringe On The Streets

The walking tour started strong with PROJECT FATHERING: GENERATIONS. Tom Boyd, the star of this one-man-show, gave a fantastic performance. This is the only show that’s indoors, and Boyd makes full use of the space with his staging,

The story follows a time traveller who, after the birth of his daughter, journeys back to the day he was born to hear our perspectives about parenting and fatherhood. In his time, his parents are dead, and so he no longer has them to ask for their wisdom. The time traveller delivers a soliloquy, and then the show changes entirely. Around the open space, 4 large speakers are placed, each one playing a recording of a different person teling a story about fatherhood. When it begins, it's almost deafening, an overwhelming cacophony of overlapping voices. The audience is invited to walk closer to each speaker to pick out each story. The effect is powerful, but I do think that this performance might be difficult for those with auditory processing disorder or similar issues. As someone with autism, I found the sound very hard to deal with and was unable to pick out the voices, but I liked the show nonetheless.

By far the most interesting part of the show to me was the way it integrated audience participation. All of the fringe on the streets shows involved some amount of audience participation, but this one was by far the most clever. Each of the recordings on the aforementioned speakers were submitted by former audience members. When leaving, we were given a business card to submit our own stories for future performances.

Project Fathering: Generations is a show that is, fittingly, ahead of its time. The execution was flawless, and I loved the interesting (and downright futuristic) dramaturgy of it all. Project Fathering: Generations is a deeply intimate story that will only grow and change as more people tell their tales.
- Francis Wallace

RAGING GRACEFULLY
Big Chick Energy, Hamilton, ON
The Westdale

Big Chick Energy, featuring writers and performers Alicia Carrick, Emily Decloux, Sam Sexton, and Jo Anne Tacorda, understands sketch comedy. They know how to establish a premise, build its rhythms, and deliver the final beat so that it lands successfully with an audience.

I became a fan of the company after seeing its production at The Staircase Studio Theatre last summer, where the performers enjoyed a well-deserved successful run. This year, they have moved into the historic Art Deco Westdale Theatre, a significantly larger venue that gives their comedy, music, and energetic personalities more room to breathe.

The audience at the first performance was clearly engaged with the material. RAGING GRACEFULLY offers a female-centred examination of middle age and the many pressures facing women in an incrEAeasingly stressful society. Partnerships, motherhood, dating, rescue dogs, toxic workplaces, social media, and the constant anxiety of trying to meet impossible expectations are all thoughtfully explored through the reassuring filter of laughter.

The production follows the performers as they stumble headfirst into the complicated process of becoming, while attempting to balance sanity, relationships, confidence, and societal expectations. Through a lively mixture of sketch comedy and original musical material, the Chicks examine the many different eras of womanhood. They chase confidence, lose it, rebuild it, and attempt to hold on to the people they love while everything around them continues to change.

RAGING GRACEFULLY is ultimately a celebration of women taking up space, even when they are still trying to determine exactly where and how they belong.

Did I mention that all four performers can sing? Several karaoke-style numbers, often supported by lyrics projected onto the screen behind them, filled the theatre with beautiful music. The seamless movement between comic sketches and musical interludes gives the production its distinctive personality and ultimately made the show work so well for me.

Judging by the enthusiastic response to the first performance, RAGING GRACEFULLY should easily sell out its Westdale run. Booking early to secure a seat would be very wise advice.
- Brian Morton

RATS! ANOTHER MUSICAL? (A TOTALLY IMPROVISED MUSICAL COMEDY)
RATS! Another Musical?, Toronto, ON
The Staircase | Bright Room

RATS! ANOTHER MUSICAL? delivers a high-energy, story-driven musical created entirely from audience suggestions. Every performance is invented live, with spontaneous songs, memorable characters, unexpected plot twists, and the kind of joyful ensemble chemistry that makes improvisational theatre so exciting.

Although each show is completely unique, the company admits that certain recurring ingredients have been known to appear, including vengeance, mystical gems, and boys named Tyler. Beyond those possibilities, however, absolutely anything can happen once the audience offers the performers their opening inspiration.

Skillfully directed by Carly Heffernan, with musical direction by Rory Grant, the talented company includes Nitin Anand, Kara Austria, Kristi Boulton, Sean Cage, Kyle Claeys, Elanja Corosky, Daniel Fishbayn, Robbie Grant, Katie Mills, and Arielle Zamora.

And what a musical they created. Eight performers and their pianist immediately captivated the audience with strong vocals, confident character work, clever lyrics, and remarkably spontaneous storytelling. Each new song appeared to emerge effortlessly from the developing plot, while the musicianship and vocal harmonies were consistently impressive.

As improvised comedy goes, the performance was drop-dead hilarious. The performers listened carefully to one another, supported every unexpected idea, and built increasingly ridiculous situations without losing control of the story. The results were so polished that it was sometimes difficult to believe the material had not been rehearsed in advance.

The near-capacity crowd clearly loved this energetic and inventive production, frequently rewarding the performers with spontaneous applause. By the conclusion, the company had earned an enthusiastic standing ovation.

RATS! ANOTHER MUSICAL? is creative, unpredictable, and enormously entertaining. Since every performance is different, audiences could easily return more than once and experience an entirely new musical. This is not a show to be missed.
- Ray Z. Rivers

REBEL SPIRITS
Bateson & Shaw, Hamilton, ON
Theatre Aquarius Studio

REBEL SPIRITS, written and performed by Devin Bateson and Justin Shaw, is a high spirited romp set in a medieval pub where revolution is on tap. The set is a simple bar counter, with a chair on each side.

The two actors maintain a strong energy level throughout, and play multiple characters through the use of hilariously bad masks for the secondary characters. Indeed part of the enjoyment of watching the play is the various ways they get one character out of sight so the actor can take over a different role.

The plot revolves around a revolt against the crown, and hidden secrets that drive the action to a satisfying conclusion. Some well conceived props add some more fun and encourage audience interaction.

The characters have a certain Dungeons and Dragons influence that will appeal to fans of the game or movie. The dialogue is generally well written and delivered, but could have used a bit of tightening up towards the end. This is an excellent production and well worth seeing.
- Julian Nicholson

The most important thing to know about REBEL SPIRITS is that it is an enormous amount of fun. From the opening moments, the production embraces vaudeville-inspired comedy, theatrical silliness, and enthusiastic audience participation.

Several comic devices return throughout the performance, including signs instructing the audience to applaud, boo, cheer louder, or shout particular responses. There is even a talking puppet, somewhat reminiscent of Towelie from SOUTH PARK, who becomes one of the show’s most memorable recurring jokes.

The production never quite reaches the full “Oh no, they didn’t! Oh yes, they did!” territory of a traditional Christmas pantomime, but it is clearly influenced by the same playful relationship between performers and spectators. The audience is not simply watching the story unfold. They are encouraged to become active participants in the chaos.

As with NOOK AND CRANNY, the detective comedy Bateson and Shaw presented two years ago, the two performers create an entire world using rapid character changes, hats, costume pieces, and brief comic appearances. Between them, they portray a collection of eccentric supporting characters, shifting roles quickly and keeping the pace energetic.

The story centres on a group of rebels gathering inside a pub to plot a revolution against the tyrannical Red Queen. Their already dangerous plan becomes even more complicated when they discover that the Queen’s runaway son is working in the pub as a busboy.

The comedy is broad and deliberately ridiculous, but it is also carefully constructed and performed with precision. The pacing is quick, the jokes arrive constantly, and the audience responds enthusiastically throughout.

This is classic Hamilton Fringe entertainment, created by two experienced performers who understand exactly how to engage a crowd. REBEL SPIRITS is lively, imaginative, and wonderfully foolish. Attending this production is an absolute must. You will not be disappointed.
- Brian Morton

SCHEDULE YOUR IMPROV! – AUTHENTICITY, THE SELF, AND WTF ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?!
Fake Cult Productions, Hamilton, ON
Centre For Talking Arts

Jake Cenk Koseleci’s talking art is like a trip through the universe on psychedelics, making you reconsider basic facts. What is talking art? It’s Koseleci sitting casually on a couch, talking as philosopher, artist and human, theorizing and questioning the “why”. He points out the absurdity of the universe in ways that are clever and inspire further thought. He asks the person who wants to be an artist - are you sure? He asks the human to consider why… everything? He points out that things we take for granted - talking, language, forming words - are encoded information that cause ripples in the air, that excite hairs in our ears, that move neurons in our brain, that convey meaning. That profound art is not just deep but wide.

Koseleci follows a high-level outline of theories and points in the order he wants to make them (I think it was laminated), making observations about our existence, the nature of art, the artist, the micro and macro nature of the universe and our place within it. You will take a fascinating journey that will leave you thinking about life differently. If you’ve ever been to a planetarium and experienced the vastness of the universe, this is the talking art equivalent, but Koseleci also delves into the vastness of the quantum.

SCHEDULE YOUR IMPROV! is a great show for a mind trip that will reframe your perceptions and understanding of what an artist is, and therefore what a human is. You’ll leave asking the question: What are you going to do? And be thinking about the answer days later. This is a rare opportunity to appreciate the philosopher’s perspective.
- Victoria Sullivan

SPOONING THE GREAT BEAR BY THE LIGHT OF THE MOON
Xenoproductions, Hamilton, ON
The Players’ Guild of Hamilton

By Jen Frankel, starring Susan Curran, Melissa Murray-Mutch and Betty McLean

The road-trip story is as old as the Greeks. We’ll see a version on the screens this summer with Christopher Nolan’s take on Homer’s “The Odyssey”. We read it in high school (Chaucer’s “The Canterbury Tales”), in university (Kerouac’s “On the Road”) and maybe in book club (Dave Eggers’s “The Parade”). Hamilton playwright Jen Frankel continues in their lofty vein with the at-times funny, at-times teary “Spooning the Great Bear by the Light of the Moon”.

Two women, Syl and Kirsten, longtime besties who’ve done some serious mileage together over the years, find themselves on another trip, this time Kirsten’s attempt to get Syl over her recent marital breakup. There’s a stop at one of those roadside attractions that only the U.S. can do, something called the Grand Chasm (not even remotely close to the one in Arizona). There, Syl wonders why she hadn’t sought out an “Alpine divorce” before mimicking phorcing her philandering phuck-phace of a husband, Brian, off the side of a cliff. (The misspellings are intentional; Syl engages in amusing word games like alliterations and syllogisms when she’s not driving.)

You can feel Syl’s pain in the very physical way Murray-Mutch portrays her. Even small movements like pouring out a drink she had once used to toast Brian when she’d first met him, and the monologue she delivers while looking in the rear-view mirror are moments showing Murray-Mutch’s complete embodiment of her character. She weeps, she drips snot, she jokes, she screams.

All the while, Kirsten (Susan Curran, sharing the role with Tara Smith) tries to keep her BFF’s spirits up while trying not to divulge a painful secret. A free-spirited diner waitress, Carla, joins the duo about two-thirds of the way through the trip, full of Midwestern witticisms, but creating a riff between Syl and Kirsten.

Near the end of the play we learn that the Great Bear, Ursa Major, otherwise known as the Big Dipper, was instrumental to Harriet Tubman and other conductors along the Underground Railroad that brought scores of American slaves to freedom. Talk about road trips.
- Raymond Beauchemin

SPOONING THE BEAR BY THE LIGHT OF THE MOON is a heartfelt and humorous exploration of friendship, grief, betrayal, and the unexpected ways that new experiences can change our perspective and point us in a new direction. .

Created and directed by Jen Frankel and performed by Melissa Murray-Mutch, Susan Curran, Tara Smith and Betty McLean. SPOONING THE BEAR follows two friends Syl and Kristen on a road trip intended to help Syl recover after the abrupt and messy end of her marriage. What begins as an attempt to heal and reconnect quickly becomes more complicated, as the two women discover that supporting someone through a difficult time is not always as simple as providing a distraction. Sometimes impact is more important than intention. When they encounter a new person along the way, the carefully planned journey takes an unexpected turn. This new connection in the form of a waitress named Carolyn brings spontaneity, playfulness, and a sense of adventure that challenges their expectations and opens the door to a different kind of healing, one that may require letting go of old things.

The characters are vibrant and quirky and yet familiar. There are many funny and touching moments and the minimal set and props allow the characters to hold the focus and shine. As we watch their trip unfold we realize the real adventure isn't the road trip, it's learning to see things from a new perspective.

SPOONING THE BEAR is a story about friendship and how our needs within those relationships shift throughout our lives. The friendships that sustain us when we are young may not look the same as the ones we need later, and sometimes the people who know us best still have to learn how to meet us where we are. The show explores the beauty, complexity, and occasional challenges of those evolving connections. If you want to laugh and reflect then this show is for you.
- Crystal Rose Haygarth

SPRINGTIME
Odradek Theatre Collective, Toronto, ON
The Players’ Guild of Hamilton

By Katie Lawrence
Starring: Kendra Cordick and Katie Lawrence

Audience members walk to their seats confronted by a stark stage: a step-stool, four milk crates, empty containers, a crate. The sound of thunder or maybe it’s a rumble of animals? Inside the crate, two women. Then the indecipherable voices of a man and woman arguing.

What is going on? Are the crated women hiding, or being hidden? They look up. What are the
people upstairs arguing about? The forced-together crate-mates, May and June, argue briefly
about the people’s motives, focusing eventually on the man. They wonder whether they’ll be
killed.

May and June – we never learn their real names, there’s a sense they might not even remember them themselves – will do anything to feel anything. June picks at a scab at the back of her head, blissfully unaware of what an untreated bleeding scab could lead to. She just needs to feel something. She burns her foot on a candle. On purpose? Maybe not. They braid each other’s hair. They fart. June menstruates. They play youthful hand-clapping games and accuse each other of cheating. They share a smoke and June revels in the sensuality and pleasure of sucking on the cigarette, holding her breath and then sweetly releasing it into the air.

Unsaid throughout the production is why the women have been crated. There are some hints. “I am an enemy of the state or is the state an enemy of me?” May asks early on.

The women, who need each other and are repelled and repulsed by each other simultaneously, argue about the man. “All’s he’s done is save our lives,” May asserts. Really? Somehow, it feels doubtful, particularly when the man, forever unseen, invites May upstairs into his pig barn’s loft to teach her blackjack. The practice lessons eventually lead to May’s insistence they play for stakes, which lead to a kiss.

The kiss leads to yet another argument about the man with May insisting she’s in love with her captor. (Can you say “Stockholm Syndrome”?) And June, who’s never been to one of these barn-loft blackjack invitationals, cries: “I never lead this place. I am this place! All I’ve done is remember. All you do is forget!”

You won’t be forgetting “Springtime” that soon. Despite the unanswered “why”, there’s enough WTF to go around.
- Raymond Beauchemin

SPRINGTIME is an intimate, haunting piece of theatre that lingers long after its final moments. Katie Lawrence's writing is rich with poetic imagery and emotional honesty, finding moments of humour, tenderness, and hope amid extraordinary circumstances. As May (playwright Lawrence) and June (Kendra Cordick) hide beneath a pig farmer's barn because they are enemies of the state, the script explores survival, isolation, sense of self and the quiet ways people preserve their humanity when the outside world has become hostile.

The performances are exceptional. With a chemistry that makes the relationship between May and June sweet and heartbreaking, small gestures and silences carry as much weight as the dialogue. Lawrence and Cordick both have fantastic range and physicality.

The production's greatest technical achievement is its immersive sound design from Elijah MacLeod. The muffled footsteps overhead, distant voices, shifting earth, and unsettling ambient textures transform the cramped hiding place into a fully realized world and atmosphere the audience is immersed in. The sound design generates an almost claustrophobic tension that still leaves room for moments of imagination and play between May and June.

Under the direction of Shailyn Pierre-Dixon, SPRINGTIME is an exquisitely performed, and masterfully crafted demonstration of how powerful Fringe theatre can be when every artistic element works in perfect harmony. This is a show from a talented team that you don’t want to miss.
- Victoria Sullivan

TACOS & EXTINCTION
Squirrel and Nut Productions, Hamilton, ON
The St. Luke’s Mission

This is an energetic performance that re-writes the history of Darwin’s 1834 voyage on the HMS Beagle, where The Naturalist, Darwin, played excellently by Phil Krusto, raid his storehouse of rare species to satisfy gastronomic desires. This really is a wild ride.

After an introduction to the ship by a scene with a mysterious bird-like creature that seems to represent The Spider, played by Skye Rogers, and The Cricket, played by Bianca Acquilina, the play turns to a philosophical debate about the dangers of single-crop farming in England. This conversation about the current debates about biodiversity, act as subterfuge for the wildly archaic views of The Captain Robert Fitzroy, played by Adam Lemieux and Darwin. They have this conversation while eating one of the last two remaining Great Auks. This contradiction goes to show the contradictions in society at the time, given that the Great Auk was hunted to extinction.

The play then moves to the captive animals, the Last Great Auk, played by Ashley Chant, and the First Captive Gorilla, played by David Faulkner-Rundle. There is a great tension and dynamic between the two, as the Last Great Auk appears almost constantly in a state of panic, in full on flight mode, and the First Captive Gorilla seems blissfully in a state of denial and passivity.

The acting in this show is excellent by everyone, and audiences are likely to take great delight in child actor Acquilina saying some very amusing and unchildlike things. The costumes and props are creative, and stretch what is possible on a Fringe budget. The staging is energetic, forcing the audience to contort in their seats if they want to see it all. This is a play you are unlikely to forget any time soon.
- Bryan Boodhoo

TAMP
Claud Spadafora, Hamilton, ON
The Staircase | Elaine May

This production is a hilarious and unexpectedly informative lesson in human anatomy.

Playwright and performer Claud Spadafora is absolutely brilliant, keeping the audience spellbound and laughing throughout this inventive one-person show. With sharp comic timing, physical energy, and a wonderfully engaging stage presence, Spadafora transforms menstruation from an awkward or uncomfortable subject into something playful, theatrical, and joyfully absurd.

TAMP takes us into the messy business of a day in the life of a young tampon. It is an unusual premise, but Spadafora develops it into an imaginative journey through the human body, filled with physical comedy, audience participation, and wonderfully strange encounters.

Although this is a solo performance, the audience quickly becomes part of the cast. Volunteers are drawn into the action, helping to create the environment and characters surrounding the central adventure. Spadafora handles this participation with warmth and confidence, ensuring that the experience remains funny rather than embarrassing.

Who could have imagined that a show about menstruation would be so entertaining? TAMP succeeds because it approaches its subject without shame or hesitation. Behind the laughter is a clever exploration of a natural biological process that remains strangely taboo, presented with humour, imagination, and theatrical charm.
- Ray Z Rivers

THE GIANT SPACE MONSTER THAT ATE HAMILTON IN 3-D
Smith & Reimer, Hamilton, ON
The Players’ Guild of Hamilton

Written by and starring Kristian Reimer and Larry Smith

Right off the top, let me say I’m still relatively new to Hamilton. I’ve been here 15 years. I had no idea who local TV news anchors Norm Marshall and Tom Harrington were. I had some vague feeling that “Copps” was a name of someone. Figured it wasn’t Sheila because, unless you’re Donald Trump, buildings and monuments don’t get named after you until you’re dead. Copps relates to her dad, Victor, it turns out.

What I also didn’t know is that a giant space monster ate so much of downtown in the early 1960s! That would explain so much!

Reimer and Smith’s “The Giant Space Monster That Ate Hamilton in 3-D” begins with the premise that what we are about to see was part of “Creature Feature”, the old-timey horror broadcasts hosted by Vincent Price. Reimer embodies Price hilariously, with a forever-falling black electrical tape moustache. “I bet you thought I was dead.” That one I knew. Yes. Price is
dead.

But Reimer is alive, breaking through the “wall” of a television maquette with his hands to imply the three dimensions the audience is supposedly experience. Many other props and puppets break that wall, flying over the audience’s head, even entering the seating area, including a submarine and an airplane.

Once Price’s introduction is done, what we watch is essentially a documentary-like, as-it’s-happening tale of how an alien sea creature feasted on Hamilton energy, including a transmission tower and nuclear sub in Lake Ontario, the HMS Sandwich (sub sandwich, get it?).

Reimer and Smith have no qualms about showing the backstage at work: props are scattered on the floor, a clothes hanger backdrop keeps falling. It all adds to the laughs.

At some point, the mayor – Victor Copps – and a McMaster professor argue about scientific evidence versus political decisions and expediency in a manner that felt so current (can anyone say AI data centre?).

As for Mark and the Hamiltones’ 1960s hit, “The Squid”, there’s a lot about hyper-local music I
don’t know. I’ll just have to trust that such a song existed and there was actually a dance it inspired. I mean, after seeing “The Giant Space Monster That Ate Hamilton in 3-D”, if you can’t trust Kristian Reimer and Larry Smith, who can you trust?
- Raymond Beauchemin

Kristian Reimer & Larry Smith have done it again with a hilarious 3-D show that comes to life inside a giant television on stage. Complete with 3-D glasses to put on when the red and blue lights flash on stage and 3-D program (glasses required), the jokes start immediately with the program reading: It’s too late! You’ve bought your ticket!

We begin with Vincent Price entering the TV and introducing himself, with “I bet you thought I was dead.” Price, played by Reimer in the first of many roles, loses his moustache repeatedly and ridiculously. Smith has been hiding behind him in plain sight the whole time wearing a black suit that blends into the curtains, with only a circle for his face visible. He’s a talking head, in the first of many roles he plays. Both Smith and Reimer get more hilarious in each role as the jokes build.

Blending B-movie 1960’s sci-fi, puppetry, sketch comedy, and joyful theatrical anarchy that doesn’t take itself too seriously, Smith & Reimer deliver an hour of relentless laughs and infectious creativity. The intentionally homemade aesthetic is ingenious and part of the joke. Reimer and Smith have razor-sharp comic timing and improv skills, leaving their audiences laughing and wanting more. Packed with Hamilton in-jokes, and charmingly ridiculous “3-D” effects, the show never loses sight of its biggest strength: pure fun.

This delightfully chaotic adventure proves that imagination beats a blockbuster budget every time, in this new and improved version of THE GIANT SPACE MONSTER THAT ATE HAMILTON IN 3-D. A critic’s pick from 2025 Hamilton Fringe Festival, you don’t want to miss this show.
- Victoria Sullivan

THE HANGING
Red Beti Theatre, Hamilton, ON
Fringe On The Streets

The Hanging is an avant-garde satire of the biggest issue plaguing Hamiltonians today: the housing market. The story is an on-the-nose tale of tenants vs landlords in a literally larger-than-life court trial. I say literally because the judge is a stiltwalker! The stiltwalkers were the coolest part of the show by far. One was the aforementioned judge, swinging her gavel madly and piled on with a cartoonishly large judges’ wig. The other two played monstrous personifications of buildings, acting as sentient skyscrapers giving their piece on the state of things.

I think that the strongest facet of this play was the staging; they did a fantastic job using the parkette and the stiltwalkers to create interesting compositions and captivating scenes. With the largest cast of the day by more than double (nine people!!!)Their fantastic use of the space was no small feat. The Hanging had the whimsical, boisterous tone of a pantomime, but the gravity of something more serious.

Two lawyers debate over the fate of three tenants in an abstract, over-the-top fantasy court. Unfortunately, due to this show’s location on one of the busiest intersections in Hamilton, I couldn’t make out a lot of what the actors were saying so some of the story was lost on me. I suppose that’s for you to enjoy!

The show had a very important message: tenants rights and solidarity among the working class. It served to educate its audience on their rights as tenants, and included a call to action on standing up for yourself. They even went so far as to hand out pamphlets with resources for those facing homelessness or unfair living situations. The Hanging has a great message with a passionate cast and a visually striking performance.
- Francis Wallace

THE LAST HORNBLOWER
Live the Questions, Guelph, ON
Centre For Talking Arts

Eric Bronson expertly weaves a story between the Captain’s life and death, a soccer pitch where Italy’s Grande Torino plays, and the Norse Gods answering the call to Ragnarok in a fascinating and moving examination of courage and the call to battle - wherever that battle may be; hospice room, soccer pitch, or Asgard.

Bronson tells us about the Captain. Born in Turin, Italy during the war and now lying in a 250 square feet hospice room with Alzheimer's. After his career as a pilot ended with a water cannon salute of honour on the tarmac of his last flight, the Captain maintained his belief in order and technology. As a child, the Captain was at the 1948 Grande Torino game with his father when a super fan blew the horn and Torino scored six goals in the row, after already leading 4-0.

A year later, returning from a match in Portugal, this is the same team that took the fateful flight that ended with a crash into Superga Basilica with no survivors, ending one of the greatest football teams Italy has ever seen. Each year on the anniversary of the crash, the names of the players who died are read aloud and a horn plays Taps over the hillside to remember them.

THE LAST HORNBLOWER has themes of duty and honour and you should see it for Bronson’s personal connection to the story. Bronson’s storytelling has echoes of the Captain's courage, as one man shows are not for the faint of heart. The show felt like assembling a puzzle, and the moment the pieces clicked into place was genuinely satisfying. The way the detail of answering the call of a horn echoed across all three narratives was subtle but powerful, a reminder that we can all choose to answer the call of the horns in our life because they only thing that is certain is - in the words of the Captain: "We’re all going to lose our final match sooner or later. There’s no escaping that one."
- Victoria Sullivan

THE MOTHER
Claudia Pompeya, Cincinnati, OH
Theatre Aquarius Studio

A one person show written, directed, and performed by Claudia Pompeya; THE MOTHER is a clown show, a type of show I have loved ever since seeing Slava’s SNOWSHOW in Toronto in 1998.

THE MOTHER has all the elements of a great clown show; quirky humour, unusual props, wild costumes, sometimes uncomfortable dialogue and situations, and audience participation. The show was, in fact, only missing one thing; an audience. Opening night the audience was small, and that’s just not enough to really get a show like this working the way it should.

We threw the big balloon of the earth around, we went up and danced on stage, we added sound effects, but there’s no getting away from their not being enough people to generate that critical mass of audience response needed.

It’s difficult, then, to give a review that really reflects the potential of this show. The potential is absolutely there for a funny, challenging, interesting show. All it needs is an audience to take off. So don’t disappoint Mother. Go and see this show.
- Julian Nicholson

THE OUTLAW AND THE SON
FirstRodeo, Gatineau, QC
The Westdale

When one thinks of a singing cowboy, the first image that springs to mind might be Roy Rogers astride his horse Trigger, strumming a battered Martin acoustic guitar while accompanied by a fiddle player or banjo picker. THE OUTLAW AND THE SON deliberately overturns those familiar clichés, replacing the comforting mythology of the singing cowboy with something darker, stranger, and far more electric.

Arriving at the Hamilton Fringe from Gatineau, Quebec, this production is unlike anything else I have seen at this year’s festival. There are two performers onstage, although only one of them, playwright, director, and performer Tony Martins, guides us through the haunting story of a weathered cowboy confronting the violence and regret of his past.

Martins combines theatrical storytelling with live music to create an eerie, otherworldly vision of the Old West. Acclaimed Hamilton guitarist Andrew Aldridge joins him onstage, and together they build a lush and atmospheric soundscape using two electric guitars. Their playing becomes a musical conversation, shifting between restrained melodies, distorted echoes, and bursts of raw emotion.

The production is structured around ten original songs, each revealing another layer of the narrator’s life. Gradually, we learn about his experiences as a soldier, his struggle with trauma, and the emotional distance that has shaped his relationship with his son. The songs do not merely interrupt the story. They carry it forward, allowing memory, confession, and music to become inseparable.

There is also a strong religious undercurrent in the final moments, when the identity of the son becomes increasingly ambiguous. He may be the cowboy’s estranged child returning after many years, but he may also represent the Son of God, offering the possibility of forgiveness and redemption.

Musically, the show owes more to Mark Knopfler and Jimi Hendrix than to traditional country and western performers. This is very much an electric Western, filled with shadow, distortion, and spiritual unease.

THE OUTLAW AND THE SON is an inventive and compelling journey into a haunted frontier. It is also a perfect example of the remarkable variety that makes the Hamilton Fringe such an exciting festival. Highly recommended.
- Brian Morton

THE SEAWITCH SPEAKS
Sara Anderson, Hamilton, ON
Backroom @ Ringside

Sara Anderson does it all. She writes, directs, and performs this one-person, short show to great effect and delight.

The play is a one-person monologue from the point of view of the Sea Witch from the legend (and subsequent Disney movie) of the Little Mermaid. There is a lot of thought that went into this piece, and it’s not a re-telling of the fable per se, but an opportunity for the audience to hear what the Sea Witch, the villain of the tale, has to say.

For those who may need a reminder, the story of the Little Mermaid is this: Ariel, a rebellious mermaid princess, dreams of the human world. After rescuing a human prince named Eric, she makes a dangerous deal with the sea witch, Ursula, to trade her voice for legs. She has three days to secure a "true love's kiss" to remain human permanently.

Anderson is funny, pensive, sometimes reserved, and always engaging. She gives a great performance. The costume is intriguing, and it is used to great effect in the script. It may have, perhaps, hampered some of the movements of the actor. Still, this is reflective of the script, where a sea creature on land would be constrained in their freedom and movement.

The Seawitch Speaks is a great addition to the Mini-fringe. It helps us recognize how many of our childhood tales may in fact be pretty cringy in today’s society.
- Bryan Boodhoo

THE SEAWITCH SPEAKS is The Little Mermaid's tale told from the seawitch's perspective. And boy did we have it wrong. The Disney version was certainly a tidy bow fit for young viewers but our seawitch, who has tentacles peeking from under her dress of sail rags but is not named Ursela, offers a more human, believable perspective that sets the record straight.

A 600-year-old compassionate seawitch, she obliged Ariel, a 37-year-old mermaid, allowing her to live above the water in the palace with the prince in exchange for her voice. Not being able to write, Ariel was forced to watch the prince marry a land princess, but she loved him so much she threw herself off a cliff and became seafoam. Now yes, the witch played a role in exchanging Ariel's voice for a human life but Ariel begged her. And taking over the ocean - do you know how big that kingdom is? How in the Marianas Trench would one person rule that, our witch points out.

But Ariel didn’t perish. She was rescued by a fisherman named Eric, a widower who brought her home to live with his family, where they grew to love each other and she lived a long and happy life. While the seawitch couldn't tell us what happened to Ariel’s spirit when she died as an old woman surrounded by people who loved her, we know what happens when a life is well lived.

Written and performed by Sara Anderson, this solo show is great storytelling with an enchanted performance. The story you think you know is not the real story. This under the sea retelling gives the voice of the protagonist to a character formerly labeled as the antagonist and is worth seeing for anyone who loves a good sea pun, Ted-tacle talk or wonders what happened to that phone they dropped in the water. It just might be a tile on the seawitch’s cave floor.
- Victoria Sullivan

THE SYLLABUS
Morbidelli 17 Productions, Los Angeles, CA
Mills Hardware

Playwright/Performer/Director: Michael Gougis
Michael’s premise is that you are attending a night class at an American community college for the first session, on “Media Studies”. He begins with a prepared syllabus of what to expect, and more importantly what he expects. About halfway through, I got the feeling that the entire show IS, the Syllabus, we don’t actually get to the meat of the class. Michael gets on stage, dressed very casually, more casual than I remember of any of my professors and proceeds with his.. expectations.
First off, I found the writing hilarious and witty. There is use of a projector/slide show, which is used to some extent. I feel it could have been used even more, in several ways. Most of the blocking is very static, and his character, feels like his genuine self.

I assume as the Festival goes on, he will relax more into the role, and with bigger audiences to react off of. There is an interactive element to the show, which was tested a few times, and he handles and shines in those moments adequately. I don’t quite buy a professor as casual as this rendition, there just doesn’t seem to be a lot of stakes involved. My most memorable professors had strong stances. But it is quite a funny show if you are paying attention. It makes a statement on both education, and the current concerns of the millenial/gen Z era and also a statement on America in general, or even Western culture. A few elements are repeated for comedic effect, but there could be some revisions, to make even more of a statement. Perhaps Gougis did not want to offend too much. Ultimately, a show worth catching and having fun with. Feel free to jump in with interactions, no matter how bizarre.
- Luis Arrojo

THE YODELING RANGER
Hamilton 7, Hamilton, ON
The Staircase | Studio Theatre

Has a piece of music ever connected with you and become a part of your personal story? This is the story of one such song and the moments it connected. THE YODELING RANGER is a hilarious, deep, and deeply engaging piece of musical storytelling that uses live music and dynamic performance to explore memory, the existential nature of the creative process, the art of yodeling, and the beautiful misadventure of being an artist or a person or both.

Created and performed by Hamilton artist Tor Lukasik-Foss and directed by Marilo Nunez, THE YODELING RANGER weaves together music and storytelling to take audiences through the memories, experiences, and reflections that have shaped Lukasik-Foss’s career as a musician and performer. With a unique storytelling approach that is immediately endearing, often hilarious, and totally immersive THE YODELING RANGER is one not to be missed.

What makes this piece so effective is the way Lukasik-Foss uses music as a thread connecting different moments of his life. The musical elements of the show are not simply performances placed between stories, they become a way of exploring memories, emotions, and the characters of the story. Through humour, passionate and poetic description, and vibrant characters, he examines the journey of being a young musician. Lukasik-Foss invites audiences into the sometimes existential process of creation while also sharing personal and relatable moments from his own experiences. His ability to move seamlessly between music and storytelling creates a unique theatrical experience that feels conversational, honest, and incredibly engaging.

The result is a piece that is hilarious, heartfelt, and full of the passion of an artist who understands that storytelling can happen not only through words, but through chords and connection. Don't miss this one Fringers. I left with a belly sore from laughing, cheeks sore from smiling, eyes that prickled more than once with tears, and a heart that was full of story and song.
- Crystal Rose Haygarth

THERE IS NO ANGER LIKE THAT OF A WOMAN
Of The Sea Productions, Toronto, ON
Theatre Aquarius Studio

Written by Grace Delamere, directed by Meg Gibson, and performed by Grace Delamere and Liam Armstrong.

THERE IS NO ANGER LIKE THAT OF A WOMAN is set in a bedroom of a bordello where Adam, a wealthy businessman has paid for an hour to spend with Eve, a sex trade worker. Surprisingly Adam decides he wants to talk, rather than have a more physical encounter.

The play becomes an hour long meditation on the nature of sex work, women’s position in
society, and the casual discrimination women face on a daily basis. This is an idea heavy play,
and as such needs tension between the two protagonists to keep audience interest, and this is where, for me, the play fell down a bit.

The characters talk at each other, frequently with very little passion. I wanted to see Eve circling Adam as she breaks down his world view, and Adam holding his ground defending his beliefs.

With more movement and intensity, this play could be one of the best in the festival. This is a good, really well written play, with the potential to be a great one. It’s definitely worth viewing.
- Julian Nicholson

TILT
Solo Chicken Productions, Fredericton, NB
The Westdale

One of the great joys of the Hamilton Fringe is the opportunity to discover theatre from companies that might not otherwise travel to Hamilton. A perfect example is TILT, a marvellous and inventive production from Solo Chicken Productions of Fredericton, New Brunswick.

Created and performed by Alex Rioux and Jean-Michel Cliche, TILT begins as a carefully scripted piece of physical theatre before deliberately throwing itself into the unpredictable world of improvisation. At the beginning of the performance, an audience member contributes a secret. That secret is held back until approximately halfway through the show, when it is suddenly revealed to the performers and becomes the foundation for everything that follows.

Rioux and Cliche play a couple whose already rocky domestic relationship is shaken by this unexpected revelation. The first half establishes their characters, shared history, and increasingly strained life together. The second half becomes an entirely improvised continuation of the story, complete with new characters, surprising locations, and an ultimate decision about whether their relationship can possibly survive.

Both performers are superb at keeping the proverbial ball in the air. They transform a nearly bare stage, equipped with only a table and two chairs, into a remarkable variety of settings. During the performance I attended, these simple objects carried us to locations that included the Rocky Mountains, a gay bar, and the tiny apartment shared by the central couple.

Director Lisa Anne Ross guides the production with a sure and steady hand. Even when the story enters improvised territory, the movement remains precise and the relationship between the characters stays emotionally grounded. The show is constantly in motion, giving the audience barely enough time to catch its breath before the next visual joke, physical sequence, or unexpected development arrives.

Georgia Priestley Brown serves as stage manager, designer, and technical improviser. Her lighting and sound choices are created alongside the performers, responding immediately to the improvised action. The technical elements are not merely supportive but become an essential part of the comedy and theatrical excitement.

TILT is one of the most polished Fringe performances I have seen this year. It is extremely funny, physically accomplished, and supported by a genuine undercurrent of emotional drama. Out-of-town companies can sometimes struggle to attract local audiences, but this clever and original production deserves to be discovered.
- Brian Morton

TOWNSPERSON #3
Etemadi Entertainment, Toronto, ON
Theatre Aquarius Studio

Izad Etemadi’s newest Fringe production is an absolute delight. TOWNSPERSON #3 plunges us into the chaotic and increasingly ridiculous lives of two minor citizens whose kingdom is gradually freezing solid around them. Drawing inspiration from the elaborate personal histories that ensemble performers often invent for their barely noticed characters, the play becomes a wildly funny celebration of musical theatre from the viewpoint of those usually left in the background. Despite appearances, however, this is not a musical. It is a play about a musical, and therefore contains no actual music.

The production is essentially one enormous meta-theatrical joke built around the audience’s knowledge of Broadway musicals. The more familiar you are with famous songs, recognizable choreography, and familiar theatrical conventions, the more deeply involved you become in the comedy being presented.

The script riffs upon one specific musical in particular, which I will not mention, although it becomes fairly obvious within the first ten minutes. What we are examining is something decidedly arctic and glacial, viewed entirely through a wonderfully ridiculous comedic lens. “Let it snow” becomes the unofficial theme for an hour of theatre that is all about musicals without ever actually becoming one.

The story concerns two members of the chorus, bit players who normally remain somewhere behind the principal characters. One is male and one is female, and we follow their various interactions as they perform choreography, sing harmonies without lyrics, and struggle to remain relevant while the larger story unfolds around them.

There is also a delightful running gag that quotes the opening lines of dozens of Broadway songs. Each reference lasts only long enough for the audience to recognize the particular theatrical allusion before the production races onward.

Izad Etemadi and Julia Pulo are enormously engaging performers who keep the entire production moving at a relentless pace. It moves so quickly that it is almost impossible to lose focus. A variety of objects and set pieces, including two chairs, a metal gate, and a handwoven basket, are continuously transformed and passed around the stage.

It has been said that theatre is simply life condensed into its essential moments. This production demonstrates that idea beautifully while examining pregnancy, fatherhood, marriage, friendship, and the dream of becoming a carpenter.

TOWNSPERSON #3 is my favourite production of the 2026 Hamilton Fringe so far. You may also find yourself enchanted by the theatrical magic bursting from the stage. Book quickly, because I expect this one will sell out sooner rather than later.
- Brian Morton

TOWNSPERSON #3 is a comedy written and directed by Izad Etemadi, and performed by Julia Pulo and Izad Etemadi. Izad has long been a favourite performer at the Hamilton Fringe, bringing high energy, humour and sometimes drama, to every play. TOWNSPERSON #3 is no exception.

The play, brilliantly performed by Pulo and Etemadi, keeps you laughing from beginning to end. The writing is clever, with so many movie and musical theatre references that you’d probably need to see it at least twice to catch them all.

You watch two characters move through the world of a famous Broadway musical involving frigid arctic water; they move through various dance routines, which when isolated from the story are hilarious in their randomness. The consequences of linking arms in this world are far greater than in ours, and the rules are different, but it all makes some kind of sense with its own internal logic.

Combine the humour, the perfect delivery by both actors, the great writing and clever situations and you have a guaranteed fantastic Fringe theatre experience.
- Julian Nicholson

TRASH BOTS
Trash Bots, Hamilton, ON
Fringe On The Streets

Trashbots might have been my favourite show of the night. It had some of the sharpest comedy I’ve ever seen in live theatre, with two amazing actors who delivered every joke like professionals and delightful puppets that were equal parts adorable and ridiculous. The show had me laughing the entire time, and I wasn’t the only one. When I got singled out at the end for a smidge of audience-participation I was literally brought to tears with laughter. The jokes felt modern and young, but people of all-ages were cracking up throughout.

The story follows the abandoned robot Charity-42069 awakening in an alley in Hamilton and meeting Frasier, another discarded robot who is far more cynical and hateful than the optimistic Charity. They talk about humanity and their experiences with it as outsiders looking in, begging the question of whether or not humans deserve to live. The vibe was a very contemporary humorous-nihilism, with a constant battle between a love for humanity and a hatred for it. Liz Buchanan and Ryan M. Sero were incredible performers, and were able to show their strengths as both traditional actors when playing humans and voice actors when talking through the puppets.

Trashbots is, ironically, a very human show. It is laugh-out-loud hilarious, but in no way vacuous or simple. They punch tons of feelings and even more jokes into their 15-minute performance. Trashbots was my favourite show on the tour, and some of the funniest live theatre I’ve ever seen.
- Francis Wallace

WAITING ROOM
Mugwort and Fennel Theatre, Hamilton, ON
Theatre Aquarius Studio

WAITING ROOM, deals with memory, grief, and belief; it was written and directed by Mylo Doyle, featuring performance from Dana Learman, Rebecca “Johnny” Casalino, and Nathan Lise.

The play is set in a hospital waiting room for family members of patients in intensive care. The set includes four chairs, some tables, and a phone that only works sporadically. A rain storm plays constantly in the background, a sound effect annoyingly on a loop, so it would stop once a minute or so, and then start up again.

The play itself is dialogue and idea heavy, with the two characters on opposite sides of religious belief, and forgiveness for their father’s sins. The fathers are in intensive care, and a nurse occasionally enters to act as a messenger or to take one of the actors away to see their father. The two actors have a lot to carry with this show, and for the most part deliver the lines well, but

I would have liked to have seen a bit more intensity from them. Certainly they had the energy, but in the quiet moments I felt there was a bit too much calm, considering the situation. Nevertheless, this is a well written and performed play that will leave you thinking after you leave the theatre.
- Julian Nicholson

WHEEL AND TURN
Lady Sunflower Productions, Toronto, ON
The Westdale

WHEEL AND TURN is a clever, personable, and deeply engaging musical centred around three remarkably versatile performers. Semi-autobiographical in nature, the production explores identity, heritage, motherhood, and the lasting influence of the celebrated Jamaican poet, folklorist, and playwright Louise Bennett-Coverley, better known by her stage name, Miss Lou.

Created and performed by award-winning author Nadia L. Hohn; the production also features Kevin heronJones and vocalist Olivia Carter, who brings Miss Lou vividly to life. Together, these three performers pack an impressive amount of history, cultural detail, music, and personal experience into the production. From its opening torrent of Jamaican patois, WHEEL AND TURN immediately establishes its own distinctive language and theatrical rhythm.

The dialect may require some concentration from audience members who are unfamiliar with it, but the effort is richly rewarded. The production invites us into a specific cultural world rather than simplifying that world for our convenience. Through storytelling, poetry, music, and humour, it provides a fascinating introduction to Jamaican traditions and to the enormous cultural importance of Miss Lou, whose work helped preserve and celebrate Jamaican language and identity.

It is encouraging to see the Hamilton Fringe Festival creating more opportunities for BIPOC artists through changes to its lottery process. WHEEL AND TURN demonstrates exactly why those opportunities matter. This is a production grounded in diverse voices and lived experience, allowing its creators to tell a story that might otherwise remain unfamiliar to many Hamilton audiences.

There is also a darker emotional undercurrent running beneath the humour and music. The play deals with infertility, pregnancy loss, grief, and the complicated expectations placed upon women. These elements add considerable dramatic weight and prevent the production from becoming merely a cultural history lesson. At the same time, broad stretches of comedy and playful interaction keep the experience warm, accessible, and entertaining.

By the conclusion of this play; I felt that I had learned a great deal about Afro-Carribean culture and history I had not previously encountered in this way. The production pushed me beyond my comfort zone several times, but that challenge was part of its considerable value.

Do not miss the opportunity to experience WHEEL AND TURN. It is rare, distinctive, educational, and deeply personal. Hamilton audiences should embrace the chance to laugh, listen, and learn from this memorable celebration of Jamaican culture.
- Brian Morton

WHERE TO LAY MY HEAD TO REST
Where to Lay My Head to Rest, Hamilton, ON
Fringe On The Streets

Where I Lay My Head to Rest is, in my opinion, the most moving show in the walking tour. It is a display of Mexican pride and a fascinating and emotional insight into philosophical questions I had never considered before.

The show is non-fiction. Sophie Bonifaz speaks her mind and explains struggles and questions she has faced as an immigrant. She slips between monologue and song, all with a live guitar accompaniment. The songs pull from pop culture, both Spanish and English, to punctuate her stories and points. Both she and her guitarist are dressed in traditional Mexican clothing, with half their face painted as a Dias de los Muertos skeleton, and the other half as their human selves, to represent the precipice between life and death that the show rests on. I talked to Bonifaz after the show, and she told me that she personally made the elaborate headdress herself, and that she switches up the makeup and costume for every show!

I feel like I learned a lot from this show. Sophie touches on Mexican beliefs, Dia de los muertos, and both legal and emotional issues faced by immigrants. The core of the show - and where it gets its title from - is Sophie’s dilemma over where she wants her remains to rest when she dies. She has family in America, a decades worth of friendship in Canada, and roots in Mexico. Who will mourn her? What soil does she really belong to? What makes someone “from” somewhere? The story is a love letter to immigration; to the beautiful multiculturalism of Hamilton and Canada as a whole, to the immigrant communities within it, and to everyone whose birthplace feels impossibly far away.

Listen. If Bonifaz’s philosophical musings were able to make me, a white man who was born 2 blocks from where he currently lives, get teary eyed - then I know it’s something anyone can enjoy. Where I Lay my Head to Rest perfectly captures the mood of Dia de los Muertos: the honest, bitter-sweet, human side to death and what it means to be loved after you’re gone.
- Francis Wallace

2026 HAMMER MONTHLY REVIEWERS BIOS:

Luis Arrojo is a Hamilton-based Actor, Director, Producer, Writer, Stage Manager, who has been involved in almost every Hamilton Fringe since 2012 including several "Best In" awards. He also is the head of MIXED Theatre Hamilton, which has had a few productions over the years. Luis studied theatre at York University as well as Mohawk College, and currently teaches at Red Tree Performance Academy. A proud supporter of the Hamilton arts community, Luis has been known to review Fringe shows over the years on his private Facebook account. As every year, Luis is looking forward to the productions bring to Hamilton and is excited for the journey.

Raymond Beauchemin is the author of several works of fiction, including, most recently, “The Emptiest Quarter" (Winnipeg: Signature Editions). "3 Hours, 10 Minutes," at the 2025 Hamilton Fringe Festival's Ringside venue, has been described as a show "worth watching to spark discussion and deep thought about humans, art, and life." His full-length play “What We Talk About When We Talk About Trump” was one of five plays selected for the 2025 Brave New Works program of Hamilton’s Theatre Aquarius. www.raymondbeauchemin.com

Bryan Boodhoo is a regular at the Hamilton Fringe Festival, having written and or directed a number of plays, including G-Star Live!, Life Through Fire, The Bird’s Nest, Perpetual Sunshine Machine, A Thousand Natural Shocks and Migrant Stories (Frostbites). He has reviewed 80 fringe shows for View Magazine and Raise The Hammer.

Crystal Rose Haygarth first became involved in the Hamilton Fringe Festival as and actor in its second season. Now as we celebrate the Fringe's 22nd season she has had the opportunity to engage in the Fridge as an audience member, actor, director, volunteer, administrator, and reviewer. You may also have seen her on local stages as a part of their regular season. Most recently she portrayed Pip in the Dundas Little Theatre production of “Things I Know to be True” by Andrew Bovell. When Crystal isn't finding her light on stage, she finds it off stage as a stay at farm mom.

Brian Morton was the recipient of the 2013 Hamilton Arts Award for Theatre. His play “The Night They Raided McMaster”, won the Best in Venue Award at the 2022 Hamilton Fringe Festival. Brian was also the producer of the 2012 Hamilton Fringe Festival. Brian is currently a drama critic and arts journalist for “The Hammer Monthly“; he has also published articles in the “Hamilton Spectator” and the “McMaster Silhouette” and ”VIEW Magazine”. www.theatre-erebus.ca

Julian Nicholson has been participating in the Fringe Festival for many years as an actor, director, and reviewer. He’s happy to be back for another year of great theatre and to see old and new friends.

Ray Z. Rivers has written and produced four stage plays, including two at the Fringe Festivals in Toronto and Hamilton. Ray’s acting has included stage performances of Plenty, August Osage County, Modern Times, Hamlet, A Midsummer Night's Dream, 12th Night, Dead Men Don’t Itch and An Ideal Husband, in addition to those in his own productions. In addition, he has created and performed in a number of virtualized plays during COVID. Ray completed his first book in 2014 and has recorded two CDs of original music. An economist by training, Ray is also a contributing editor with the Burlington Gazette.

Victoria Sullivan's work has been featured in Hamilton and Toronto Fringe Festivals. She holds a BAH in Theatre Studies from the University of Guelph and an MFA in Scriptwriting and Story Design from Toronto Metropolitan University. Victoria served as Script Coordinator on the International Emmy-nominated series MY DEAD MOM (Crave) and her most recent play, MINIMUM, premiered at Factory Theatre during the 2026 Toronto Fringe Festival after earning Best in Venue at the Player’s Guild during the 2025 Hamilton Fringe. She is a writer, producer and actress, co-founded The Intergalactic Federation of Space Beers production company and is delighted to be seeing and writing about shows in the Hamilton Fringe.

Francis Wallace is a proud Hamiltonian. As an alumnus of Mohawk's animation program and the graphic designer and writer for The Hammer Monthly, Francis has a long and personal connection with the art, music, and theatre scenes in Hamilton. Francis is an avid MMO player, a huge gamer, and is so passionate about fantasy that wizard is quite literally his middle name.

2026 HAMILTON FRINGE FESTIVAL REVIEWS