|
ARTISTS TO WATCH
GORDON RAND
Who: Actor in Bangkok, about international jetsetters who try to
relive and sort out their past at an overpriced Far Eastern hotel.
Buzz: Equally adept at mainstream plays (Vinci, Playboy Of The Western World,
The Devil’s Disciple) and quirky alternative pieces (Five Fingers, his own Orgy
In The Lighthouse), Rand brings a smouldering energy to his work. Can he heat up
Bangkok?
MARY DURKAN
Who: Actor in By The Bog Of Cats, a modern take on the Medea story set
near a swamp and presented as black comedy.
Buzz: Irish-born Durkan, with a slew of fine acting credits and producer of
the annual James Joyce-inspired Bloomsday to her credit, is sure to bring
authenticity to this play by Irish playwright Marina Carr.
MARJORIE CHAN
Who: Actor in Will, a two-hander about dark family secrets in a
mother/daughter relationship that played last year’s Fringe.
Buzz: Fresh off her Dora win for The Seven Ravens, Chan should bring her
unique intensity to this strong script. The remount’s non-traditional casting is
a good thing, but did everyone who wanted to see the show see it last year?
ATHENA LAMARRE
Who: Actor in Mothers, which looks at the way mothers shape their
children, whether the children accept that shaping or not.
Buzz: Recent George Brown grad Lamarre has shone in three student productions
this year. Able to focus a character with dramatic intensity or deliver a
throwaway laugh line, she’s definitely an artist on her way up.
RUTABAGAN
Who: Writer/performer (whose birth certificate reads Christian Laurin)
of Rutabagan in Down Town, in which the clown tries to cope with contemporary
city life.
Buzz: Rutabagan hasn’t done a major clown show for years. With the help of
director Michael Kennard, he might be ready to move into the rarified circle of
red noses that includes Mump and Smoot.
FRANK MESCHKULEIT
Who: Co-writer and performer in Balance, a puppet show about how two
friends destroy a tropical island.
Buzz: It’s been a while since Meschkuleit’s adult-themed puppet shows reared
their heads here; he remounted his cult fave The Left Hand Of Frank two years
ago. So the former Fraggle Rocker (and Sandra Shamas’s ex-boyfriend with the
laundry) should have lots of new material.
NICOLA GUNN
Who: Writer/performer of Tyrannous Rex, a one-actor, seven-character
play about the seduction of a boring nobleman by a coquettish Roma.
Buzz: Gunn slipped into town quietly last Fringe and wowed audiences with The
Elephant Club, her splendid mime show about a mousy secretary with a rich
fantasy life. Will she rekindle the magic with this supernatural-toned tale?
LISA CODRINGTON
Who: Actor in The Interview, about a job interview that goes way out
of control.
Buzz: Codrington displayed amazing range in her own Fringe show, Cast Iron,
last year, and was the best thing in the recent The Wedding Band. Look for her
to steal scenes as an admin assistant with nightmares in this surreal office
drama.
JEROME SAIBIL and ELI BATALION
Who: Writer/performers of Job II: The Demon Of The Eternal Recurrence,
the sequel to last year’s groundbreaking Job: The Hip-Hop
Musical.
Buzz: The show’s success is a done deal. We all wanna know what happens to
MCs Cain and Abel. The real question is, how cleverly will philosophy grads
Saibil and Batalion interweave music, text and choreography this time around?
JON KAPLAN/GLENN SUMI
| 
