Summerfest Daily Report - Saturday, August 4

By Glenn Sumi

Not including the insects, the good buzz has been slow in coming at this year's fest. I've run into several people who normally have one or two shows to recommend, and so far they've only been mildly enthusiastic. The general feeling seems to be: 'Nothing great, so far, maybe tomorrow'

PICKS

In two days, the best piece I've seen has been Flight 198, written by Mike McPhaden, last year's SummerWorks jury prize winner for Poochwater. The show looks at four passengers on a turbulent flight from Calgary to Toronto. Through a series of well-orchestrated flashbacks (signified by lights changing and the characters getting up to adjust their clothing), we gradually figure out the interrelationships among the four, who include rock star frontman Bobby Del Rio, drummer Emily Hurson, bartender/inventor Veronika Hurnik and business guy D'Arcy Smith.

It's a fine premise, with a built-in suspense factor -- namely, will the passengers survive the flight? We also get to hear the increasingly stressed-out voices of the flight crew (flight attendants Marie-Josee Lefebvre and Conner and pilot McPhaden) as they fumble with the in-flight movie and inadvertently broadcast their panicked conversations to the passengers.

McPhaden's an extremely talented writer with a good ear for dialogue and a vivid imagination. (I love how the rock singer describes his first impression of the drummer: "You had this anime dominatrix thing going on? what the fuck was that?")

What's impressive about the show is how much we come to care for most of the characters. Sure, along the way we learn about things like drum kits and patent law, but it's the characters and their inner hopes and dreams who keep us in our seats. That and the good performances. Del Rio gets major laughs as the monomaniacal lead singer, and a seemingly miscast Hurson triumphs as the scheming young drummer. (You can call the couple Dumb and Drummer). Smith has the weakest role to work with - he's not given much to play with.

In the end, the show's a bit too clever for its own good, with overlapping dialogue that gets confusing, especially around the climax. To use the plane metaphor, McPhaden has problems "landing" the script.

But that doesn't matter. The show might be about a bumpy flight, but it's still a first-class ride.