Montreal fringe – half way

by Phil RickabyFringe, Keystone Theatre, The Last Man on EarthPosted on No Comments

With three shows left at the Montreal Fringe festival, we are half way through our performances. Montreal has been quite an experience so far. We have been performing to small but enthusiastic houses, and the appreciation and compliments we’ve received from the audiences has been wonderful.

I’ve had the chance to see a few shows so far, and while there are a lot of shows I would love to see, it’s going to be a challenge to see them all.

A couple of highlights from fringe so far: first and foremost: Osara Soup, a gifted performance troupe from Japan. Their show “My Exploding Family” is still one of the best of fringe for me. It was a thrill to have them come to our show and be as enthusiastic about our show as we are about theirs. They gave a shout out to our show after their performance and even did an impression of our poster, which was hilarious and flattering. I can’t wait to see what this troupe does next.

Meeting some of the other performers has also been great. A bunch will be traveling to other fringes, so you should definitely check them out. Toronto audiences should see Tinfoil Dinosaur during Toronto Fringe, and Winnipeg has The Ukrainian Dentist’s Daughter to look forward to. The Gadfly will perform in Edmonton and Vancouver. I would name more but I’m drawing a blank on other shows that are traveling the circuit. There are a bunch though, and you should see them.

Our next show is Thursday at 7:45pm. We’re hoping that the good press and audience buzz we’ve been receiving will result in large enthusiastic houses.

I will let you know.

Montreal Fringe so far

by Phil RickabyFringePosted on No Comments

We’ve been in Montreal for a few days now. The first few days were to do some promotion for the show, and participate in some fringe events. This was helpful, if for no other reason than to get our bearings in an unfamiliar city.

On Friday we did tech for our show, getting our first chance to take a look at the theatre we would be calling our home for the duration of Montreal Fringe. Last night we performed the show for a small but enthusiastic audience. I believe there was a reviewer in the audience, so hopefully we will see a positive review soon.

Although the house was small, we are hoping the buzz grows. We are feeling good about the show, and looking forward to performing again.

I’ll update again soon.

Montreal Fringe so far

by Phil RickabyFringePosted on No Comments

We’ve been in Montreal for a few days now. The first few days were to do some promotion for the show, and participate in some fringe events. This was helpful, if for no other reason than to get our bearings in an unfamiliar city.

On Friday we did tech for our show, getting our first chance to take a look at the theatre we would be calling our home for the duration of Montreal Fringe. Last night we performed the show for a small but enthusiastic audience. I believe there was a reviewer in the audience, so hopefully we will see a positive review soon.

Although the house was small, we are hoping the buzz grows. We are feeling good about the show, and looking forward to performing again.

I’ll update again soon.

Challenges and Changes

by Phil RickabyFringe, Life, wordsPosted on No Comments

As the days count down to the beginning of the Keystone Theatre Fringe Festival tour of The Last Man on Earth, I’ve been thinking about the challenges and changes ahead of me.  The changes I’ve talked about: giving up my job and apartment and hoping for the best on this tour.  That’s big for me. I’m doing my best not to even think about what I will do when I come back, because I’m a natural worrier and I know that if I start to think about it, I will not stop.  So, the plan is to just concentrate on the tour and the summer adventure and worry about the rest when I get back.   For now, all I have to really worry about is packing.

For the challenges:

– Getting out of my shell. Promotion for Fringe festivals is always about legwork; getting out and talking to people, schmoozing at the Fringe tent, and encouraging people in lines for other shows to come to your show.  This will take me way out of my comfort zone, because I’m a closet introvert. Walking up to people and starting a conversation is not something I am good at, or even comfortable with, so that’s something I will have to overcome this summer.

– This whole summer will be a test of my social networking abilities. Trying to keep my own twitter feed up to date , while also updating @keystonetheatre and The Last Man on Earth Facebook page as well will be a challenge, but one I think I’m up to.  I’ll have to make sure I keep taking pictures so I can tweet the Fringe experience and the show. And of course, I plan to blog the whole thing, in addition to tweeting and Facebooking.  What I’m hoping is that I get better at doing all of these things, so that when I get back, I can add that to my skills to help with that  whole “getting a new job” thing.

– Just sitting back and enjoying the ride. Like I said earlier, I’m a worrier, so just enjoying the ride isn’t in my nature. I like to know what’s happening tomorrow, and the day after that. But when we’re on the road, and in new cities, I really won’t know these things, so I will have to learn to just enjoy it. Or as the actors say “be in the moment”.

All in all, I’m looking forward to tackling these challenges.  I think I can do it.

What challenges are you setting for yourself this summer?

 

A big risk, but a good risk

by Phil RickabyFringe, Keystone Theatre, The Last Man on EarthPosted on No Comments

Now that my fellow work mates have been officially informed, I can finally let the cat out of the bag.  I haven’t been able to blog about it until now, because I needed to break the news at work.

I am about to take what is probably the biggest risk of my life. I have decided to leave my place of employment, give up my apartment and follow a dream.  You see Keystone Theatre will be taking The Last Man on Earth to four Fringe Festivals across Canada, and I’m going to reprise my role as Gormless Joe in Keystone’s latest play in the style of silent film.

To make this work, I’m giving up a certain amount of comfort and security: giving up the job, giving up my apartment, putting my stuff into storage. But it will be worth it.  I believe in this show, and I want people to see it.  I believe that the benefits will outweigh the risks in the long run.

And its going to be a great adventure.  I’m looking forward to sharing it with you.