Nicholas Surges
This is a tale of one woman's quest to find herself after her potato-based instant messaging service is panned by a celebrity investor. And what better way than by selling empowering, sweatshop-manufactured t-shirts to desperate people? Intrigued? You should be. Prarie Fire, Please's new play, Everyone Wants A T-Shirt! is a delightfully absurd and wickedly clever satire that explores the exploitative nature of direct sales, the emptiness of slogan-based slacktivism, commercialized feminism, racial commoditization and tokenism, entrepreneurial failure, and the cult of celebrity marketing. ...and this is where the script's one shortcoming lies: it touches on so many issues that some of them are unable to be developed fully in the show's one-hour duration.
This audience member found himself wishing that we could have seen more exploration of the racial politics that the main character Beatrice faces as a woman of colour. But this one small criticism does nothing to dampen the cleverness of Madeleine Brown's script or the hilarity of the cast's performances. The cast is excellent across the board, with most of the ensemble playing a variety of parts (often in quick succession).
John Wamsley plays Beatrice's coworker Eugene with feline wickedness and a delicious streak of swish. Charlin McIsaac is a delight as she switches seemlessly between the self-centred and coolly pragmatic Dr. Inge and a series of wacky characters (most notably a failed art student whose passion is reinvigorated by Beatrice's t-shirt salesmanship... which really might not be a good thing). And the playwright herself is hilarious as Inge's dim-witted high school henchperson. The one constant is Brittany Miranda, whose tenacious and increasingly-conflicted Beatrice Little forms the nucleus around which this absurd satire is grounded. Miranda blends charm, sincerity, and snake oil salesmanship into a surprisingly complex character who we're able to root for, even as she makes a series of terrible mistakes that challenge her own integrity.
The play's direction in the hands of Aaron Jan and assistant director Anthony Tran deserves its own shout out. The transitions are flawless, the pacing is tight, and the stylized fight choreography (set to electronic video game beeps) works better than most of the conventional stage combat I've seen in other indie shows. The playing space also becomes increasingly cluttered with cast-off props and costume pieces as Beatrice's life spirals into conflict. Also worth mentioning is Logan Raju Cracknell's lighting design, which cleanly and clearly delineates the different locations on the bare, white playing area. Everyone Wants A T-Shirt! has only 3 performances left: July 12th, 13th, and 14th. This is one show that has been selling out consistently, so I'd highly recommend purchasing tickets in advance (especially given the intimate seating at Theatre Passe Muraille's back space).
Tickets and info for all Toronto Fringe shows can be found at fringetoronto.com
This is a tale of one woman's quest to find herself after her potato-based instant messaging service is panned by a celebrity investor. And what better way than by selling empowering, sweatshop-manufactured t-shirts to desperate people? Intrigued? You should be. Prarie Fire, Please's new play, Everyone Wants A T-Shirt! is a delightfully absurd and wickedly clever satire that explores the exploitative nature of direct sales, the emptiness of slogan-based slacktivism, commercialized feminism, racial commoditization and tokenism, entrepreneurial failure, and the cult of celebrity marketing. ...and this is where the script's one shortcoming lies: it touches on so many issues that some of them are unable to be developed fully in the show's one-hour duration.
This audience member found himself wishing that we could have seen more exploration of the racial politics that the main character Beatrice faces as a woman of colour. But this one small criticism does nothing to dampen the cleverness of Madeleine Brown's script or the hilarity of the cast's performances. The cast is excellent across the board, with most of the ensemble playing a variety of parts (often in quick succession).
John Wamsley plays Beatrice's coworker Eugene with feline wickedness and a delicious streak of swish. Charlin McIsaac is a delight as she switches seemlessly between the self-centred and coolly pragmatic Dr. Inge and a series of wacky characters (most notably a failed art student whose passion is reinvigorated by Beatrice's t-shirt salesmanship... which really might not be a good thing). And the playwright herself is hilarious as Inge's dim-witted high school henchperson. The one constant is Brittany Miranda, whose tenacious and increasingly-conflicted Beatrice Little forms the nucleus around which this absurd satire is grounded. Miranda blends charm, sincerity, and snake oil salesmanship into a surprisingly complex character who we're able to root for, even as she makes a series of terrible mistakes that challenge her own integrity.
The play's direction in the hands of Aaron Jan and assistant director Anthony Tran deserves its own shout out. The transitions are flawless, the pacing is tight, and the stylized fight choreography (set to electronic video game beeps) works better than most of the conventional stage combat I've seen in other indie shows. The playing space also becomes increasingly cluttered with cast-off props and costume pieces as Beatrice's life spirals into conflict. Also worth mentioning is Logan Raju Cracknell's lighting design, which cleanly and clearly delineates the different locations on the bare, white playing area. Everyone Wants A T-Shirt! has only 3 performances left: July 12th, 13th, and 14th. This is one show that has been selling out consistently, so I'd highly recommend purchasing tickets in advance (especially given the intimate seating at Theatre Passe Muraille's back space).
Tickets and info for all Toronto Fringe shows can be found at fringetoronto.com
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