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San Francisco Fringe Festival
SF Weekly September 4, 2001 (Michael Scott Moore)
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10th annual San Francisco Fringe Festival
Sept. 6-16, various locations

A CONTEMPORARY, female Frankenstein; the radioactive
"Beaverzilla"; Shakespearean queens; a hunky perfume squirter; a
revisionist Little Red Riding Hood ... the San Francisco Fringe Festival
is a decade old, and a swarm of unusual suspects are poised to make
this year's edition a memorable one. The shows are short (almost all
are an hour or less), cheaper than a movie (eight bucks max), and
conveniently located, at the Phoenix II and Exit Theatres and, in the
case of the four "Bring Your Own Venue" plays, in the Mission (New
College Theatre, the Marsh) and the Financial District (outdoors, at
Market and Sansome). An audience member's biggest challenge is,
well, figuring out which of the 40-plus productions (launched by 53
groups and artists from the Bay Area and beyond) to attend;
experienced Fringers plan their evenings around the back-to-back
performances and settle in for the ride. Most of the shows target the
funny bone; in addition, darkness, absurdity, poignancy, introspection,
and the utterly bizarre turn up in just about every play on the roster.
Just a few to take note of: local stars Liebe Wetzel and Lunatique
Fantastique's latest puppet drama, Brace Yourself, about a man with
polio; London's Rogues' Yarn Theatre Co.'s performance of the
apocalyptic Heart of Darkness; Lucid, a play with wooden marionettes,
from Canada's Peanut Butter Productions; and a "post-modern
medicine show" presented by Colorado's Atomic Elroy. Frankly, there
are too many shows to even mention, so check out the Web site;
some shows (The Condom, the Cucumber, and the Girl from
Ipanema) might draw you in on title alone. Mon.--Fri., 7, 8:30, and 10
p.m.; Sat.-Sun., 1, 2:30, 4, 5:30, 7, 8:30, 10 p.m. Call (415) 673-3847
or go to www.sffringe.org for a complete schedule. (Cheryl Eddy)

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