Gusties and the 2012 Minnesota Fringe Festival Posted on July 23rd, 2012 by

It’s late July in Minnesota. The temperatures are climbing and the craziness of the 2012 Minnesota Fringe Festival is just around the corner. As usual, a number of current and former Gustavus students and faculty will be performing and directing at the Festival, which will take place August 2-12 at various locations in Minneapolis and St. Paul.

Minnesota Fringe is an annual performing arts festival in Minneapolis-St. Paul. For eleven days, over a thousand artists present works in every discipline and genre.

Assistant Professor of Theatre and Dance Henry MacCarthy will be directing the comedy Dance Money Grind, a physical theatre devised piece about the Dance Marathon fad that swept the U.S. in the early twentieth century. The show involves three couples who take their bodies to the outer limits as they compete for $25,000, a shot at fame, and your love and affection. The cast includes recent Gustavus alumni Sarah Jabar ’10 and Ben Kolis ’12. In addition, Renee Guittar ’12 is serving as the choreographer, Jessica VanKempen ’14 is in charge of costume design, and Assistant Professor of Theatre and Dance Micah Maatman is in charge of scenic design.

Performances of Dance Money Grind will take place at the Theatre in the Round Players on Cedar Avenue in Minneapolis on the following dates and times:

  • Saturday, Aug. 4         8:30 p.m.
  • Sunday, Aug. 5           5:30 p.m.
  • Tuesday, Aug. 7          5:30 p.m.
  • Friday, Aug. 10           4:00 p.m.
  • Sunday, Aug. 12         1:00 p.m.
Maggie Sotos’ TROY! The Musical will premier Thursday, Aug. 2 (Photo by Mark Mahon).

Maggie Sotos’ TROY! The Musical will premier Thursday, Aug. 2 (Photo by Mark Mahon).

Another Fringe performance of interest to the Gustavus community will be TROY! The Musical, written, directed and producted by Maggie Sotos ’09. Love, war and jazz hands! This musical retelling of the Trojan War follows lovers Paris and Helen through ten years of war in Ancient Greece. A romping comedy with laughs, songs and, of course, a wooden horse. The cast includes Gustavus alumni Megan Bren ’08, Andrea Gullixson ’10, Ben Kolis ’12, and Marissa Schon ’09.

Performances of TROY! The Musical will be presented at Bryant-Lake Bowl on W. Lake Street in Minneapolis on the following dates and times:

  • Thursday, Aug. 2        5:30 p.m.
  • Saturday, Aug. 4         7:00 p.m.
  • Monday, Aug. 6          7:00 p.m.
  • Wednesday, Aug. 8    7:00 p.m.
  • Saturday, Aug. 11       1:00 p.m.

Gustavus alumni Tane Danger ’07 and Brandon Boat ’08 have experienced great success with their improv

Brandon Boat ’08 and Tane Danger ’07

Brandon Boat ’08 and Tane Danger ’07

venture The Theater of Public Policy and now they are taking the show to the Fringe Festival. The show is titled Big Thinkers, Serious Issues, Improv Comedy as different policy experts will share the stage with some of the funniest Twin Cities improvisers.

Big Thinkers, Serious Issues, Improv Comedy will take place at the Brave New Workshop Student Union on Hennepin Avenue South in Minneapolis on the following dates and times:

  • Saturday, Aug. 4 at 4 p.m.: The Limits of Government with Kim Crockett of the Center for the American Experiment
  • Sunday, Aug. 5 at 10 p.m.: College, is it Worth it? with Chris Farrell, Economics Editor for American Public Media
  • Tuesday, Aug. 7 at 8:30 p.m.: Putting a Price Tag on Public Art with Kaywin Feldman, Director of the Minneapolis Institute of Art
  • Thursday, Aug. 9 at 10 p.m.: Voting Rights and the Election with Secretary of State Mark Ritchie
  • Sunday, Aug. 12 at 7 p.m.: Good if not Great, Government with former gubernatorial candidate Tom Horner
Three ’90s-era Gusties bring Last of the Red Hot Flops to the Gremlin Theatre (2400 University Avenue W.) and the 2012 Fringe Festival. Written by Britt Aamodt ’93, Flops is set on the day after Prohibition ends, December 6, 1933. A band of ragtag performers is facing the breadline when a neighborhood bootlegger saves their theater from ruin and reopens it. Will tonight be their big comeback? Or just a big flop? The cast includes (co-director) Aamodt ’93, Alice Barry ’94 and features choreography by Deb Lindeen Resichl ’92. Last of the Red Hot Flops plays at the Gremlin Theatre (2400 University Avenue W., St. Paul) with the following dates and times:
  • Thursday, Aug. 2, 5:30 p.m.
  • Saturday, Aug. 4, 2:30 p.m.
  • Wednesday, Aug. 8, 7:00 p.m.
  • Saturday, Aug. 11, 1:00 p.m.
  • Sunday, Aug. 12, 7:00 p.m.
If you prefer modern dance over theater, then you will want to see Connectome which is choreographed by Ashleigh Penrod ’04. A connectome is a detailed map of your brain’s neural network. Can it be altered through movement? With modern dance, this production will explore the things caught in the crossings: memories, dreams and personality. Dancers in Connectome include Penrod, Renee Guittar ’12, and Kimmy Hinman ’13.

Connectome will be performed at the Southern Theater on Washington Avenue in Minneapolis on the following dates and times:

  • Friday, Aug. 3         7 p.m.
  • Saturday, Aug. 4     7 p.m.
  • Tuesday, Aug. 7      5:30 p.m.
  • Friday, Aug. 10       4 p.m.
  • Saturday, Aug. 11   7 p.m.
Last but not least is the dance production Happy Hour, which involves several current and former Gustavus students as well as former theatre and dance instructor Jeffrey Peterson. The show includes five dances, each inspired by a different drink. See whiskey swirl, watch an absinthe striptease, raise a glass to marriage equality and more in a show full of booze and celebration. Included is Peterson’s 11.6.2012, choreographed in recognition of the upcoming marriage amendment vote and raising a glass of champagne to toast marriage equality for all. Current and former students dancing in the show include Katherine Arndt ’13, Renee Guittar ’12, Hollie Luckow ’13, Krista Ripperton ’14, and Rebecca Stewart ’14.
Happy Hour will be performed at the Southern Theater on the following dates and times.
  • Sunday, Aug. 5            2:30 p.m.
  • Wednesday, Aug. 8     5:30 p.m.
  • Thursday, Aug. 9         8:30 p.m.
  • Friday, Aug. 10            10 p.m.
  • Saturday, Aug. 11        1 p.m.

Check out these and other Minnesota Fringe Festival events online at fringefestival.org.

 

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