By Desmond Sam
11th Grade, LaGuardia High School

When the Sky Breaks 3D is a show that contains more than what meets the eye, it contains power, soul and love. With amazing dancing and cool effects, it is a breath of fresh air. There is an unexplainable ounce of magic that separates this show from anything else I’ve ever seen. ( Read more )

By Elana Dure
12th Grade, Stella K. Abraham High School

With talented cast members, catchy show-tunes, and laughable jokes, Jersey Shoresical is every good hearted music-lover’s guilty pleasure while mocking MTV’s highest ranked TV show, Jersey Shore.

Jersey Shoresical is filled with memorable songs (hardly any characters actually speak out of tune) and touches upon every major event that happened in the past seasons on Jersey Shore. From Sammi and Ronnie’s on-and-off relationship, to Snooki and her love for pickles, Jersey Shoresical has it all. The cast speaks in the appropriate lingo with the awesome accents. Terms like “gorilla juicehead” and “grenade” are thrown around a lot, but luckily those who do not know the terms from the show are able to follow along with the “Jersey Shore Glossary”. ( Read more )

By Dalia Wolfson
12th Grade, Hunter College High School

R.L. Stine (Goosebumps wordsmith) must have had an encounter with Shakespeare in some far-off literary land, because this year’s Fringe Festival presents a pick-your-poison adventure: Romeo and Juliet: Choose Your Own Ending. In an hour and a half, The Impressionable Players hop and skip and soliloquize in Elizabethan brocade, agonizing over family rivalries and romantic decisions – and all in iambic pentameter.
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By Michele Tram
Senior Plogger

Making her NYC debut, Yael Rasooly plays quirky secretary Ruth Spencer in Paper Cut, a hilarious one-woman show. Papercut tells the story of socially-inept Ruth, a perfectionist, who always goes above and beyond at work, even taking on ridiculous tasks (such as writing a love letter to her boss). Through classical tunes and photos from old film magazines, she escapes her mundane secretarial job by reenacting the lives of diverse characters. The more involved Ruth becomes with storytelling, the less focused she is at her job, causing her professional demeanor to spiral downwards resulting in an unexpected consequence. ( Read more )

By Liz Oakley
11th Grade, Brearley School

The Mountain Song is a tale, told through music and puppetry, of a father who sets off in search of his daughter’s wedding, without knowing where it’s taking place. Along the way he meets unexpected friends, faces dangers, and makes fantastic discoveries. Animals in this play talk and giants roam the land. Equally astonishing are the talents of the seven-man ensemble, all very young and seemingly able to play almost any musical instrument; the play is interspersed with gorgeous folksy ballads and rousing bluegrass tunes.
From the beginning, the performers make their intention very clear: they are here to tell us a story. The story itself, which resembles a classic American folk tale, is entertaining enough, but it is the way in which they tell it that is truly captivating. The ensemble uses their versatile acting abilities, musical talents, and clever theatrical craftsmanship to create the journey for us. They imaginatively use puppetry, lighting, and props to create beautiful, atmospheric versions of the events. Their tools are simple, and first and foremost among them is the imagination of the audience, which is called upon to turn simple theatrical tricks into a reality. Though it’s simple, the actors believe in the power of their own illusions, and so do we.   ( Read more )

By Nicholas Gonzalez
8th Grade, I.S. 278

The comedy Happy Worst Day Ever tells the story of sixth grade friends Glorie, Chris, Emma, and Jacob. These friends are all struggling with peer pressure and are worried about what other people think of them. Throughout the show, the characters are put into different situations and have to make tough decisions in order not to hurt others’ feelings.
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By Dalia Wolfson
12th Grade, Hunter College High School

Mimes have gotten a bit of a bad rap in the past – they suffer from associations with cheap party entertainment and the build-a-box trick. However, Broken Box Mime Theater’s Words Don’t Work, proves that the art of the mime can be a beautiful and true one.
Words Don’t Work is representative of the Fringe Festival because its ‘low budget’ feel is natural; there’s no need for a smoke machine, excessive props or elaborate sets – just eight bodies, lights and sounds to build any story. In a little more than an hour, the eight mimes act out 13 tales, slipping on and removing characters like white gloves. The playlets range from family relationships to quaint park scenes to medieval epics, and so the repertoire here is diverse and rich; the actors are able to recreate castles, kitchens and clunking garbage trucks with startling clarity. The mimes are skilled at shaping emotion with their hands, giving material meaning to a thought created in thin air. Throughout every scene, the audience follows the plot, and the glorious arc of human feeling is relevant and present. Interestingly enough, the scenes are not silent – words may not work, but music plays a role almost like in a silent movie, narrating the mood and rhythm of the acting. ( Read more )

By Michele Tram
Senior Plogger

BAMA Theatre Company’s Hamlet starts off with an aesthetically-pleasing visual: eight actors are seen in a semi-circle formation each towing unique props in hand producing a rhythmically-infectious beat. From this moment alone, it is evident that the cast members are incredibly in sync with one another as this well-choreographed number progresses without a hitch. The scene lays the foundation for a set of expectations that would ultimately be fulfilled through director Greg Foro’s clever utilization of the stage and Chris Roe’s emotionally-raw performance as Hamlet. ( Read more )

Gemma Lolos
12th Grade, LaGuardia High School

At first, In the Summer Pavilion explores sexuality, choice, and the definition of friendship. The play is set in a summer house in Maine.
The story revolves around Ben, Nabile, and Clarissa, friends from Princeton, who hold a seemingly harmless get together which soon goes awry with the aid of alcohol and LSD. Conflicted and vulnerable Ben, excellently portrayed by Ryan Berry, gets tricked by his friends into playing a terrifying “game” under the influence. Consequently, Ben gets hurled forward in time to view multiple futures that may or may not be his. ( Read more )