Toronto Fringe Review: Blast From the Past Presents One Night Only
Photo by John Meadows.
The most beautiful theatre is often created from storytelling; personal recollections translated onto a stage from an artist’s materialized concept. Giving this approach a twist, One-Eyed Duck Recording and Publishing’s Blast from the Past presents One Night Only takes the childhood story of a special guest and retells it in an improvised fashion. A rotating cast of performers (Rosh Abdullah, Leigh Cameron, Janet Davidson, Alison Haines, Isaac Kessler, Chelsea Larkin, Chantal Lim, Quentin Matheson, Candace Meeks, John Richardson) listen to the story of one individual (Elaine Gold, Adil Dhalla-Kim, Franco Nguyen, Alia Rasul, Jada Rifkin, Rico Rodriguez, or Pat Silver), and dive into their interpretive recreation, all hosted by Susan Debreceni.
The arc of the show enlists a three part performance in which each part of the story is told and a few improvised sketches follow. The last portion of the story is taken over by a Question and Answer in which the cast gets to ask specific questions to the storyteller. Encountering an array of details to play with, five performers begin scenes that range from two characters to a full cast.
Each performer shone with a boldness resembling the set’s brightly coloured blocks, chairs, and other childhood items. Right of this sits a staple of the show: a piano. Aaron DeSousa as the pianist and composer plays in accompaniment to the improv, enhancing every moment he sees fit. Live music adds warmth to the atmosphere, making for a cozy comedy.
At times, there was confusion as one character seemed to be played by multiple actors and scenes weren’t defined with a who, what, and where. Plots could have been developed more to feel less repetitive and communication could have enhanced build. However, passion on the stage never lacked, and the fun the performers had came in abundance.
Blast from the Past presents One Night Only is on now until July 16 as part of the 2022 Toronto Fringe Festival.
Find show times and tickets here.
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