Am I actually writing about something before it happens?  Must be because my Toronto recap is over and I’m actually caught up for once.  Well, I have some other things to talk about (the Highland Games and the Ovens for a start), but let’s talk about right here and right now for a change.

Starting tonight is the Atlantic Fringe Festival.  For theatre junkies or people who like to see different kinds of theatre or people who like to see cheap theatre, this is your time.  There are 62 different shows (yeah, I counted them all) playing from now until September 8th, all over Halifax.

I don’t know how many I’m going to get to see, because it’s going to be a crazy week and a half.  For the first time in forever, it is actually physically impossible to see all of the shows (unless you have a time machine, in which case please call me).

Here’s my short list (which will probably not be very short at all):

In The Telling – Vile Passeist Theatre.  This is a company I’ve worked with and they always do such a good job with their shows.  The actors are all amazing, it’s an all-ages show, and it’s set in the Natural History Museum.  Also, they just finished touring the PEI Fringe and the Saint John Fringe.  They’re Fringe masters by now.

Tribe of One – The Doppler Effect.  The Doppler Effect put on some good shows, and I’m very interested in their Cadimus Protocol project.  It’s being performed in the Natural History Museum and I think the space is going to be amazing.

The Jezebels.  Based on Switchblade Sisters, this is a show about a tough girl gang (loosely based on Othello).  Girl power!

Legoland.  Two kids who escape from a hippie commune, who choose vaudeville as their community service.  I know the people involved and I don’t doubt that this will be crazy/hilarious.

Les and Dawn – Firething Theatre Collective.  Again, I know the people involved.  It’s a new script and I always like supporting new works – especially when the people involved are awesome.

Variables.  The path of this show is determined by chance, and each scene has two possible outcomes.  It’s a Choose Your Own Adventure for the theatre.  At only $5, I wouldn’t mind seeing this twice.

And, there are just so many more: Wake Up Rosie; Whale Riding Weather; The Panel Show; So Ho, By So; etc, etc, etc.

There’s no way I’ll see them all, but one can always hope.