Cox and Box

I went to two Capital Fringe Festival shows today. The first was a production by The Victorian Lyric Opera Company of Cox and Box. For those who are unfamiliar with this piece, it features music by Arthur Sullivan but the words are by F. C. Burnand, rather than W. S. Gilbert. (It was written in 1866 so predates the collaboration with Gilbert.)

The plot involves two men who are, unbeknownst to them, renting the same room. Since Cox works days and Box works nights, their landlord gets away with double rent. That is, until Cox's boss gives him the day off and they meet.

The show was thoroughly delightful. All three actors (John Perine as Cox, Tom Goode as Bouncer, and Clyde Wright as Box) were clearly having fun and so was everyone in the audience. The musical accompaniment was a simple piano, but that worked fine in the intimate space of the Warehouse Theatre.

People are sometimes dismissive of Sullivan for having written such light musical entertainment. But, frankly, how many other 19th century English composers are remembered at all nowadays?

I'd tell you to go see this production, but today was the final performance. However, I will keep an eye out for future performances by this company.

Funny Propositions

The other Capital Fringe Festival show I saw today was Funny Propositions by the Fine Wine Players. This consisted of four brief plays, with a theme of "smashing reality." The first, "Decked," had to do with addiction to computer solitaire and mostly involved the cards talking about how bad for the player her obsession with the game was. The most successful was "Dorothy For Lunch," which was the story of a lonely woman who makes surprisingly life-like dolls and had a decidedly Twilight Zone feel to it. "Parlour Games" was simply uncomfortable for watch, and was not salvaged by a twist at the end. Finally, "Guerillas" had an interesting premise, in which shopping at malls was made illegal and only e-commerce allowed, but didn't follow through effectively.

I was expecting something funnier and more coherent, so was disappointed. But that's the way things go with fringe shows. It's always worth taking a chance.