Tonight Only!

Tonight Only! blends improv, humor, and occasionally song to create a completely unique one-act play in under an hour. Each performance is based on a new topic suggested by someone in the audience: the Sunday afternoon show was called "Waiting for the Bus".

Without any further direction than that, and with only a few wooden blocks as props, the actors created a setting, funny and dynamic characters, and even drama in the improvised action that followed. The characters separated themselves out into primary and secondary roles, and the actors moved in and out of the unscripted scenes with such ease that one might think they had planned it all along. The actors truly became their newly invented characters, and pursued each scene with comic determination while still moving the story forward. An on-stage keyboardist helped add to the mood of each scene, as well as providing a melody for any impromptu musical numbers and allowing the actors to transition easily from one scene into the next one.

Though it is definitely a good way to spend an hour at the Fringe Festival, the potential for some adult themes or language might make this show a better choice for a more mature audience. The actors' ability to transform a simple directive, "waiting for the bus" into an improvised story filled with heartbreak, ambition, and persistence is reason enough to attend. Tonight Only! is fun, inventive and enjoyable from start to finish.

-- Jessica Lave