What I liked
Mark Vigeant somehow wasn’t on my radar before this year’s Fringe, but I must look like a deranged fanboy now because in the past 48 hours I’ve seen three of his shows, not quite back-to-back. And I wouldn’t have it any other way. He’s a brilliant comedian and clown, willing to go to any length to ensure the people seated for his show have the best damn time of their lives. As a fan of shows like Survivorman (Bear Grylls and his camera crew can f*** the hell off) and games like Firewatch, the live Go-Pro footage and general outlining of the terrain was an inspired touch. I don’t think I’ve ever seen the Broadwater Main Stage space nor audience so well-utilized. The tech is remarkable, and used very artistically in a way that augments the action onstage. (I don’t want to give away the extremely impressive technical effort at the end, but I do want to applaud it!) The ending is also…unexpectedly beautiful and moving. While Vigeant ensures it is easy enough to laugh at Larry’s pain, he does still manage to impart a lot of pathos, and the narrative end of the piece is extremely poignant and beautiful. It’s not the first time I’ve seen a clown show reach such dramatic heights, but it might be the most subtle work I’ve seen on that front. There aren’t a lot of showings of this, so make sure you catch it!
What I didn't like
I’m split on how I feel about the incline/decline jokes. Did I laugh almost every time? Yes. Was it done…a lot? Also yes. Is that the point? Also also yes? IDK. I’ll bring it up at the next Welcome to Hell, I guess.
Also, the moose cheated. I recognize it was a fight for his life, but still.
My overall impression
I had the time of my life…
