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Fr!ngeist: Desperate Housepets

By Rob Shostak

2006_07_11fringeist.gif
In Hollywood, the hype machine is carefully crafted and finely tuned and targeted. Having someone spend their day flying over a major city with a banner for a movie (which has had mixed reviews) works to get AIS (asses in seat) and more importantly get some $IP (Cash in Pocket). But when it comes to Fr!nge, the budget gets a bit smaller, and hype is built up more by word-of-mouth and reviews. One would think, in an Occam’s razoresque way since the marketing is simpler and direct (i.e. from a friend), it would be correct, and trustworthy… Not so.
Torontoist is here to say: Don’t believe Fr!nge hype. Yesterday, Torontoist caught two of they hypiest shows of this year’s Fr!nge. How unfortunate.
Desperate Housepets was billed as a series of sketches about ordinary housepets. But things are not as they seem as these caged animals have secrets… secret lives… secret desires… secrets that will be revealed. But just like season two of Desperate Housewives, the show failed to deliver.
Simply put, Desperate Housepets is anthropomorphism at its mediocre. The play stayed well within an established comfort zone, remaking cliche stories… but this time with animals… get it? Each vignette left Torontoist thinking “been there, done that, and now I’ve seen animals do it.”
Quite unfortunate as well was the venue. Due to the lower stage and the less-than-stadium seating, Torontoist was unable to properly see the final sketch involving dogs at the pound. Not that it would have helped actually. Relying heavily on trite zoological gags this plays says a lot about banality. It could have worked so much better if it was a) about Desperate Housepets, and b) put on last year at the height of the Desperate Housewives popularity.
The only thing this play has going for it is that a portion of the proceeds go to animal shelters The World Society for the Protection of Animals. Why not save time and cut out the middle man… Send your $10 directly to The WSPA, and put this desperate Fr!nge play to sleep.
Oddly enough, this show is likely to be sold out every showing, so get your tickets early… proof that high attendance does not a good show make.
Warning: Secrets are NOT revealed. Secrets are NOT exposed.
Pre-show music: The Cat Came Back and other animalic fare.
istististististististhalfist 4.5/8 -ists
Check out the Fr!nge website and listings for dates, times and locations.

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  • http://www.publicspace.ca Jonathan

    The show actually was “put on last year at the height of the Desperate Housewives popularity.” It played at Summerworks last August.

  • Robert Watson

    It is indeed interesting when the media decides to latch onto a particular artistic work or play and make it into a big deal. When I wrote Desperate Housepets over a year ago, all I thought I was doing was producing a fun little play with a bit of a message, and hopefully raising awareness for an animal charity or two (by the way, the charity we’re supporting is the World Society for the Protection of Animals, or WSPA. Check your facts, dear reviewer). Now, after some amazing reviews from well respected publications such as the Toronto Star (highly recommended), and EYE Weekly (five stars), a lot of people are more concerned with how many stars they think it deserves, and building up an expectation that is, quite frankly, next to impossible to satisfy. One warning about Desperate Housepets is that it is best to leave your cynicism at the door, and that’s something that many people find hard to do these days. Still, I am very proud of this play and all the hard work that the director, designer, and actors have put into it. And judging by the boisterous laughter the audience rewards us with every performance, and the smiling faces that leave when the play is done, I believe we have succeeded.
    There are 134 plays at the Fringe this year, and lots of great plays that didn’t get any press attention. Go see some of them. And if you enjoy what they gave you in their performance, wait for them to come out after the show and let them know. It’s that kind of response that makes creating theatre so rewarding. Thank you.

  • Robonto

    Well, Robert, I have to say, I didn’t have said expectations or cynicism when I went to see the show. I went on the recommendation of a friend of mine who saw it in Montreal, not the glowing reviews in the Star or Eye.
    I just didn’t think it was all that good. It really felt like stock situations and stock characters, creating mediocre theatre. Queers in shallow relationships? I heard the same fight, word-for-word, at Woodie’s last week. The Fish story had a “Time Enough at Last” feel to it, but entirely less dramatic. And dogs (and a cat) in a pound as a finale? Really? Are you serious? It was a simple hackneyed scheme to have people leave smiling and comfortable. For that, I commend you.
    Also, please take off the charity hat. While it’s great that you’ve decided to support a charity, (and most plays/people should) it does not change the fact that the writing was thin, and the play’s “message” was even thinner.
    But it wasn’t all bad, Robert, I’ll throw a couple of ists to Leah Wahl who, in my opinion, saved the show.