'Romeo and Juliet: Choose Your Own Ending

The Fall Fringe is like the Cliff's Notes of the Fringe Festival. It's short, sweet, and someone has already done the hard work of picking out the good parts for you. And while half the fun of the Fringe Festival is the unpredictability of it all, Fall Fringe shows (which are carryovers from the summer festival, and come with the bonus of not occurring in un-air-conditioned venues in July) have all been reviewed already. The team behind the Fringe has already picked out these shows because they were successful, but which ones were the best of the best? Let's ask this summer's critics:

All shows take place at The Shop at Fort Fringe. See their schedule for details. All tickets are $20, or $15 with a Fringe button.

Do Not Kill Me, Killer Robots
The Great Ben Egerman Theatre Adventure!
Nov. 17-21
The last man on earth, an actor must save himself from low-budget killer robots.
Winner: Best solo show.

"It's solidly funny (if a bit scattered), and even though he often takes the easy joke — "Twilight"! Facebook! Killer robots! — Egerman's presence is engaging enough that the easy joke will serve." — Fiona Zublin, Washington Post

This is a young performer interested in asking large questions, such as, Are we making the most of the limited time life has to offer us? — Sophia Bushong, Washington City Paper

But really, who doesn’t love sex-crazed killer robots? Am I just being too Aristotlean? This being Fringe, I guess the lack of anything cohesive is ok if you aren’t looking for deep meaning and just need a light laugh or two. — Jenn Larsen, DC Theatre Scene

Kelly Bond's Elephant. (Photo: Courtesy Capital Fringe Festival)

Elephant
Kelly Bond
Nov. 4-7
Performance art about presence and communication.

"The performers pushed our boundaries as an audience, but we never really pushed back. We were, as the women would goad, polite spectators." – Ann Willemssen, Washington City Paper

"While it is easy for some members of the audience to accept the nudity in the work, for others, it is an elephant in the room, and something they try to ignore but just cannot get over." — Whitney Fetterhoff, DC Theatre Scene

Freud Meets Girl
Wayward Theatre
Nov. 5-21
Freud's great-great grandson harnesses technology to continue his ancestor's work.

"What's fun is the way Styles plays with the conventions of cautionary drama, without using them for a more obvious brand of spoof." — Peter Marks, Washington Post

"Freud Meets Girl is a clever story with enjoyable humor which turns into a mind-blowing experience (yes, I intended that pun)." – Steven McKnight, DC Theatre Scene

"Unraveling a man's inner truths is never an easy task, and as we often see depicted (in foolish, cliched fashion), the person pulling back the curtain usually gets a good look at himself as well -- whether he's prepared or not. But this is a balancing act, and its remarkable cast helps keep Freud Meets Girl cliche-free." – Sarah Sherman, DCist

Ridgefield Middle School Talent Nite (Photo: Courtesy Capitol Fringe Festival)

Ridgefield Middle School Talent Nite
GoHorses
Nov. 12-21
Memories of public humiliation in our most awkward years.
Winner: Director's award.

"Ridgefield Middle School Talent Nite was the funniest show we saw in this year’s Capital Fringe Festival." — Chris Klimek, Washington City Paper

"Overall, the show is great, silly fun but might not appeal to the squeamish or easily embarrassed; the many hilarious moments are punctuated by some overwhelming humiliation. But this is middle school; could it be any other way?" — Stephanie Merry, Washington Post

"Many campy shows get a little old as they go on, but Ridgefield Middle School Talent Nite has an endearing goofiness that only builds as the show proceeds." — Steven McKnight, DC Theatre Scene

Romeo & Juliet: Choose Your Own Ending
The Impressionable Players
Nov. 10-21
Will Romeo will fall for Juliet, or Rosaline?
Winner: Best comedy and best overall show.

"Yet beyond the language, this production wedges in more bits of inspired comic business than most comedies twice its length. Director Ann Fraistat takes a clever script she co-wrote with her brother Shawn and elevates it further through her ingenious staging and bits of frenetic action." - Steven McKnight, DC Theatre Scene

"Ann and Shawn Fraistat have written a whip-smart and hilarious new take on a play we all thought we were tired of -- and much of it is in iambic pentameter, which the show's young actors handle with aplomb. " — Fiona Zublin, Washington Post

The Poet Warriors
Jose Luis Diaz Presents
Nov. 6-20
A musical about courage and friendship in wartime.

"It’s as if the original conceit, establishing no concrete war zone and requiring the audience to fill in the blanks with their own prejudices, was meant to obscure an unwillingness to make a strong argument for one worldview or another. Whatever the reason, Tilson’s play is a solid entertainment, but one that aspires to be much more." — Derek Hills, Washington City Paper

"Much of the plot is told to the audience through direct address by characters who then (sometimes) muddily transition into a scene that demonstrates the point they just declaimed to the audience. In spite of these sometimes unclear transitions, and in spite of dramatic content that sometimes verges on schmaltzy and over-sentimental, The Poet Warriors proves to have some moments that are intensely genuine and evoke honest emotional response." — Anna Brungardt, DC Theatre Scene

Kevin Thornton's Sex, Dreams and Self-Control
(Photo: Courtesy Capital Fringe Festival)

Sex, Dreams and Self Control
Kevin Thornton
Nov. 4-13
A coming-out comedic fantasy, scored to rock 'n roll.

"Although Thornton’s story is frequently graphic and profane, the humor is understated and his original music is surprisingly mellow in telling how Thornton gradually accepted and came out about his homosexuality." — Steven McKnight, DC Theatre Scene

Cavers
Nu Sass Productions
Nov. 6-20
Cave monkeys, evolutionary theory, and other challenges to tackle.

"This is definitely an unusual play – at times hard to follow, quirky, and certainly original, so yes, it’s a text-book example of Fringe at its best! It proves challenging to draw in an audience, but it may still be worth your while to see it." — David J. Hoffman, DC Theatre Scene

"If you’ve ever thought a moment about issues concerning resource exploitation versus preservation, creationism versus evolution, and striving global capitalism versus small-town religious values, take heart: so has the playwright, Mark Rigney." — Derek Hills, Washington City Paper

McSwiggin's Pub
Sean O’Brien
Nov. 4-14
Second City alum and Hill staffer Sean O'Brien returns once more with his show about politics and drinking in D.C.

"I think I was envisioning some slapstick, in your face jokes about life in DC, working on the Hill, and a typical evening in a DC bar. His comedy is a bit darker and, in fact, during some of the characters’ monologues I would say O’Brien steps squarely into the world of drama." — Sabrina Daly, DC Theatre Scene

This is Your Brain on Rock and Roll
Hamell on Trial
Nov. 17-21
This one-man punk band talks about politics, and his past.

"If the normal concert experience were a drink of water, This Is Your Brain on Rock and Roll would be like drinking out of a fire hose." — Steven McKnight, DC Theatre Scene