Miriam Trujillo
Fringe – The Musical (not to be confused with Fringe! The Musical, also playing during the festival) isn’t about the “Fringe” that’s on everyone’s mind this August in Edinburgh. Rather, the title refers to the type of haircut, setting the scene for this hair-salon centred musical, full of enthusiasm and charm but missing the mark a little in terms of writing and execution.
The story centres around Darren and his daughter, Sam, as their family grieves the loss of their wife/mother. She used to run a hair salon, and now Darren and Sam are struggling to keep it afloat to honour her. We meet the colourful cast of ladies who work at the salon as well as some of the salon’s customers: a quarrelling couple who host a radio show. We follow the hijinks of the salon workers as they try to reconcile the couple and compete with a bigger, better salon that recently opened.
The atmosphere created by the musical was pleasant. Upbeat, peppy, and witty, Fringe – The Musical reminded me of Hairspray with the same positivity, up-tempo music, colourful characters and scenes, and old fashioned feeling. I could definitely see this as a longer-form sitcom, following the triumphs, hilarities, and struggles of the salon workers. There was that kind of potential in the premise, with the characters of the salon workers, especially, exhibiting that potential.
The character building of all the characters felt a little too surface-level. Walking away from the show, I couldn’t really describe any of the characters except with one adjective each: the “funny one” or the “flirty one”. There wasn’t enough nuance to make the characters seem really human or to give the illusion that they were creating the narrative through their personalities and their choices.
The actors who portrayed Darren and Sam really did a beautiful job of portraying people who were grieving: not the kind of grief that’s new and has you still crying and shouting, but the kind of grief that’s old and has become part of your everyday life, weighing you down; even though you still function and most of society would assume you are alright. Portraying that kind of grief is quite challenging, and those two performers did it quite poignantly.
Some story elements were lacking. The conflicts in this bubbly story were resolved almost as soon as they came up, and it all felt a bit contrived. They felt more like reasons to keep the plot moving. The ending of the story was a bit unclear as well: throughout the whole story, the characters were working to keep the salon afloat but, in the end, suddenly they all seemed quite happy with a very different outcome. A bit more detailing throughout the show could have set up this change better and made it seem more natural.
The dialogue itself was stronger than the story structure. Peppered with quips and innuendoes, the fast-paced, witty words did a lot to add to the show’s pleasant atmosphere. The song-writing came across stronger than the book writing. The upbeat, dance-like piano accompaniment set the scene for a plethora of fun, memorable songs that I, at least, was humming as I left the theatre. I’d say the standout song was ‘Maybe I’m Crazy’ which made excellent use of counterpoint.
I had some difficulty hearing the singers about the piano tracks, especially at the beginning, and understanding the singer’s diction was a challenge. The singers, as a group, got stronger as the show went on. Whether nerves or a little more preparation is needed, this is something easily remedied, and it would be lovely to hear that vocal talent at its strongest throughout the whole show.
All and all Fringe – The Musical was sweet but undercooked. It had a cute premise and a lot of potential, but lacked enough in the writing and performance departments that I don’t think it delivered quite what it wanted to deliver. The enthusiasm of the performers was obvious, however, and made me root for this show to develop itself where it needs to be developed and really reach its mark.
Recommended Drink: A strawberry margarita. Just the thing after a long day working in a salon!
Performances of Fringe – The Musical have now concluded at EdFringe 2024. Keep up with the company online for future performances.
Jake Mace
Phoebe Bakker
