Mostly Harmless

On Saturday, I went to St. Vladimir's Theatre for a Fringe play. The young cast of Wolverine Theatre Company from the University of Michigan gave an abridged version of Almost, Maine. This play takes place on a winter night in a fictitious small town in northern Maine. 8 couples, in a series of vignettes, will run the gamut of romance: some will fall in love, some will fall out of love, and some aren't sure.

This was a pleasant trifle that came straight out of the Hollywood rom-com playbook. I can imagine Zooey Deschanel, Jennifer Aniston, and any number of "hot Hollywood" being cast in this ensemble piece. It was a bit too whimsical for this cynical bastard. There was a girl carrying her broken heart around in a paper bag! The young cast worked well with the material (only callow youthfulness can speak so preciously without irony) except when they had to play long-time older couples. The flannel shirts, winter boots, snow pants inspired wry smiles in all northern climes dwellers, including us Canadians. Though it was a muggy summer day, the clothes weren't out of place at the coldest venue at Fringe. In general, I would have liked more down-to-earth dialogue to match the practical outerwear.