Fringe Festival: "Teenage Misery: A Horror Musical"

Day: 6

Show: 18

Title: Teenage Misery: A Horror Musical

By: Devious Mechanics

Written by: Keith Hovis

Location: Theatre in the Round

Summary: A young woman in college and her two best friends kidnap their idol Shane West. It ends badly, and they go on a killing spree across the country.

Highlights: What do you get if you combine the Stephen King novels Misery and Carrie with the musicals Sweeney Todd and Bye Bye Birdie? You get this odd and delightful mishmash of a musical, that doesn't shy away from the material it borrows from (the opening song is "attend the tale of Carrie Black," and Conrad Birdie is replaced by Shane West). A little rough around the edges, but the songs are great, with clever commentary on what it's like to be a young person growing up today, and winking jokes about "no time for proper character introduction, we only have an hour." The young actors in the cast may be a little green, but there's a ton of raw talent on that stage, and they perform with such enthusiasm and energy that it's impossible not to have fun watching them. Kelly Houlehan as Carrie has a strong voice and lights up the stage, Jordan Oxborough plays the not-so-smart idol well and sounds great too (talent runs in the family), and Shana Berg is a scene-stealer as the woman with a psychic connection to Shane (their psychic duet is hilarious). It's everything you want a Fringe musical to be - fun, clever, over-the-top, with strong performances and catchy tunes. Musical theater lovers - go see this one!

Read more of my fringe fest reflections…

… including my top 5 shows