Corner Of

Rating:

Company:Little Sparrow Theatre Company, Winnipeg

Genre:Musical

Venue:29 One88

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"Who are the people in your neighbourhood?"

When I was growing up,Sesame Street asked that probing question. In Corner Of, fiveperformers prompt the same query through song, dance and occasionalcell phone conversations that are projected onto the brick walls ofthe theatre.

• Winnipeg Fringe 2016: read our reviews

The show starts promisingly when all the performers mix, mingle andbump into each other onstage while singing the words, "excuse me." Buteven though the seasons change and everyone takes turns trying on eachother's roles (homeless person, parking cop, frazzled renter, etc.),they don't get to know each other in any meaningful way. As a result,the audience doesn't really get to know them, either.

CornerOf is well-intentioned but it never achieves the goal laid outin the program notes by directorTeri-LynnFriesento "dig beyond whatis happening on the surface."

Also, I'm disappointed that Corner Of didn't keep its promise in theFringe program of "a cell-phone friendly performance at any Monday orThursday show to further explore the role technology plays in ourencounters." I made a point of seeing a Thursday performance with mytrustysmartphoneand was disappointed that I wasn't encouraged to doanything unusual with it other than keep it on.