Accidental Beach: A Previously Improvised Musical, Grindstone Theatre. Photo supplied.
GUMS: An Accidental Beach Prequel (Stage 18, Pro Stage at the Luther Centre)
By Liz Nicholls,
Edmonton’s wacky shape-shifting summer beach, an accident of nature, has already inspired an musical, an accident of agile Grindstone Theatre improv artists. That would be Accidental Beach: A Previously Improvised Musical.
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Now there’s GUMS, a musical created and written down beforehand by Grindstone’s resident team of Byron Martin and composer/lyricist/ musical arranger Simon Abbott, with the same cast and characters as last summer, just as local. And you know how we love the local. It is the Fringe’s only official “prequel” as billed. And it is extremely silly, unhinged and chaotic, with goofball props, costume and character changes, and a glorious profusion of double-entendres.
Ah, but with surprising, sophisticated, artfully constructed musical theatre songs from the amazing Abbott. Lyrical pop ballads, patter songs, rock numbers, blues, jazz … he keeps ‘em coming (and is at the keyboard live and in-person). And they have clever lyrics too.
GUMS may not be improvised but it sure feels like improv. “What happens on Accidental Beach stays accidental,” as someone says. Sandy (Abby Vandenberghe), the former meter maid, romantic lead and our heroine, is a lifeguard who can’t swim. Her dopey boyfriend-to-be Danny (Dallas Friesen) — this is a prequel, right? — is in love with his SeaDoo. The beleaguered mayor (Malachi Wilkins), also a “doctor” and drug dealer with an office on the Walterdale Bridge, is still reeling from the PR debacle of the Oilers’ loss in the playoffs.
Anyhow, LRT construction screw-ups have accidentally created a beach instead of a bridge. Typical. And there’s danger (even beyond drinking the river sludge). A giant sturgeon reposing on the bottom of the Saskatchewan River murk has arisen, and begins a killing spree. Poor Sandy; she thought she’d have a relaxing summer, you know “yell at a few kids, pick up a few needles….”
The sturgeon probably ate the plot. But what am I doing telling you the story anyhow? Everything, and nothing, is a spoiler on Accidental Beach. Except to say that among the non-stop swirl of characters there’s an Aussie fish expert (Ethan Snowden), whaat?.
The opening number, reprised later, is Abbott’s genuinely lyrical ode to Edmonton summer. “I’m just a River City sweetheart,” Sandy sings, as the characters gather to sing with her. “And I’ve got the city in the palm of my hand.” It should be our civic theme song, seriously. There’s a complicated ode to fish and THE fish. And “What A Way To Go,” also cunningly constructed, is such a jaunty way to capture in music gruesome serial death.
Goofy but local. No, goofy AND local.
