Review: âSwordplay: A Play of Swordsâ at Winnipeg Fringe
This is the first and only non-Winnipeg-based theatre company production I attended at this yearâs Fringe. I didnât plan it that way, but thatâs how it turned out â Iâm just naturally attracted to local talent, I guess. But after I heard a rep from Sex T-Rex promote Swordplay: A Play of Swords at The Cube as âa retelling of The Princess Bride told through an â80s video game,â I was sold.  The Princess Bride is very near and dear to my heart. I knew I had to make the trek out to the West End Cultural Centre to see this show.
Itâs difficult to be consistently funny â either youâre not funny, or the actors get exhausted, or they start to annoy the audience. But Swordplay, thankfully, does none of these things. They are funny throughout the hour-and-change play, taking every opportunity to make a meticulously-crafted joke. Every line has been chosen deliberately to advance the plot or be funny; every line is important.
This show has been performed and workshopped just enough that itâs in its sweet spot: itâs been through other Fringes and will continue on after this one, but Swordplay is seeing its first Winnipeg audience. Itâs still fresh and funny and hasnât been overperformed.
The DnD Improv crowd will enjoy this one â itâs nerdy and has hints of inside jokes while paying homage to video games and poking fun at fantasy clichĂŠs. Itâs not so niche that others wonât enjoy it. I consider myself a very middle-of-the-road yes-I-like-nerd-things-but-Iâm-not-a-dungeon-master-or-anything kind of nerd and I was able to catch every joke. Thatâs when you know that the comedy is good: it can still be about a particular thing to a particular audience, but itâs still funny to everybody.
Although Swordplay borrows from nerd culture across the map, itâs still a original tale with just the right amount of camp. I didnât even want to take notes because I didnât want my eyes to leave the stage and miss anything. Many of (if not all) the Fringe shows I saw this year left me thinking about vast topics on my drive home, but this one wasnât. This is just a good olâ no-thinker funny (without being offensive) swashbuckling adventure. And thatâs a good thing.
Swordplay: A Play of Swords and the Winnipeg Fringe Theatre Festival are on now until July 30. For ticket information, show times, and a venue map, visit WinnipegFringe.com.
Hereâs how Iâll be starring all my Fringe reviews:
5 stars = Astounding. I will physically push you in the direction of this show. Must see.
4 stars = Very good! Highly recommended.
3 stars = Well done. People interested in this genre/subject matter will enjoy it, but it may not be for everyone.
2 stars = Only people interested in this genre/subject matter will probably enjoy it.
1 star = Not recommended to anyone.
0 stars = Run in the opposite direction.
Read my other Fringe experiences:
â˘Â Review: 4.48 Psychosis
â˘Â Review: The Trump Card
â˘Â Review: Joe Job
⢠Recap: SLAM!
â˘Â Review: Macbeth
⢠Review: KING
from Review: âSwordplay: A Play of Swordsâ at Winnipeg Fringe