Review: (Ottawa) Great Battles in History (Fringe)

A one-man musical comedy about historical military battles?
by Robyn Lester
@RobinRobynRob

Going in, I had no idea what to expect. A one-man musical comedy about historical military battles? All right. I’ll give it a go.

And am I glad I did!

Mark Shyzer’s Great Battles in History was absolutely hilarious, yet complex and multi-layered enough that I left feeling like I just saw something really special. There’s always that one play at Fringe that makes me want to hop inside the brain of the writer. This year it was Great Battles in History.

Simply stated, it’s a not-so-musical comedy about a production gone terribly wrong and the one man left to pick up all the pieces. Like war itself this play was chaotic, non-linear, and confusing. In a good way, I assure you. Unlike war, it was laugh-out-loud funny and had a ukulele.

The acting was delightful, the humour was right up my alley, and the use of little figurines was just…well, c’mon!  Who doesn’t want to see a play that uses little plastic made in China toys as characters?   

So come see Great Battles in History to hear all about the musical you could have seen if things went right. What? That doesn’t make sense? Yeah, well it will when you see it. So see it! It’s a lot of fun, and will leave you wondering what the hell you just watched. Again, in a good way!

June 19 - 29