REVIEW: MEAT MARKET

Age Suitability: Mature (ages 18+)

Genre: Theatre—Comedy, Theatre—Drama, Sketch Comedy/Improv

Run Time: 55 mins

Venue: The Westdale

A provocative opening number. A cast of fiercely funny and surprisingly tender characters. A rubber chicken. Welcome to the Meat Market, a hilarious and unapologetic production from the creative minds of Alex Boese and Shaun Soutar.

If you’ve ever faced the perils of online dating, you know what delights and horrors await you. Now add all the stereotypes you can imagine about people you could interact with (and quickly block) and you have this whirlwind production that never lets up, even in its quieter moments. The deliveries and pacing are top-notch entertainment and the audience ate it up because this incredible cast certainly left no crumbs behind.

The story focuses on a young and uncertain “Fagabond” (played with instant likability and charm by Rhys Bernier) who decides to try an online dating/hook up app called Findr. Surrounded by an ensemble that are fabulous and fearless in their revolving characters, Bernier sifts through plethora of creepy, lewd and hysterically awkward encounters. Unexpectedly, Bernier also engages with a closeted former schoolmate (a troubled and stalker-rish Samuel Forsyth) and with the help of their hunty Mother (a standout performance from Matteo Da Costa), discover who they are in the real world.

What may surprise audiences is that under all the raunchy jokes and queer culture shock, there is a tremendous amount of tenderness which grounds the story. This helps us root for our sweet protagonist as they find their way by swiping right on themselves. It’s a wild ride so audiences had better strap on…I mean, in. Add a trip to the Meat Market to your must-see list at this year’s Fringe.