A great artist can take their journey and struggle and translate it into a way that the audience can digest it and relate to it.
On the surface, apart from the fact that we're both artists, me and the creator Rebbekah Ogden might not appear to have much in common, but the universality of the artist struggle and the message her show carries is one that left me personally touched.
The show documents her life from a young child interested in art, and the struggle to live up to the calling of legacy that her mother impressed upon her from a young age. She in unflinching in her delivery and zips around the stage with a youthful energy that charges the entire production.
Her script is tight and dynamic and her performance is emotional, real and raw - This is to say nothing for her skill and talent as an artist. During the show she fully paints a portrait of an audience member who is invited onstage, and the result is something dynamic, beautiful and outstanding.
There is a lot of movement through the show which can sometimes feel frenetic, and the speed of compressing a show that could be much longer sometimes makes the show feel like it's working up against a time limit can lead to a sometimes rushed feel, but that's a small nitpick. I would love to see this show picked up and given another half hour or so to give Rebbekah the ability to slow down and feel all the range of the bittersweet emotions of childhood and legacy- not to mention the long shadow that the mother character casts.
In terms of legacy, this show is a great one. An absolutely do not miss at the Calgary Fringe.