FringeNYC 2013: Sparkle Hour!
Discover your inner sparkle! Battle dragons and inner demons in this true-life musical following online gaymer Philip 'Sparkle' who gets sucked into the black hole of Grindr, comes out to a room full of nuns, and learns to live EPIC!
Official production websiteShow details/ticketing at FringeNYC
Review by Charles C Bales · August 16, 2013
Bolting through the audience and bounding on to the stage with the conviction of a tent revival evangelist, Philip Markle quickly wins over the Sparkle Hour! audience with his enthusiasm. A bildungsroman for geeky gay teens, his one-man musical indeed sparkles with hilarious tales of sex and sexuality, online gaming, and dress up accompanied by a collection of catchy tunes.
Starting off the evening with the unapologetic anthem, “Live Epic,” Mr. Markle’s sly and knowing smile never leaves his face during the 55-minute piece that flies by effortlessly due to the talent and energy of its star. Whether relaying tales of his own gayer-than-gay version of The Lord of the Rings or his poignant yet uproarious coming out in front of a sanctuary full of Catholics, he exults in his own miseries with a Puck-like glee. Markle’s tongue-firmly-in-cheek approach encourages the audience to laugh through the pain of his awkward adolescence and young adulthood.
The younger Philip as described in Sparkle Hour! is a confused gay teen, struggling with his sense of self alongside other similarly disenfranchised loners in the nameless, faceless realm of online gaming. In this marginalized world, Markle finds himself excelling at the role playing make-believe of EverQuest and discovers the power to overcome his insecurities and admit to his nerd community the scariest of truths: he’s gay.
Writing and performing Sparkle Hour! is obviously cathartic for Markle. Although much of his reminiscing is sensationally funny, it’s nonetheless tinged with heartache. But the show as fluidly directed by Jen Ellison barrels through the pangs of suffering for a laugh a minute so that the atmosphere never teeters into melancholy. Instead of wallowing in the less-than-memorable aspects of losing his virginity, for instance, he jubilantly turns the tale on its end by reimagining this pivotal moment in his sexual awakening as a steamy romantic romp — acted out with a blow-up sex doll.
SubCulture in NoHo is the perfect venue for this FringeNYC 2013 show — more like an intimate comedy club, complete with its own bar, than a standard proscenium theater. And Sparkle Hour! has the shape of a zany stand-up comedy routine, including a call-and-response section as well as additional audience interaction.
Mr. Markle brilliantly balances the glittery outrageousness of his performance style with amazing storytelling skills, although the subject matter is decidedly adult. (This is definitely not a show for anyone under the age of 18.) Coming out of his shell with vim and vigor, Markle brings home the message of “Be yourself, love yourself” at the heart of Sparkle Hour! that is as beautiful as the butterflies — yes, butterflies — he says turn him on.
Preview: Interviews with Artists from Sparkle Hour!
We're asking artists from each show to answer questions about themselves and their work to help our readers get a detailed advance picture of the festival:
All About My Show · Philip Markle (Actor)
- Complete this sentence: My show is the only one in FringeNYC that...?
Features an actually world-famous legendary wizard of the massively multiplayer online computer game Everquest. Also a sex scene with a dummy doll set to an Adam Lambert track. - Tell us about the character or characters that you portray in this show.
I'm playing myself, telling true-life epic stories, as well as: Many characters from Star Trek, Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, Narnia Series, Harry Potter, The Matrix, and more more more fantasy. A fairy fagmother. The online dating apps Okcupid, Scruff, Eharmony, and Grindr. A drunk bro and a coked-up twink. Philip Sparkle, aka a hot mess. - What moment or section in this show do you really love to perform? Without giving away surprises, what happens in that moment and why do you love it?
I have a true-life coming out story where I came out after giving the Homily in a Catholic mass in front of my entire Catholic high school and about 100 priests and nuns. The silence was the most profound silence of my life. We re-enact that moment, plus I break out into Tina Turner's I WANT TO TAKE YOU HIGHER. There might just be glitter crosses thrown into the air (did you know you can actually order glitter crosses online?) - Which school or system of acting has been most useful to you in your career, and why (examples: The Method, Uta Hagen, Viewpoints, etc.)?
The comedy training I received in Chicago from the Annoyance Theatre. - What's your favorite pastime when you’re not working on a play?
You probably guessed it - playing online computer games. And working out...uh...I think? I try.
Journey to FringeNYC · Philip Markle (Writer)
- Where were you born? Where were you raised? Where did you go to school?
I was born in San Francisco, and raised as Cashew - half Catholic, half Jew. That said, mother made sure I went to Catholic school and learned all about Jesus. I didn't quite fit in with the Catholic mentality, and lived most of my life in high school online playing the game Everquest, becoming one of the most powerful wizards in the history of the game. I also came out - online - sitting under the Tum Tum Tree in the Plane of Power chatting with my best wizard friend Livec. I was allowed to be my outrageous self as a fantasy wizard, and live an epic adventure everyday. This passion to live epic translated into my real-life, when I came out 2 years later, in front of my entire Catholic high-school, after a four day vow of silence on a retreat known as Kairos, when I delivered the homily to 1200 stunned students and over 100 priests and nuns. I still remember that silence after I did it - so awesome. - What are some of your previous theater credits? (Be specific! Name shows, etc.)
I've been a professional actor, improviser, teacher, and graduate of Northwestern University, working in Chicago since graduation in 2008. I'm the co-creator of the nationally-recognized Actors Training Center, where I've taught actors of all ages for 7 years. In Chicago, I trained, produced and performed with comedy theaters such as The Annoyance, iO, Second City Theatricals, Baby Wants Candy, and Barrel of Monkeys. And I am the creator and performer of SPARKLE HOUR , in the Fringe NYC this year. - Why did you want to be part of FringeNYC?
A million stories told by friends about the life-changing experience they had producing and being part of the Fringe community. - What was the most memorable/funny/unusual thing that has happened during the development and rehearsal process for this show?
I managed to destroy three blow-up sex dolls in the rehearsal process. I was a bit too aggressive in the grindr sex dance (SPOILER ALERT: it's set to an Adam Lambert track). - Be honest: how many drafts have you written of this play so far? Are you still re-writing? What’s the process been like?
Sparkle Hour was mostly written in the glorious sauna known as KING SPA, a korean bathhouse in Niles, IL. I'm not kidding, I would leave work with my laptop, drive the hell out of town, and bask in hot saunas while editing draft after draft. Great place to get some thinking...and sweating done.
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