'Beyond Dark Corners' at Fringe

"Beyond Dark Corners," which had its final Fringe performance earlier this afternoon, featured two solo performers on the theme of being black gay men. Their styles contrasted: Christopher Prince was questioning and troubled, weary but proud. Terry Sidney was consistently fierce from the moment he entered, twirling his silk shirt overhead like a fabulously defiant matador.

Prince had the opening half of this hour-long show at the Warehouse Next Door, and his frank musings were often gripping. His topics ranged from men on the down low (see today's obit and appreciation of novelist E. Lynn Harris) to stepping up and getting organized, and while his poetic language sometimes meandered, it often gleamed. Prince's onstage persona is compelling -- laid-back but direct -- and it might be interesting to see him in a sharper production.

Sidney's act was a more straightforward statement of pride, even though he briefly resorted to more showbizzy techniques. He warbled a bit ("Is That All There Is," with a feather boa, no less), and then brought in singer Nikita Vann for quick, mood-setting music. Like Prince, he waxed poetic on issues of identity, but his centerpiece was a long story that omitted what seemed like the most interesting turn of events.

-- Nelson Pressley

By Nelson Pressley  |  July 25, 2009; 3:49 PM ET
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