Toronto Fringe Review: Childhood by Cheap Wine

From the moment one enters VideoCabaret’s Deanne Taylor Theatre, they are immediately transported into an immersive experience. With the stage positioned in the centre (aka in the round), an anticipatory crowd seated around it on all four sides, the arena theatre setup allowed for a more intimate, hard-hitting and seriously hilarious experience. Billed as a friendly family troupe, but certainly not a family-friendly, Childhood by Cheap Wine is an uproariously stellar show that is rotating parts sketch comedy, shared familial autobiography, and humorous childhood hauntings. 

The copacetic trio (please don’t mistake them for a throuple…) are made up of  a sister, brother and his wife, so don’t make it weird. Rest assured, Charlotte Creaghan, Jack Creaghan and Jesse McQueen will make it weird enough for you in the best of ways, with absurdly satirical sketches that are wildly intelligent and perfectly meld into each other. Early into the show, in what partially felt like a tight standup set (think The Sklar Brothers, but not twins), the Creaghan siblings and McQueen break the fourth wall by explaining their relation to one another, the pros and cons of working together, and why they, “Can’t do any sketches about being in a throuple.” Later on, there’s a mini presentation as to where they draw the line of casting characters and why it’s before a certain Canadian brother/sister band. The troupe then gave a sarcastic warning of the  seriousness to come, which was quite laughable, because at that point, the audience had already seen sketches in which the cast comically reimagine and animate the classic film Old Yeller, Cheap Wine style. The puns abound; an appropriate opening and appetizer for the feel-good silliness that was to come throughout the show’s 55-minute runtime. 

What follows the disclaimer is a Frankenstein-esque sketch that takes place in Silicon Valley. It’s in this sketch that the theatregoers first hear Darude’s Sandstorm (one of many welcomed callbacks), a song that will come to precede the creature-awakening related moments that weave their selves into a few sketches. McQueen’s physical humour shines here and in other scenes where a specific part of her character’s body stands at attention, multiple times over, each one with the theatre echoing in giggles. All three members’ ability to make the audience laugh with their physical comedy was palpable throughout, whether it be their facial expressions reacting to daddy long legs’ appendages, pulling levers on boner machines, or awooga eyes of a 13-year-old boy, to name a few. There were countless moments where the audience could not help but to burst out in laughter. With no shortage of sketches that genuinely entertained, one is spoiled for choice at truly great scenes: a beloved video game character in therapy, morning wood of the eyes, siblings learning to spell and other obscenities (a true story funnily confirmed live by their mother), kids accidentally traumatizing each other by playing the board game Cranium After Dark, and more.

Much like the transition through being a child to an adult, the almost hour duration of Childhood flew by and felt more like a half hour sitcom that you craved another episode of,  a testament to the engaging and captivating performances by the Creaghan’s and McQueen. While the trio could have performed in any theatre, the experience and material were amplified due to the interactive, closed-in environment of having the stage boxed in by the audience, expertly curated by stage manager Maddox Campbell. All of this aided in  making for a successfully unique show that you will be glad to have taken in. Soak up Cheap Wine while you can, and rest assured, there’s nothing cheap about what they serve  up. 

Childhood by Cheap Wine runs until July 13th as part of Toronto Fringe. Schedule and Tickets