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FRINGE FILE #22: Mini-Reviews #3 – Importance x3, Bury the Leads

by Twin Cities Arts Reader -

A collage of pictures of Minnesota Fringe shows featured in this review.

This is the third installment in the Twin Cities Arts Reader’s mini-review series covering the 2026 Minnesota Fringe Festival.

The official show image for The Importance of Living, now playing at Open Eye Theatre.

The Importance of Living (Mermaid Productions)

  • Show Page: https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2026/the-importance-of-living
  • Official Show Description:Samuel and Louise really know how to live; no morals, no regrets, no limits, no future. It’s the night before their reckoning day and they’ve come to crack a bottle of wine, swap tales, and have a little fun.

A show so engrossing that our team saw it twice on the festival opening weekend. Part mystery, part cipher, with layers within layers and unclear divides between truth and fiction, this tightly delivered show featuring Ariel Pinkerton and Tim Uren will hold your attention from start to finish. Uren’s thrilling script is equally satisfying the second time around.

Script pages for The Importance of Being Eternal, a literary parody that Little Apple Theatre Company brings to Open Eye Theatre though August 15, as part of the 2026 Minnesota Fringe Festival.

The Importance of Being Eternal (Little Apple Theatre Company)

A situational parlor comedy like no other, The Importance of Being Eternal is hilarious and anything but dull. Far more than a simple repeated schtick, this retelling of Oscar Wilde’s classic play through a vampire pop culture lens had the audience in stitches from beginning to ending. Delivered by a talented quartet of actors and with a razor-sharp script.

A promotional photo for Bury the Leads by Special When Lit, presented at Mixed Blood Theatre in Minneapolis’ Cedar-Riverside neighborhoood through August 16. Photo by Bonni Allen.

Bury the Leads (Special When Lit)

  • Show Page: https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2026/bury-the-leads
  • Official Show Description: Meet Clyde & Faye, two character actors navigating an industry of auditions, rejections, bit parts and false starts. Sometimes funny, sometimes melancholy, it’s improv so grounded, it seems scripted.

A tour-de-force of long-form improvisation by Nissa Nordland and Sam Landman. Saturday’s performance had a clear arc, with emotional beats and strong pay off, and a packed crowd that was frequently in stitches.

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