Minnesota Fringe Festival 2026: "Casa Bde-Maka-Ska"

Day: 4Show: 15Title: Casa Bde-Maka-SkaCategory: ComedyBy: Snikt! Bamf! Thwip!Written by: Duck Washington & Tim WickLocation: Theatre in the RoundSummary: A parody of the 1942 film Casablanca, set in Minnesota during Operation Metro Surge.Highlights: I've never seen the movie, but it's so pervasive in our culture I have a vague idea of the story. There's a guy named Rick who owns a club, a pair of star-crossed lovers, a piano man named Sam, and a war. Those elements are all present here, but played for comedy. As Gregory Parks, who plays Sam, notes in the post-show speech, what we went through during Operation Surge was not funny, but comedy and parody is one way to process the trauma and be part of the resistance. So in this story we have tons of Minnesota references (because it's not Minnesota Fringe without a lutefisk joke), and we have Rick (Samuel Poppen) who owns a bar and is in love with Ilsa (Bridget Foy, with a '40s movie look and sound), her husband Ole (Pher Sturz), a…