Adelaide Fringe

Fringe Review: Café Play!

Meet your (pretend) friend at The Jade and share in a cup of coffee while you nut out the final details for the event of the year. It’s a unique interactive experience for one person at a time!

Presented by Little Dirt Path
Reviewed 1 March 2018

Catherine Holder and Pearce Hessling have created a thoroughly enjoyable interactive experience for one person at a time.

In the comfort of The Jade café and bar on the corner of Flinders and Pulteney Streets, punters engage in a one-on-one led discussion to plan an event.

Holder and Hessling alternate as the chummy event planner, with my long time (pretend) friend being Catherine, who has asked to meet up to finalise details for the event of the year. She’s enthusiastic, organised and full of bright ideas and fond memories which you share and discuss while planning each element of the big day.

The situation is casual and non-threatening, taking place over coffee amongst real patrons of the venue. No one around you is any the wiser. Your task is to be as creative as you can although if you’re not up to task, Catherine will bail you out with her incessant chatter so you’re not left feeling embarrassed. The more you engage however, the more fun it is.

Unknown to the punter is a hidden choose-your-own-adventure style set-up. The choices you make while planning the event change the course of the conversation. Between that and your own banter with the actor, no two shows are ever the same.

Running around half an hour and in a CBD location, Café Play! is a unique lunchtime distraction for nearby workers wanting a quick Fringe fix, while the evening and weekend sessions cater to those not so conveniently located.

If Fringe time is about trying something new, Café Play! fits that bill perfectly.

Reviewed by Rod Lewis
Twitter: @StrtegicRetweet

Rating out of 5:  4

Venue: Front Bar, The Jade, 160 Flinders Street, Adelaide
Season: Until 10 March 2018
Duration: 25 minutes
Tickets: $16 – $20
Bookings: FringeTix

More News

To Top