Toronto Fringe Review: Us Against Everyone

Grace Gordon and Diana Eremeeva. Photo by Josef Beeby

What does it take for a movie to make it to your screen? Well, you won’t find the real answer here. Don’t take Us Against Everyone too seriously, as it delivers an antic-filled parody of Hollywood.

Our two heroines, Sybil (Grace Gordon) and Helen (Diana Eremeeva), may be against everyone but the audience is with them all the way. Riding the waves of Hollywood stardom, the pair bring an eccentric group along for the ride. Despite the generally stereotypical characters, there’s something awfully endearing about Brett’s (Sebastian Biasucci) unfailing naivety or Antony’s (Hayden Finkelshtain) rough exterior. And, even more, the many hats of Lizzie Moffatt decorate scenes with hilarious oddballs.

If the personas aren’t enough to have you chuckling, their impeccable timing is sure to get laughs. With direction from director Nicole Wilson and assistant director Michael Manning, the cast hits all cues, never letting a joke drop. This was a team effort that paid off, characters speaking in impressive synchronization and continual wisecracks. At times, it was even hard to discern whether they followed the script or went their own wacky ways.

However, one scripted element consistently stood out. As the audience follows this ragtag group’s journey into creating the next big thing, it comes with a shocking number of changes. Remove this, replace her, and speak like this, how can anyone remember it all? Thankfully, the audience gets a glimpse into the changes as they unfold, giving a jarringly comical view at the horrors of script changes and budget cuts.

Us Against Everyone is a fun-filled comedy, with a (Ham)bone to pick with Hollywood and the concept of “true art”. Brought to life by a stellar cast and crew, get ready to laugh at the expense of every overworked producer. But, hey, that’s show biz, baby!

Us Against Everyone is on now until July 16 as part of the 2022 Toronto Fringe Festival.
Find show times and tickets here.