Reborn

I went to see Reborn, an almost solo show produced by Two Minds Productions at the Toronto Fringe Festival, written and performed by Nina Maria.

What struck me most was the ambitious science fiction premise delivered on a true Fringe budget. It's experimental, yes—and still a work in progress—but I see the vision, and I get it in a way I think no one else can. There's something brewing here that could really take shape.

At the top of the show, Maria mentioned that the piece explores AI and its effect on the environment. I didn’t really see that theme clearly reflected in the material presented. However, the show’s blurb—which describes a struggling actress who unknowingly signs away her image rights, only to be replaced by a flawless AI version of herself—that feels like the narrative spine to dig into more. There's a lot of rich, relevant territory there around identity, control, and erasure—especially for women artists.

Maria’s vocal performance immediately reminded me of Lady Gaga—especially in the lower range of her vocals, with occasional operatic moments that added a theatrical, otherworldly flair. The show as it is now is weird. But weird is wonderful. I could imagine a fully realized version of some of the music in this show staged like Gaga’s Coachella set... but like make it sci-fi.

That said, I don’t think this is a piece that ultimately lives best in a theatre setting. The material feels tailor-made for music videos. In that format, you can fully commit to a “vibe” and push the aesthetic world-building in a way that’s can be tricky to capture live as a solo artist. The multimedia elements—especially the video work—were the strongest and most compelling parts of the show. Capturing footage of the performer watching the onstage projections could offer compelling material for a future video edits. There’s strong visual potential in that interplay.

The songs (composed by Maria and Mike Kondakow) themselves are very pop/dance-driven—catchy, with a pulsing energy. That works well for music videos, but less so for musical theatre, where specificity in lyrics tends to work better. Pop lyrics are intentionally broad, but that’s their power. The track that closed the show, I’m Crashin’ Your System, was the strongest in my opinion.

As for performance, I think Maria is more in her body when on camera. A lot of the acting in the live monologues was happening in the face alone, and that’s a contrast to how dynamic she appeared in the filmed segments. Again, this points me back to video as the ideal home for this work.

Overall, what I’m saying is: Maria has a voice like Lady Gaga, with some great operatic flourishes. Her songs are pop-forward and high energy. For this piece to live its fullest life, I think it wants dancers, choreography, and a visual world that can fully match the sound. And if live performance remains the goal, I’d look to Gaga’s Coachella vibe—but give it her own sci-fi twist. The entire premise of the show could likely be distilled into a strong visual aesthetic and developed into a music video for one of the songs — the kind that weaves narrative scenes into the song. Sometimes, a single track can carry the whole concept when the vibe and visuals align.

I also appreciated the relaxed performance and that it is pay-what-you-can. If you're open to something 'experimental by design' and can meet it as a work in progress with a vision, it may be worth checking out.

Pay What You Can (PWYC) Tickets

8th July 3:30pm Tickets

10th July 7:30pm Tickets

11th July1:00pm Tickets

12th July 4:15pmTickets