Reading a dispatch from the a stroll around the Capital Fringe Festival last week reminded me that festival is not only about what shows are the most entertaining. Fringe is about allowing artists to take risks, to try something new, to experiment.

I didn’t love the hour I spent watching A Wild Play, though I did have respect for the edginess and complexity of the concept and production. Playwright Robert Cousins blurs the performers’ existence between acting in a surreal play about swapping bodies and souls through a portal into becoming wild and actually going through this transformation. The passes between Autumn, who is originally auditioning for a play, Clover, who originally is a girl trapped in a wild animal’s body, and Squirrel, who wants the other two to exchange their roles, twist back and forth and cycle between these ends leaving the audience not knowing quite what to think.

So I wasn’t surprised when I went online to research Odd Act Theater Group’s 2011 Fringe entry to find out that it won the Most Daring award and Spirit of the Fringe at The London (Ontario) Fringe. The acting can become a bit angry and frantic from the college-student actors. The dialogue is a heavy, sophisticated and philosophical back and forth, though sometimes the debate gets choppy and tiresome. (“It can.” “Can it?” “I’m not sure.”)

It’s not a best bet or a dose of fun, but A Wild Play is fine fodder for those looking for a thought provoking evening.

A Wild Play has performances remaining on July 20, 22, 23 and 24. Tickets are available online.