3/30/2023 0 Comments Mckittrick hotel sleep no more“We always have taxidermy in our shows,” Livi Vaughan says with a laugh. As Barrett declares, “A space without detail is a character without depth.” “There’s so much paranoia around the Macbeth characters, so we researched different types of voodoo-esque things.” Resulting from that research, myriad minutia conceal meaning upon meaning: crosses made of cutlery planted in piles of?salt, parcels containing ticking clocks, locks of hair pinned on cards, session notes by Lady Macbeth’s psychiatrist, in script redolent of the 1930’s and ’40’s, like most of the furnishings. “We sit in?the space and try to make it real-go into the characters’ persona and think about how they would have felt,” she says. (Well, mine at least.) Interfering with the decor is intensely rewarding because of the insane degree of the detailing.ĭetail is the department of design associate Beatrice Minns. A vital feature of the experience is the license to rummage, every interiors addict’s dream come true. Indeed, audience members often abandon the actors in favor of exploring. “Even if there were no performers, I would hope the show would stand up.” The story is inside the walls,” Barrett says. “The way we build it, every single space has a story to tell. It’s sensory overload for maximum emotional impact, and Sleep No More’s gorgeous rooms, crammed with multilayered detail, may just represent the ultimate expression of the interior designer’s art: narrative decor. The 100,000 square feet inside is the setting for Sleep No More, a near-wordless, pitch-noir Macbeth adaptation in which the buildings themselves are the stars-despite astonishing body-and-soul performances by a 30-strong cast organized by the London theater group Punchdrunk.įounded in 2000 by Felix Barrett, Punchdrunk is the game-changing pioneer of “immersive” theater, in which audiences are decanted into a set to wander at will and experience close encounters with intersecting plots. Whether they all add up seems beside the point Sleep No More didn’t make its mark on compelling characters but an all-encompassing design and a full-throttle commitment to enthralling audiences.The Thane of Chelsea: Sleep No More Takes Over the McKittrick Hotelįor most of this year, New York’s theater world has been abuzz with chatter concerning a series of interiors in three Chelsea warehouses collectively rechristened the McKittrick Hotel. The plots are elusive but heightened and engaging: follow a vengeful murder, a lusty ball, an intoxicating rave. The play moves in tidal currents: scenes breathe and fade, and audiences chase figures they find compelling, leading to a thrush of anxious attendees clutching one another as they chase durable characters and flimsy plots. That ease of losing yourself and others may feel welcome. Dress as you see fit it doesn’t quite matter what you wear before stepping into the space - audiences don masks (both the N95 and the masquerade kind) for increased anonymity - and the lights are so subdued that, even if you wish to tag along with your theatergoing plus one, you may quickly lose them in the incentive and labyrinthine set. The concept is 1920s hunted hotel: speakeasy bar, vested men, and glorious taxidermy. Keeping to this tragic play’s narrative seems secondary experience is key here, and the production packs it in. The cast of a dozen strong invites multiple trajectories: a murderer hungry for power (Macbeth), his wife who licks and cleans his bloody wounds (Lady M), and some carnal figures who initiate a strobe light-infused rave (the three witches, I assume). The actors dance more than dialogue, making a welcoming space as long as you’re cool with dim lighting and sexy movement. Wisely more physical than verbal, the show, created by the British theatre company Punchdrunk, welcomes a more diverse range of audiences if Shakespearean verse deters you, fret not here. So what happens at Sleep No More ? It depends on the journey you take and the characters you follow. It’s a theatrical playground whose throughline loosely (very loosely) mimics that of Shakespeare’s Macbeth, a quote from which inspires the title of this New York mainstay’s work. In fact, the dutiful staff ensures your phone is kept under lock and key before you enter the performance space, an attention to detail I wish was similarly enforced at most Broadway shows.Īnd speaking of performance space: after being holed up at home for the past two years, the sprawling, multi-floor setting of the McKittrick Hotel, the 27th Street setting of Sleep No More, feels like an airy adult jungle gym. Leave your iPhone and Waze app at home: Sleep No More has no guide or roadmap, which is a major part of its appeal.
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