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exitmurderer · 2 years

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TBC #1-5 5-9 Jul 2022

Five visits to The Burnt City. Warning: possible spoilers.

I'm not going to try and recap every show. But here's the first one. I went in knowing a few things but mostly unspoiled. I had read or re-read Hecuba, the Oresteia, Metropolis, and Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? I was in the first batch let in for each show, and every time we got the Troy entrance. I wandered and soon enough found some rooms in the Hotel Elysium. I kept wandering and eventually spooked another white mask while I was emerging from a particularly dark corner. Like they literally jumped and screamed, just because they suddenly noticed me. The first character I laid eyes on was the florist. Eventually he took another person for a 1:1. The Greeks invaded, Polyxena died, and knowing that Punchdrunk characters rarely stay dead for very long, I stayed and then followed her until she literally climbed a wall. I poked around and finally found Mycenae, which I explored, but by then the Clytemnestra/Agamemnon crowds were as dense as the Macbeth crowds in SNM, so I went back to Troy and followed Kampe a bit and then Zagreus for a while until inevitably losing him at a 1:1. More Greece, lots of exploring and then the finale there.

It's hard to tell how much of it's actually the intentional design of the show, or due to it still being new, or to COVID-19, or to how boiling hot it can get in there, but it was interesting to me how some things felt a bit more inconsistent than, say, SNM NYC. Most obviously, a couple of the characters don't loop--that's obviously intentional design. Some of the performers don't do 1:1s--or maybe they don't do them in certain loops? Hard to say. Related, some characters can be very different, not just in tone and small actions, depending on who is playing them. Particularly Kampe. Unrelated, it was really interesting to see how they used the bar in the show--"Lynchian" is an adjective that gets used a lot with Punchdrunk but to me the most Lynchian moment I've ever seen is Hades singing in Peep.

@sleepnomoreboston made an interesting point, that maybe it's time for Punchdrunk to move on from 1:1s, and I can see the truth in that. At the same time, of course, I'd love to eventually experience all of the ones in this show. As it stands, I had Luba's 1:1. Other folks in my group got many more than that, but as always, randomness and unknowability ruled the day.

A thing I'd ask Felix (or whoever) about the Punchdrunk model of show design: Are you designing a show that pushes the audience to be their best selves, or their worst selves?

What else? How about some stats and bullets?

Characters where I saw all their public loop: Iphigenia, Persephone, Kampe, Polyxena.

One walkout for me: Alison Adnet as Artemis. I believe that Alison went to the NC School of the Arts so let me just say: Fighting Pickles, represent!

Most moving scene: Easily, the comeuppance rave against Polymestor / the Troy finale. All cylinders of PD clicking for this: sound, lights, movement, narrative, performers. I saw it multiple times and every time was a tearjerker.

Performers who blew my mind above and beyond: Sam Booth, Lily Ockwell, Miranda Mac Letten, Fania Grigoriou.

The Abenes were in town and whitemasking some shows, so it'll be interesting to see what they cook up here.

That's all for now. I hope there's more to come, someday.

#theburntcity #onecartridgeplace #the burnt city

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readwithjoy · 7 years

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Who were the original actors for Sleep No More? The only original one I know is Careena being the original Hecate.

That’s an interesting question that I’ll try to answer, but also tap @drinkthehalo on the shoulder with this, as she is more versed in the history than I am.

Part of the complexity of this question is that the NYC version of Sleep No More is the third of four versions of the show (as of 2017.) The first was in London, the second in Boston, then came NYC, and finally Shanghai. All of these productions have built on the same ideas, but have also been slightly different from each other. (The idea of the “best” version is somewhat hotly debated.)

Original London Production (h/t to @drinkthehalo):

Macbeth: Geir Hytten Lady Macbeth: Sarah Dowling Macduff: Rob McNeill Malcolm: Hector Harkness Banquo: Mark Fadoula Sexy Witch: Elizabeth Barker Bald Witch: Dagmara Billon Boy Witch: Andreas Constantinou Duncan: Gerard Bell

the Boston production:

Macbeth - Geir Hytten and Eric Jackson Bradley Lady Macbeth - Sarah Dowling and Tori Sparks Macduff - Robert McNeill and Luke MurphyLady Macduff - Ali RossMalcolm - Hector Harkness and Robert NajarianBanquo - Vinicius Salles and Jeffrey Lyon Duncan - Phil AtkinsPorter - Thomas Kee Boy Witch - Conor Doyle and Jordan Morley Sexy Witch - Stephanie Eaton Bald Witch - Fernanda Prata and Kelly BartnikHecate - Careena MeliaThe Second Mrs. de Winter - Poornima KirbyMrs. Danvers - Tori Sparks and Hope DavisBellhop/Taxidermist - Alexander LaFranceSpeakeasy Bartender - Sogdiana AzhibenAnnie Darcy - Annie GoodchildElsie Price - Hayley Jane SogginMan in Bar - Robert Najarian and Matt Spano

And the original NYC cast was:

Macbeth - Nick Bruder and Eric Jackson Bradley Lady Macbeth - Tori Sparks and Sophie BortolussiMacduff - Luke Murphy and John Sorensen-JolinkLady Macduff - Ali Ross and Lucy YorkMalcolm - Robert NajarianBanquo - Jeffrey Lyon and Gabriel ForestieriDuncan - Phil AtkinsPorter - Matty Oaks and Nick Bruder Boy Witch - Jordan Morley, Paul Singh, and Conor DoyleSexy Witch - Stephanie Eaton and Ching-I ChangBald Witch - Hope Davis Kelly BartnikHecate - Careena MeliaAgnes - Tori Sparks and Sophie Bortolussi Mrs. Danvers - Kelly Bartnik and Hope DavisBellhop/Taxidermist - Luke Murphy and John Sorensen-JolinkSpeakeasy Bartender - Paul Singh and Jordan MorleyCunning Man - Jeffrey Lyon and Gabriel ForestieriNurse - Stephanie Eaton and Ching-I ChangOrderly (different character from Nurse)* - Matty Oaks and Conor DoyleMatron (added after opening) - Lucy York and Ali RossWoman in Bar - Maya Lubinsky (Elizabeth Romanski soon after the opening)Man in Bar - Nick Atkinson

* (from @kevshindig) The orderly character was originally only Matt Oaks - that character was only in shows in which Eric Jackson-Bradley played Macbeth and Nick Bruder played the Porter. If Nick played Macbeth, Matt would play Porter and there would be no Orderly.For the original cast of the Shanghai production, check out @dunwannawakeup and her post continuing this one. Shanghai CastIt’s definitely possible that I’m mistaken on some of this. There just aren’t very many records from the early days, and I didn’t buy the first version of the NYC program nor was I able to see the Boston production. If anyone chimes in with corrections, I’ll edit the post.

#Anonymous #sleepnomore #sleep no more #sleepnomorenyc #sleepnomoreboston #mckittrick #punchdrunk #punchdrunkuk

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dunwannawakeup · 6 years

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Why Sleep No More Shanghai is not Sleep No More ? What is it then? Also fyi, Sleep No More began performances on March 7, 2011. ( From Sleep No More wikipedia )

The 1st ever production of Sleep No More by Punchdrunk was the 2003 London play. Then in 2009, they transferred it to Boston. In the Boston production they added Rebecca material on top of the Macbeth narrative. I never saw either of them. I recommend reading researches done by @drinkthehalo and blog posts by the expert of the Boston production @sleepnomoreboston

Let’s talk Wikipedia. Here is the wikipedia page of the 2009 Boston SNM. In the beginning it also links you to the 2003 London SNM and 2011 NYC SNM. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sleep_No_More_(2009_play) )

NYC SNM is the 3rd production in which new material and characters are added on top of what they had in the Boston production. Accordingly, you can imagine, some narratives are more impacted than others. It is the same to the Shanghai SNM which opened in 2016. Again, the show is expanded. New characters from Chinese mythology are added. I have been to that show 34 times in total. I am confident to say that, even there are things inherited from the NYC production, 50%, may be even higher, of that show, is different from SNM NYC. Please take some time and read posts with the #sleepnomoreshanghai.

#sleepnomore #sleep no more nyc #sleepnomorenyc #sleep no more shanghai #sleepnomoreshanghai #sleep no more

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drinkthehalo · 7 years

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Sleep No More Shanghai - Final Thoughts

Some final thoughts on Sleep No More Shanghai. There will be some minor spoilers.

I saw the show 34 times, over five visits from NYC from Dec 2016 to Oct 2017.

My initial thoughts on the show are posted here and highlights of my favorite performers are here.

I have to be honest, the show lost a lot of magic for me after the first cast change. There are some great new performers, but the original cast was INCREDIBLE. It brought together many of the best performers ever to work with Punchdrunk.

It was particularly magical because many of the performers were in The Drowned Man, and of course you know me - anything that reminds me of Drowned Man makes me happy. (I wouldn't be the @sleepnomoreboston of Drowned Man; my heart warms at the thought of it living on in any form.)

But it's not just the nostalgia - it's that Drowned Man had a particular performance style that was all about developing interesting characters and engaging the audience. Building in little interactions and moments throughout the loop, recognizing audience members who'd been following a while - and developing the characters with complex motivations, dialogue, and humor. And with many performers having worked together before, and with weeks before opening to rehearse together, the chemistry between cast members was absolutely off the charts when the show opened.

Since the cast change, I feel the loss of those performers, and that original chemistry. Miranda Mac Letten and Laure Bachelot as Sexy Witch. Omar Gordon & Fred Gehrig as Cunning Man. The extraordinary chemistry between Fania, Miranda, and Olly as the witches. Fania as Bald and Omar as Banquo. I could go on and on.

That said, of course cast changes are inevitable, of course new performers will come in and many of them will eventually become the next generation of "great performers."

So - final thoughts -

I was lucky enough to see Paul Zivkovich as Macbeth. Having seen Paul as Macbeth many times in New York, it highlighted for me the differences in the Macbeth loop in Shanghai. The Shanghai Macbeth is SCARY. Scarier than in New York, more deranged.

In New York the Walled Garden solo is contemplative, Macbeth wrestling with the nature of his own soul, and sorrowful, foreshadowing his fall from grace and his death. In Shanghai it's still beautiful, but it's also explicit that in his internal struggle the dark side of Macbeth has won. The Walled Garden is right outside Duncan's room, so Macbeth peers in, creeps in through Duncan's room, lingers over the bed, malicious. It’s not just a philosophical struggle between good and evil; it is a premeditated decision to murder another human being.

The other reason the Macbeths seem worse in Shanghai is Duncan. In New York, Duncan is a symbol. Regal. Distant. I never really care when he dies; my heart doesn't start to break until Banquo and Lady Macduff.

But in Shanghai, Sam Booth's Duncan is a stunning reinvention of the character. He's still a symbol - as every character is - but he's also human. He's *specific* and idiosyncratic. He sings to himself, and dreams, and has moods and fears.

He's terrified not just of his own death but of age, of irrelevance. He's conflicted towards his son, proud and yet full of dread that Malcolm will one day replace him. He latches on to Lady Macbeth because she makes him feel youthful, alive in the face of the looming death he fears. He's flawed; he thrills at the prospect of an affair with his host's wife.

Sam's performance highlights the man beneath the regal symbolism of the character. The fragility of his humanity, as he stumbles up the stairs singing, as he struggles to remove his jacket under the influence of the drug. As he dreams of kissing the woman who's sent him to his death.

He becomes a symbol, not just of "the king," but of regrets and lost possibilities.

A few other thoughts:

For my final visit I didn't get to see Andrea Carruciu at all. But thankfully I did see him for a final time in August and was as impressed as before with the quality of his performances as both Macbeth and Porter. Two of the most complex roles - and so different from each other - for someone new to Punchdrunk to pull them off as well as Andrea is an exceptional feat.

I love the Bride as a character, and the performances of both Tang Tingting and Debbie/Wen Hsin Lee who originated her.

I love watching Speakeasy Barman play pool with the audience. I’m delighted with how much fun Olly is in that role.

I love that Witches 1 has such a huge space to flow through, how beautiful it is with an unobstructed view and a high ceiling.

I love every single thing about the Dragon Boat scene. How epic and emotional and eerie and dark it is. It feels like Drowned Man, like Twin Peaks, like that video of Faust that’s floating around. It’s completely new to Sleep No More yet fits and complements everything about it.

I love Witches 8, obviously.

I love the gorgeous film noir lighting in the speakeasy, and the layout so that you can see many more angles on the Macbeth/Banquo fight. If you stand in the right place you can see the expressions on their faces up close in ways that are impossible to see in New York.

I am super impressed with Garth Johnson, whose improvisations are clever and full of characterization. I was thrilled when his Porter made up for the lack of mirror behind the lobby desk by finding his reflection in the top of the lobby desk itself.

I was thrilled also with Ian Garside’s Porter, who was full of sorrow yet also amusing and sweet. He performed his 1:1 with an emotional narrative that I’ve not quite seen before, and loved very much.

(Overall the Portering in Shanghai is A++).

Although I miss Omar & Fred I still love that Cunning Man is such a distinctive, devious character in Shanghai.

I love the expanded use of the Macduff child's mirrored bedroom. Multiple scenes and 1:1s happen in there, making sure that far more of the audience notices what is certainly one of the most chilling and heartbreaking sets that Punchdrunk has created.

I love the little passageway into the crib room, and the scene over the cradle with the tiny lights. Eerie and beautiful. The beauty of the set in Shanghai is extraordinary.

I didn't get to see Austin Goodwin's Boy Witch, Conor Doyle's Porter, or Paul Zivkovich's Porter, all of which have been popping up recently. That's Punchdrunk, of course. Get used to disappointment.

I understand they need flexibility in the cast schedule, that many of the people I want to see are swings who wouldn’t be on the regular schedule anyway, that Punchdrunk’s long-running show model depends on the audience not getting attached to particular performers in particular roles. But of course we get attached anyway. A great performance can be life-changing. The performers are not interchangeable.

Ed Warner is my great regret of Sleep No More Shanghai. I did not see him perform at all on my final visit, and saw him only once before, as Banquo. His Banquo was exceptional (best Banquo 1:1 I've ever had) but I would have loved to see him as Husband or Cunning Man.

I wanted to see him as Husband because I have not yet seen a fully convincing performance of Husband, and I think Ed would convince me. He can capture vulnerability like no one else. The best Husband I've seen is Ben Whybrow, who is an extraordinary actor (I wish I'd seen his one man show in London) - his 1:1 moved me to tears both times I saw it - but he also projects competence, self-confidence, a sense of emotional remove, a sturdiness. That doesn’t work quite right for the Husband character - he should be very young, very naive - a character whose primary function is to be manipulated by Cunning Man and (in a way) Bride.

Your heart should be breaking for him, but with Ben I wonder why he falls for it. He seems like he should know better. But I think Ed - based entirely on that Miguel 1:1 where his eyes were brimming with tears and I STILL remember every moment of it like it was yesterday - he could project the vulnerability in such a way that I would never question it. I would feel the tragedy of the character, and the longing for love that drives him; he'd have my complete sympathy, without my doubts.

But I'll never see it. Sigh.

Oh and Cunning Man because... I don't know, it's just a funny character in Shanghai, and I'm super curious as to what he'd do with it. It's the opposite of Husband, an archetype I've not seen Ed play - how would he handle it? I’ll never know.

Anyway. I am, in general, running out of things to say about Sleep No More, in any form. Six and a half years is a long time to be active in a fandom, especially one as physically and financially exhausting as this one. I’m taking a break for a while, but I’m sure you’ll see me around.

#sleep no more shanghai #sleep no more

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exitmurderer · 4 years

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A Possibly Superior Boston Memory

Friends of mine saw the Boston show once, and then years later when I got obsessed with the New York show, one of them sent me their recollection. And here it is, complete with the eel:

"The high school set up meant that on one (maybe two?) floors there would be a dim corridor with lots of closed classroom doors and then tableaux through them — a very dark room with heaped piles of dirt and little pine trees set up in the dirt — very beautiful — so that it was like a hilly forest in a classroom. It also smelled terrific. Another room had a bunch of clawfoot bathtubs in it (6, maybe?) with water in the bathtubs. In one tub there was a live eel swimming around. While I was in that room, a bunch of attendants brought Lady Macbeth (a Lady Macbeth?) in, stripped her naked, and put her in a bathtub. Those are the two rooms I have the most vivid impression of.

"On a lower floor, there was a balcony from which you could look down into a assembly room, or exercise court — maybe both? So we stood in the balcony area, looking down at a crowd of audience wearing masks below standing around as a procession came through. Macbeth went up onto the stage. Some things happened that I don’t remember very clearly. But later on, when we were in the assembly room, I looked up and could see people in masks looking down at us. That was very disorienting.

"On the basement floor, there were a bunch of lockers and a terrific choreographed fight scene involving a door, maybe, that kept being slammed against the two walls of lockers as the two people fought — there were two handlers to move the crowd back or forward as needed. Also there was a room full of what seemed like WWI documents and communication devices, a bedroom where Macbeth and Lady Macbeth had a scene. There was also a nightclub-like tableaux/scene in which there was a goat-headed Devil and the witches. All of it was gorgeous and weird, but that first floor — maybe a 3rd floor —with all the classrooms was somehow the eeriest."

#mckittrick #sleepnomore #sleep no more #sleepnomorenyc #sleepnomoreboston

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