Sleep no more

WOW, just wow!! I need to write this down before I sleep. Sleep no more. It's an experience. A theatrical experience. I first read about it on a flight to Chicago over Thanksgiving: there was an article in the airline magazine about a new kind of theater pioneered by a group called 'Punchdrunk'. I immediately thought it would be so cool to go, but when I looked up tickets at first, they were sold out months in advance and were not cheap! Since then, I've been hearing about it here and there; its run has been extended multiple times, it's sold out nearly every night. Then, like with most things, it happened kind of serendipitously that I managed to get a discounted ticket so I figured, why the hell not, I better check out what all the fuss has been about!

It really was nothing I have ever experienced before. I guess if you're planning to go see it, stop reading here, although if you were to ask me what it was about, I could not tell you even if my life depended on it. But I'll try to write about some of the strange or cool or exciting things I have seen (experienced I suppose is a better term here). Sleep not more takes place in the fictional McKittrick Hotel all the way on the West side of Manhattan, in Chelsea. To fit the mood of the play perfectly, it was a dark and gloomy day today. I walked over to the 'hotel' from the subway, knowing little about what to expect even though I read reviews and seen pictures and talked to people who have seen it. I went alone, it's not a group experience, everyone said, although now I would say it would have been much better to meet up with some friends after the fact and have an absinthe or two while talking about what the hell we had just seen!! (Yes, they have absinthe!)

So after some formalities, I entered the hotel, and entered almost complete darkness. It took some time for my eyes to adjust. I could not see a thing while I had to check my bag and jacket and was already confused when 'checking in' to the hotel. I just had to say my name, like in a real hotel. In exchange, the man at the reception handed me a room key. I was told to follow the light, of which there was little. Candles placed strategically in corners to direct visitors through a maze of a hallway, up some stairs, occasionally a voice directing me further, the source of which I could not see. A little spooky, yes. I had read that people have compared this to being in a Hitchcock or a Stanley Kubrick movie (especially Eyes Wide Shut as you will see later on). Eventually the winding corridor leads to a bar with gorgeous 1920's decorations, very expensive mixed drinks, shots of absinthe (I did not try) and a small stage for a band. People were lingering, some obviously confident in what they were supposed to be doing (second timers, I suppose). I decided to get a drink, just for the sake of the feeling. I basically inhaled my gin&tonic because suddenly, we were called to action. We had to move through yet another dark corridor where we were all handed white masks - see below - which we were told we absolutely had to keep on for the entire show. Ushered into the elevator by a lovely flapper-dressed lady, we were given more instructions: do not speak, be bold! The bolder you are, the better the experience will be. Ok.

Then the elevator doors opened, and we were all ushered into the 'arena'. 6 floors of stage. Dark rooms, huge spaces, little dungeons, a cemetery, a maze, bathtubs, lots of little clues (which, by the way, helped absolutely nothing in figuring out the story). Oh, did I mention that this was all based on Shakespeare's Macbeth?? Oh, well, I was even prepared! I read the brief synopsis just yesterday and watched part of the 2010 movie with Patrick Stewart playing Macbeth. Did it help? Not at all. The idea is that the action takes place all over the place. Scenes are out of order - well, in a different order for everyone, depending on where you end up going. Right away as I entered the arena, I saw some actors (who do not wear masks, but do wear drop-dead period night gowns, tuxedos, or nothing at all). I have been told to pick an actor and follow him or her. That proved not to be so easy. At first, it was doable: I saw a rather attractive man and stuck with him from room to room as he danced with a pretty woman, tailored some pants, cut verses out of a Bible. I have no idea who he was. There was almost no dialogue at all. Rarely, an actor whispered something and I had to lean real close to try to hear. Then more and more people came - masked on-lookers - and it became more and more difficult to keep up with the actors who occasionally started running, darted through doors which locked behind them, or it was simply too crowded to keep up. 

My overall experience was rather confused. I think I missed some crucial scenes. Like Macbeth murdering King Duncan. I am not sure I ever saw Lady Macbeth. I wondered around different floors, different scenes. There was a lot of dancing, some fighting, lots of drinking. The audience got to be involved at times. Someone next to me was offered a drink in a bar-looking room, he took a swing, it was not poisonous. Sometimes, an actor would grab somebody by the hand and drag them away, or into a room. Sometimes the door would then lock behind them. In a room that was full of jarred candies, an actor motioned with his hand to an audience member to hand him some candies. Twice, I found myself watching a full-on rave orgy. (I think all scenes were repeated maybe 2 or 3 times but I am not sure). Two witches, partially clothed, I figured were the Weird Sisters, one completely naked guy with a bull's head mask and then Macbeth I think. There was loud techno music, an epilepsy-inducing light-show, lots of groping, dancing, blood. The first time around, I wasn't sure what to do after it was over, I was elbowing people out of the way to get a better view at the different anatomical parts of the, um, well, the naked guy! The second time around, I decided to follow him once the scene was over. As a side note, by that point, I was getting a little tiny bit annoyed that I hadn't been able to participate in anything. Nobody offered me a drink, nobody took me by the hand... but then came this scene! Or whatever it was: as I said, I followed the attractive naked man as he ran through the hallways. He eventually unlocked a door (where was he hiding the key?) and went inside what seemed to be a bathroom, complete with a shower. He got in there, still covered in what was supposed to be blood I think, was pretty hysterical - was he supposed to be the third witch?? - washed himself pretty clean, then gestured to the towel hanging nearby. I froze. Fortunately, the person next to me didn't and handed him the towel. He started drying himself, at which point he he pointed to a white shirt hanging on a hook right next to me. I took the shirt, stood there awkwardly as he was still drying himself. I started thinking I should have left his shirt alone, but then suddenly he turned his back (and very nicely shaped butt) towards me and put his arms behind him motioning that he wanted me to put his shirt on. Didn't have to ask twice this time! I helped him into his shirt, which was the only thing he was wearing at that point. He found some underwear in a drawer, the person next to me helped him into his pants, and he handed me his shoes. I was mesmerized, not thinking, watching as he was flailing on the floor, still mostly naked. Then it was my turn to put his shoes on, except that while being distracted by his manliness, I totally blanked on untying the shoes. He gave me an annoyed looked, grabbed his shoes and ran out. 

Eventually, I made it into a huge ballroom, where most of the audience was located at the time, it was a scene of a big feast, some making out and then there was the hanging of a man. Macbeth I suppose. I just read somewhere that this should be the scene one starts with. All the characters are there at the table. Oh well, next time! Because now I really want to go back!

Overall, I can't say that I was very moved by the whole show. Throughout most of the scenes I saw, I felt rather emotionless. I felt like an on-looker, as if I just accidentally happened on a scene on the street. I wasn't touched (not literally, emotionally) by any of the characters I followed. Maybe because they didn't speak, maybe not, but I did not feel myself getting attached to any of them. When coming across a different actor while following someone, I easily abandoned my original target in hope of finding something more interesting to watch. Maybe that was a mistake. Maybe I should have explored more on my own without trying to always follow an actor. I must have missed a bunch of stuff! For example, I did not see the below bathtub scene. And with all of this said, as soon as I was outside, I wanted to go back in, explore more, find more scenes, piece more of the story together. Let's see how I feel about it after some sleep, but right now I just want to get another ticket! (I do realize this is the trick they use to make tons of money, but whatever, I am more intrigued than anything.)