Immersive Wild Party in Brooklyn

[dave1606]

Posted: 10/25/17 at 12:45pm

Back checking on if anyone has heard anything about this new immersive production of The Wild Party in Brooklyn. I'm going next Friday am curious if anyone else is going to see this?

http://www.playbill.com/article/immersive-production-of-andrew-lippas-the-wild-party-will-play-brooklyn

After seeing Kpop I was so impressed with how they successfully did an immersive musical so will be curious to see how they tackle it. 

[darquegk]

Posted: 10/25/17 at 1:36pm

This looks so cool! In the war of the Wild Parties, I will acknowledge that LaChiusa's is probably the greater and more "meaningful" piece, but Lippa got the world of the poem in a way I don't think LaChiusa wanted to: grotesque, cartoonish, nasty, vulgar and gleefully hard-boiled. Anachronisms and all, I'd love to see this immersive show.

[Mildred Plotka]

Posted: 10/25/17 at 1:54pm

Ugh I was hoping this was the good Wild Party. 

[Theater3232]

Posted: 10/25/17 at 1:59pm

Be careful of gunshots if you attend, as I heard them over & over while by the Classon Ave G train stop last year.  You can also google  "Lafayette Gardens crime", as Lafayette Gardens is right upstairs from the train.  

[RippedMan]

Posted: 10/25/17 at 2:20pm

They're doing a similar thing in Denver this year. Looks awesome.

[GeorgeandDot]

Posted: 10/25/17 at 2:35pm

Mildred Plotka said: "Ugh I was hoping this was the good Wild Party."

Same.

 

[perfectlymarvelous]

Posted: 10/25/17 at 2:40pm

If you look at the director's website this honestly seems like it might be a little bit of a hot mess. 

I would love to see LaChiusa's Wild Party done as an immersive theatre piece though. 

[RippedMan]

Posted: 10/25/17 at 2:46pm

Check out the Denver production. It's Equity, I believe, and the design is very speakeasy-ish.

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 10/25/17 at 2:48pm

Ugh I was hoping this was the good Wild Party. 

Oh, well.  Luckily, it's the better Wild Party.

[Mildred Plotka]

Posted: 10/25/17 at 2:51pm

Mister Matt said: "Ugh I was hoping this was the good Wild Party.

Oh, well. Luckily, it's the better Wild Party."

To each their own. Lippa’s is certainly more accessible. LaChiusa’s is a masterwork IMO. 

Updated On: 10/25/17 at 02:51 PM

[Kad]

Posted: 10/25/17 at 3:01pm

An immersive Wild Party is a good idea, but the company's website doesn't exactly inspire confidence.

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 10/25/17 at 3:08pm

To each their own. Lippa’s is certainly more accessible. LaChuisa’s is a masterwork IMO. 

HA!  I thought this WAS the LaChiusa!  Just as in 2000, there seems to be another Wild Party battle.  I got this immersive Wild Party production confused with the immersive Wild Party production at the Denver Center.  Forget what I said...I absolutely agree with you.  LaChiusa's is a masterwork.

[Mildred Plotka]

Posted: 10/25/17 at 3:12pm

Lol I was wondering Matt. I swore I remembered you were a LaChiusa fan.

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 10/25/17 at 3:40pm

I AM!  I SWEAR!

[dave1606]

Posted: 11/4/17 at 10:24pm

I saw this last night and have to say I was pleasantly surprised. I saw LaChiusa version for the first time in London earlier this year and enjoyed it. I also saw the Lippa version at Encores and was quite disapointed due to the hacked up nature of the show.

That being said I feel like I'm one of two people who happen to like both versions! I'm not hear to fight about which one is better, just report that I think this production is surprisingly strong. I like a lot of Lippa's score, and I have to saw that this immersive production has assembled an excellent (if very) young cast with a lot of raw talent. It is sung exceptionally well. 

As for immersive, there is a bar, and the actors may address, you, but this is not anything like Sleep No More or Kpop.  If anyone saw Hello Again at the loft in Soho this is similar. It's a nice space that works well for the show. 

The biggest issue with the show is that sightlines can be troubling as everyone is on the same level and I don't think the seating is laid out as well as it should be. 

I had the three drink ticket (Yes there is one) which I'd say you can skip. The cocktails are premixed and not amazing, but does help the atmosphere. 

Queenie was excellent and so was Burr. Both had fantastic voices. I thought the lighting created some beautiful tableau's in the space. The loft style staging did create a party style atmosphere and I did feel like an observer into the party which was fun. 

It's not the easiest part of Brooklyn to get out to, but goldstar has tickets starting at $7 and I think this is the type of theater that NY needs more of. I hope people see it.

[Ado Annie D'Ysquith]

Posted: 11/6/17 at 12:25pm

Thanks for your report, Dave. I would so love to come up with an immersive theatre idea myself- but I always seem to get confused as to which "book musicals" would play best in that form.

What was this HELLO AGAIN at a SoHo loft?

[dave1606]

Posted: 11/6/17 at 12:38pm

This was it! I loved it. It was in 2011. 

 

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/21/theater/reviews/hello-again-michael-john-lachiusas-show-in-soho-review.html

[RippedMan]

Posted: 11/6/17 at 6:33pm

I really liked "Hello Again," but I don't think it added anything from being "Immserive." It was basically just in the round in a non-theater setting. But it was a great show. 

[antonijan]

Posted: 11/7/17 at 5:47am

What's the best song...thats also memorable on this musical? Saw it b4 and I dont remember any songs from it