Sleep No More is AMAZING- Page 8

[yay_gerb]

Posted: 4/20/11 at 12:12pm

I usually send the Sparknotes plot summary of Macbeth to my friends to read before i take them to see the show and it has seemed to help them get through everything and understand it.

http://www.sparknotes.com/shakespeare/macbeth/summary.html

As for Rebecca, i would say would say watch the movie but if you dont have time i'm sure there are summaries online for the movie and for the book(which, if i'm correct, differ a little).

[Boston28]

Posted: 4/20/11 at 12:55pm

I read synopses of them before I went the first 2 times in Boston but then rented Rebecca and Roman Polanski's 1971 Macbeth (which I recommend, in general) for the bus ride down to NY to see it there. The Macbeth definitely helped. It was nice seeing Rebecca again but, personally, I still can't figure out which characters are supposed to even be represented in SNM (I know there's been talk on here about them but I still don't "see" it when I'm there.) In Boston, Mrs. Danvers and Rebecca were pretty easy to pick out but now there's no Mrs. Danvers so. . .

Anyway, I'm happy I watched the movies. It certainly put my husband and I in the mood for our 3rd SNM "experience". BTW, I had the CRAZIEST SNM-related dream last night. I found a whole unexplored section of rooms in my dream and had some VERY intimate experiences with a couple of actors. I didn't want to wake up!!!

[merideathx]

Posted: 4/20/11 at 1:51pm

i *totally* had a SLM dream the other night as well! On our second visit (in the dream) we learned it was all actually a scavenger hunt as well, and you were supposed to collect items to bring to the "end" (it was setup more like rooms you could move forward into but you could not go back) and we totally had a leg up because we had gone once before so we kind of knew what to get from where... :)

I can't wait to go a second time! I was obsessed for the few weeks, telling anyone who would listen, but then my interest starting waning. Keeping up with this thread totally gets me back into it!!

breathyfemalevocal - Going into it my first time I hadn't read/watched MacBeth for like 15 years and had never seen Rebecca. While I did feel a little "lost" as far as what I was actually seeing, it was all still so amazing that it totally didn't matter. That said, I did devore some sparksnotes, etc, the next day to try to piece it all together. I think there is something to be said for going in blind, but I have a feeling if you have been following this thread you are way more in the know then I was already!

And speaking of, Rebecca just arrived from Netflix the other day. :) Might have to add Polanski's MacBeth to the queue...

[pennydreadful]

Posted: 4/20/11 at 2:38pm

I'm going tonight, for the first time. Should I wear my glasses under my mask, or are they just gonna fog up constantly and make me miserable? Should I squint my way through this sucker and forego the glasses?

[merideathx]

Posted: 4/20/11 at 2:48pm

I wore my glasses and had to keep adjusting things. If I had a choice of contacts versus glasses, I would say contacts. If the only choice was glasses versus squinting, stick with the glasses. You need to be able to see, IMO.

[breathyfemalevocal]

Posted: 4/20/11 at 7:19pm

You all are FANTASTIC! Thanks for all of the advice. Special thanks to yay_gerb for the sparknotes link, which I'll visit soon.

Does anyone know if it is possible to resale a SNM ticket if you suddenly can't attend? How would this work since they are distributed at the show when checking in? I'm very close to buying for a second night, but am worried about how tired I'll be due to the crazy 3 day show schedule.

[Luscious]

Posted: 4/20/11 at 7:48pm

If you're interested in watching a filmed version of Macbeth before going to SNM, I highly recommend the PBS adaptation of the 2009 stage play starring Patrick Stewart. It's available instantly on NETFLIX. I watched it for the first time a couple of weeks ago and was very impressed. Not at all what I expected. It's set in the 1930's, as is SNM, and although I haven't seen SNM yet, I imagine both pieces to be somewhat evocative of each other. Some even consider this production of Macbeth to be the best filmed version you'll find.

[pennydreadful]

Posted: 4/21/11 at 12:36am

Holy ****balls, I just got back. Spoilers abound in the following post. I am bursting with questions for y'all, despite how exhausted I am. My head is spinning. Next time I go I am bringing ibuprofen, and smuggling a Diet Pepsi in my purse.

OK, I loved it, but I missed so much! I didn't see the witches' orgy, most of the action between the Macbeths, etc. I was the first (and only) person out on the top floor (which I thought was the 6th - the infirmary? Is that on 6?) I spent a lot of time exploring rooms, and then I'd swing from one character to the next. I saw cool stuff, but didn't get a real sense of any story unfolding.

I kept happening on rooms where I knew cool stuff was going to happen, but since I didn't know when it would happen and was scared to waste time by waiting around, I left! So I saw the pool table, I saw the dining room and bank of telephone booths, but everything was empty.

I go again this Saturday, at 7:20. I really want to make the most of my time!

1. What's the best way to see the story unfold? Is there one character in particular I should follow? My problem is, I'm slow and short, so I have a hard time keeping up with the actors on the stairs, and then when I'm crowded in a room with all the other spectators, I can't see what's going on!

2. Are "side" characters, like the second Mrs. Dewinters and Hecate, worth following (story-wise)? I did get to see Hecate lip-synch "Is That All There Is?" and give a girl her ring. Then she pulled a man into a room and locked the door. That happened a lot. Should I wait for the actors to emerge?

3. Does the witches' orgy happen in the same bar where Hecate lip-synchs? When does it happen? Does it happen every hour?

4. Is there anything on the 6th floor? Is there a "best" floor to start on?

5. Is Malcolm the clerk at the hotel?

6. Any hints for getting a one-on-one with an actor?

7. I found Mrs. Dewinter's Narnia door in her wardrobe. Are there others?

8. When I saw the Macduff children's room, it wasn't bloody. When does it get bloody, and wtf is it with the mirrors in that room? Are they doors? They were see-through.

9. What does the headless baby doll room represent? The death of the Macduff kids?

10. Did Lady Macbeth have an Eastern European accent when y'all went?

11. Should I just stay in one room and wait for stuff to happen? I worry that I'll waste too much time and miss too much!!

12. Can you tell I have OCD? I have OCD.

13. Why the **** couldn't they turn the lights up a notch? It was so hard to read anything.

14. The ballroom is where Macbeth is hanged, right? And where the banquet table is?

15. Who is the guy washing off blood in the shower? (It was so strange, I was 6 feet away from a naked stranger in a shower, and we were complately alone. I felt really awkward. Then another person came up and stood RIGHT OVER HIM and his nekkidness, and I felt less pervy.)

I saw the most amazing pas de deux between Mrs. Danvers (blonde housekeeper) and a man I'm assuming was Macduff, and a door. They kept the wooden door (loose, unhinged) spinning between them. I saw Danvers make out with Duncan (I'm assuming) and Macduff (I'm assuming). Is that why she's trying to poison Lady Macduff? Mrs. Danvers is a hoochie, tee-hee!

My one complaint is that there were just too many people crowding up the place. It was frustrating as all hell and kept bumping me out of the story. But still, WOW.

I've read that there are 93 rooms, and I don't think I saw 93 rooms tonight. But I could swear I saw all the rooms - are there really 93??

I am SO not going to sleep tonight. They weren't joking when they titled this sucker!!!




Updated On: 4/21/11 at 12:36 AM

[blaxx]

Posted: 4/21/11 at 1:00am

How was the mask and the glasses? I'm wearing mine too.

[two ladies tickets]

Posted: 4/21/11 at 1:04am

I have been multiple times and can answer some of your questions....I have found that trying to follow characters around is exhausting, something happens in every single room but the major stuff happens in the hotel lobby, the Macbeth bedroom, the ballroom;where the hanging takes place, which is also a forrest some of the time and the street with all of the shops. If you wait in a room stuff will happen eventually. Hecate is taking people into private "tea parties", she will only let certain people in, she tells them to go find stuff for her. The 6th floor is not open to the public, that's where hair, wardrobe and dressing rooms have been set up. Malcolm is a detective, his office in on the street next to the hallway with the Hecate bar. There are a few secret doors, the Narnia wardrobe door is the one most people know about. One of the Lady Macbeth's is French, each character is double cast, if you see it twice in 1 day you can see both casts. The witches orgy does happen in Hecate's bar, it like all the other scenes happens 3 times during the show, except the hanging which happens only once at the end. When you go into the Macduff's children's room it is not bloody but if you look through the mirror you see an exact replica of the room after the murders, the door to the bloody version is mostly locked. The guy washing off blood in the shower is one of the witches, he does that right after the orgy. I've been 4 times and each times have had a completely different experience, the first time I got a 1 on 1 with Lady Macduff where she blessed me with salt. I hope this helps.
Updated On: 4/21/11 at 01:04 AM

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 4/21/11 at 1:11am

I think most people would agree that there's no "best" way to experience it. It's up to you what you'd prefer to do: follow a specific character, or just wander and see (potentially incoherent) snippets. Personally, it seems like it would take away from the experience a bit to have planned it out in advance.

I read something saying that on a given visit, each person will only see about one sixteenth of the action. You're always going to miss something, that's just part of the experience, and, obviously, part of the allure to returning.

I've read that there are 93 rooms, and I don't think I saw 93 rooms tonight. But I could swear I saw all the rooms - are there really 93??

I had that same kind of feeling, too, because you keep running up against the same rooms over and over again. That's what gives the recurring dream/maze-like feel to it. But yes, there really are 93 rooms, and there are parts you can't get to on your own. And you're going to see a lot of empty rooms. That's just the nature of the numbers.

Updated On: 4/21/11 at 01:11 AM

[pennydreadful]

Posted: 4/21/11 at 1:13am

Blaxx, the mask and the glasses wasn't too bad - mind you, I don't have large/bulky frames. But I was SO glad I wore my glasses, because it was dark as HELL in that place!

Two ladies, you rock the casbah! Thank you! :) The bloody witch in the shower motioned for me to follow Lady Macbeth - I was worried it was because he thought I was a perv and wanted me to back off - in retrospect he was probably trying to help me with the story. Ha!

Emcee, I know. I shouldn't fret and plan, yet I do. The OCD, I have it, and all the Lexapro in the world isn't gonna overcome Sleep No More, lol!

Wait - to clarify, the ballroom is also where the hanging takes place, right? And the banquet table is, and the trees? Updated On: 4/21/11 at 01:13 AM

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 4/21/11 at 1:29am

Yes.

[blaxx]

Posted: 4/21/11 at 1:30am

Thanks for the info., love

[yay_gerb]

Posted: 4/21/11 at 1:41am

I think the best way to experience it is to go more than once. This way the second time around you have an understanding of how things play out and you can ask BWW's when the rave happens (a little bit after Hecate's lip-sync). The best person to follow is definitely Macbeth(i'd recommend following him earlier because everyone is following him for towards the end, also he'll get you to the rave). Lady Macbeth is great, Lady Macduff is great. The witches are great story-wise(and also lead you to the rave).

[pennydreadful]

Posted: 4/21/11 at 1:42am

Thank y'all! :) Oh Lord, I need an Ambien now. My kingdom for an Ambien!

Edited to add: I dreamt all night about this damn thing, and woke up and bought another ticket! If I had unlimited funds, I'd go until I'd created a map of the entire place, and read all the documents! Seriously, I spent sooo much time reading Lady M's medical records, the letters, the diaries... Though next time I go I may try to sneak in a penlight flashlight and use it discreetly, because the light was just too dim to read a lot of the stuff.

Also, another audience member (elderly lady) got stuck in one of the bathtubs last night, and a poor steward had to lift her out. I have no earthly idea what compelled her to climb in the tub and sit down.

It felt so...wrong to be eating candy and opening drawers and hopping through closets. I loved it!

SPOILER question - does the Mrs. Danvers character ever terrorize the second Mrs. DeWinter character, like in the book?
Updated On: 4/21/11 at 01:42 AM

[FindingNamo]

Posted: 4/22/11 at 1:12pm

After seeing the show in Boston I got together with my friend who had seen it multiple times already. He pulled out a map he had cobbled together with other friends who had seen it already. In Boston it was somewhat easier to do because it was in a school. so there were long hallways on each floor off of which were the rooms with scenery in them. Looking at the map I realized they had uncovered a couple of the ways Punchdrunk still managed to trick you, even with this sort of "constrained" layout. All I'll say is, not every hall and passageway had the same walls and culs-de-sac for the entire three hour cycle, so that knowledge in your brain that "you've been this way before" and then ending up someplace that simply wasn't there the first time(s) you took that route, are very clever mental traps you've just walked into!

And hey, if you haven't seen it and want a small sampling of visual spoilers, here's a piece that went up on BBC:
Dark, immersive Macbeth storms New York

[pennydreadful]

Posted: 4/22/11 at 1:48pm

Thanks, Namo! I can't wait to go again tomorrow night! This time I'm gonna follow Macbeth, or trip and die in a stairwell trying.

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 4/22/11 at 2:02pm

Thanks, Namo!

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 4/23/11 at 10:09am

So even though it's not exactly in the budget this week, I broke down and bought a ticket for 2 1/2 weeks from now. I'm ridiculously excited to see what all this fuss is about!

[sabrelady]

Posted: 4/23/11 at 12:39pm

Thanks for the link Namo! Going to try & send 2 a couple of friends who are waffleing.

[yay_gerb]

Posted: 4/25/11 at 11:45pm

Seeing that a few people want to see the show more than once, would anyone have any interest in getting together to see the show? Maybe grab some food before/after and chat about the show?

[JeaniusIsMe]

Posted: 4/26/11 at 10:59pm

Lord. Just got back from seeing it tonight and wow, just wow! Somehow I managed to stumble upon most of the major scenes from the play, including: the orgy/rave/giving of the prophecies scene to which I was led by the "Sexy Witch" and given a lovely cherry gumdrop and a kiss on the hand, and the Hecate song number. It was definitely helpful knowing that the tracks repeated three times. There's just so much going on in my head right now- but I'm definitely planning on seeing it again and checking out some of the floors I missed out on, as well as follow the non-Macbeth characters around more. Such an amazing experience!
Updated On: 4/26/11 at 10:59 PM

[FindingNamo]

Posted: 4/26/11 at 11:14pm

Thank you for referring to it as the rave/giving of the prophecies.

[pennydreadful]

Posted: 4/26/11 at 11:21pm

SPOILERS! Went to see it again - saw the witch rave. Saw the tailor and Banquo(?) do an amazing dance/fight in the hallway that culminated with one of them walking slowly across the ceiling. Accidentally got in the middle of Lady Macduff's pas de deux with Mrs. Danvers, and Lady Macduff walked right over me (she was walking sideways on the wall). Saw Macbeth kill Duncan and after Duncan was resurrected, Duncan quoted Bible verses at my friend on the balcony while grabbing her shoulders. She said he was very hot! There's a freaky dissected frog in a box in the second Mrs. DeWinter's sitting room with a poem pinned to the lid that begins, "I did not want to hurt this frog..."

Oh, and apparently sometimes people ARE pulled up to the 6th floor, for special one-on-ones!! (I got this off the Facebook page.)

I'm going back in May, then probably again over Memorial Day weekend. I have a friend coming in from Texas, just to see this!

One thing was different this time - the entry maze wasn't pitch-black, it was dimly lit. Kind of nice, kind of a bummer.
Updated On: 4/26/11 at 11:21 PM