Taylor Mac’s “Bark of Millions” at BAM

I attended last night with some friends and we thought it was a gorgeous, overwhelming piece. I admit I am biased, being both a huge fan of Taylor Mac and someone who is willing to give my time to long pieces of performance (this does indeed clock in at just over 4 hours).

There was a substantial amount of audience walkouts- I was in the balcony and I would say about 60% of people left. This is not a performance for everybody- there is no plot, no dialogue. It’s 55 songs inspired by queer figures, ranging from literally about them to more abstract musings that aren’t obviously connected. And yes, it is 4 hours straight through- audience members are encouraged to come and go as they please (which is frankly hard to do in that space).

The music is gorgeous and the ensemble is an embarrassment of riches- voices and personalities that soar off the stage. Machine Dazzle’s costumes are a visual feast, as usual.


I wish the show weren’t at BAM or really any traditional proscenium space- it would have benefited from a more flexible setting where the audience could recline or cuddle or dance or simply easily come and go without causing an entire row to stand up. The sound design was also rough- some performers were not intelligible in the balcony.

Yes, there are definitely parts that dragged for me, especially in the middle. But while there could be a 90 minute version of this that’s just the highlights, I think the durational aspect of it is important (hell, there are decades from the 24 Decade piece I can’t even remember). It asks a lot of the audience to be present for so long and I think it helps break us down and make us more vulnerable and open. That’s why I wish the venue was more comfortable and conducive to a communal aspect.

For those that do go, I recommend getting what they’re calling the “fan deck”- essentially a bound deck of cards with lyrics from each song and the accompanying figure that inspired them. There’s a free downloadable PDF but also a hard copy on sale at the theater for $20. It’s a handsome souvenir and also something that allows the audience to delve deeper in what we saw.

A review on Parterre:

https://parterre.com/2024/02/14/park-and-bark-5/