VIEWPOINTS – Immersive performances that throw in the kitchen sink: LOOKING AT YOU & OSCAR AT THE CROWN

Over the last couple of days, I caught a pair of marvelously excessive immersive performances that had me at once fascinated yet baffled. That’s not necessarily a bad thing – one of the most disappointing things about the arts and entertainment is when artists refuse or are afraid to veer from a set, tried-and-true path. For those of us who see a lot of live performances, how boring is that? However, this is clearly not the case with the two aforementioned productions. Even if they aren’t entirely successful, they at least caught and held my attention with their sheer willingness to attempt something new, and then some.

The company of "Looking at You" at HERE Arts Center. Photo by Paula Court.

The company of “Looking at You” at HERE Arts Center. Photo by Paula Court.

First up, I caught a preview performance of the immersive opera Looking at You (RECOMMENDED) at HERE Arts Center. The new work, which features a score by Kamala Sankaram and a libretto by Rob Handel, tells the story of a Snowden-like character and his run-in with a large corporation. There’s a lot in the mix here – the show is in part cabaret, part chamber opera, part immersive cautionary tale of the dangers of modern technology vis-a-vis our loss of privacy. One of the major assets of the show is definitely Ms. Sankaram’s score, which draws admirable comparisons to John Adams’ rhythmic and driving early scores (Nixon in China, especially), with just a touch electro-art music (e.g., Radiohead). Also noteworthy is the vocally strong and game cast. Indeed, it was a pleasure to hear them rip into the score in HERE’s intimate space (I doubt that amplification of their voices was actually needed), which has been splendidly reconfigured to accommodate the immersive aspects of the staging. A little less convincing is Mr. Handel’s semi-absurdist libretto, which comes across as a bit far-fetched and not quite fully fleshed out. Despite a few technical glitches the night I attended, I found the overall tone of director Kristin Marting’s inventive production to be playful and amusingly satiric.

Mark Mauriello in "Oscar at the Crown" at 3 Dollar Bill.

Mark Mauriello in “Oscar at the Crown” at 3 Dollar Bill.

Next, I finally got a chance to catch up with the immersive disco musical Oscar at the Crown (RECOMMENDED) at the sprawling gay bar 3 Dollar Bill in Bushwick, where it has been playing all summer. Like its most apparent predecessor, the supremely infectious Here Lies Love, Andrew Barret Cox and Mark Mauriello’s new musical is staged on a dance floor, with the audience mostly free to roam and/or dance wherever it strikes their fancy (hint: you’ll get more out of the show the more you place yourself in the midst of the action). As for the plot, where to begin – set in some sort of dystopian future, Oscar at the Crown is essentially a glammed-up EDM re-enactment of the life of Oscar Wilde (!). The musical calls to mind not just the aforementioned Here Lies Love, but also The Rocky Horror Picture Show, the sensational recent Off-Broadway sci-fi musical Rags Parkland Sings Songs of the Future, and even the Broadway-bound bubblegum pop musical Six. Although I was initially resistant to the musical’s brash, campy charms, I ultimately surrendered to the unlikely world of the show. Mr. Cox’s thumping, rollicking score is actually quite good and had quite a number of people breaking out their dance moves (even more so than the more tightly staged Imelda Marcos musical). As for the book and the queer underground ball culture-inspired production (by Mr. Mauriello and Shira Milikowsky, respectively), they’re pretty compelling their own right, although the show is clearly the work of young writers basically throwing the kitchen sink into the production. The cast is young and eager – in particular, Mr. Mauriello, who plays double duty, is a deliciously decadent party-mode Oscar Wilde – despite being on the greener side.

 

LOOKING AT YOU
Off-Broadway, Opera / Immersive Theater
HERE Arts Center / Opera on Tap in association with Experiments in Opera
1 hour, 20 minutes (without an intermission)
Through September 21

OSCAR AT THE CROWN
Off-Broadway, Musical / Immersive Theater
$3 Bill
1 hour, 30 minutes (without an intermission)
Open run

Categories: Off-Broadway, Opera, Theater

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