THE HANGOVER REPORT – Simon McBurney’s singular THE ENCOUNTER is a transcendent piece of theater that should not be missed

Simon McBurney in "The Encounter" at the Golden Theatre

Simon McBurney in “The Encounter” at the Golden Theatre

Yesterday, Simon McBurney’s singular The Encounter unleashed itself onto Broadway. When I saw the production last year, I hailed it as one of the landmark experiences in my recent years of theatergoing. When they announced the Broadway transfer, I was ecstatic yet apprehensive. How would this piece of essentially experimental theater translate and play on the most commercial of stages (i.e., Broadway)? No need to have worried, after viewing Mr. McBurney’s dazzling solo performance on the Great White Way, I still stand by my initial assessment.

The Encounter, conceived, directed, and performed by Mr. McBurney, is a stage adaptation of Petru Popescu’s book Amazon Beaming, which tells the story of a Natural Geographic photographer’s run-in with an Amazonian tribe. Before long, he is immersed and increasingly and dangerously entangled in their alien culture and way of living. So are we, the audience. Mr. McBurney has created for us a stunningly three-dimensional soundscape that burrows itself deep into your mind (each seat is equipped with its own headset). Apropos for the play, time and space – much of the piece concerns itself with the very nature of time itself – slip away as we are sucked into the mystical narrative via the technologically astounding, immersive sonic soundscape.

Mr. McBurney’s performance is one of amazing skill, charisma, fearlessness. It must simply be seen to be believed (you are also in good hands with his alternate, Richard Katz). It’s a layered performance that probes into the very nature of our existence and the world around us, very effectively complimenting the labyrinthine twists and turns of the play itself. I don’t think Broadway has seen anything like this production before, and I applaud the producers for having the guts to bring this transcendent piece of theater to a wider audience.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

 

THE ENCOUNTER
Broadway, Play
Golden Theatre
1 hour, 50 minutes (without an intermission)
Through January 8

Categories: Broadway, Theater

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