{"id":14416,"date":"2018-10-23T11:11:00","date_gmt":"2018-10-23T18:11:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/Becomeimmersed.com\/?p=14416"},"modified":"2019-11-27T12:11:40","modified_gmt":"2019-11-27T20:11:40","slug":"theatre-macabre-tension-llc-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/becomeimmersed.com\/theatre-macabre-tension-llc-review\/","title":{"rendered":"The Art of Abhorrence: An Evening at Theatre Macabre"},"content":{"rendered":"

On\u00a0my trip to Tension LLC\u2019s<\/a> Theatre Macabre<\/i>, I met a man with one arm who leaned in close and told me \u201cyou should never be afraid to tell people what you want.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>Tell them exactly<\/i> what you want.\u201d\u00a0 <\/span>The advice lingered with me even as the ninety minute show whizzed by in a fury\u2014a tornado of booze, blood, and brutality.\u00a0 <\/span>What do I want?<\/i> I wondered as I wandered the halls, searching\u00a0for lost treasure.\u00a0 <\/span>I wondered as I sipped a too-strong drink with the Mistress of the House while she whispered thinly veiled threats behind her smile. \u00a0I wondered as I held a frightened girl in my arms, and again\u00a0later as we tried to run away, hand in hand in futility.\u00a0 <\/span>What do I want?<\/i> It\u2019s simpler than I\u2019d thought: I want to entrench myself inside the mysteries of Theatre Macabre<\/i> until I know them all, impossible as that may seem. \u00a0I want the curtains,\u00a0once open, to never, ever close.<\/span><\/p>\n

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\"tension
Giovanni Savoia as Pierre<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

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Theatre Macabre<\/i> is the latest brainchild from director Darren Lynn Bousman, writer Clint Sears, and producer Gordon Bijelonic\u2014the backbones of Tension, LLC<\/a>\u2014and the much-lauded creators of The Tension Experience<\/i><\/a> and The Lust Experience<\/i><\/a>, two interconnected multi-year alternate reality experiences that preyed on the emotions and thrived on the\u00a0dedication of a loyal and widespread group of followers. \u00a0Macabre\u2019s team also sees the new addition of long time Experiences supporter and Verge Senior Editor Bryan Bishop, who\u2019s jump from participant to writer and assistant director has been invaluable to both the company and the creative heart behind the experience.<\/span><\/p>\n

With Theatre Macabre<\/i>, the three have fashioned their first standalone immersive\u00a0experience that exists outside\u00a0the Tension<\/i> narrative\u2014an homage to the realistic horror productions of France\u2019s Th\u00e9\u00e2tre du Grand-Guignol, many of which would overwhelm more sensitive audience members in the early to-mid 1900\u2019s.\u00a0 <\/span>Theatre Macabre<\/i> is the affectionate ghost of its predecessor, the desiccated corpse of a stage show continually inhabited by miscreants and malcontents.\u00a0 <\/span>Within, audiences are\u00a0offered a variety of ways to spend their time at the Theatre, and a variety of troubled souls to spend it with.\u00a0 <\/span>This is a game of choices, desires, and adventures with seemingly endless possibilities; that it all exists under one roof and is\u00a0executed with\u00a0such an acidic artistry by a world-class cast speaks to the clarity of Tension LLC\u2019s vision and their continued contribution to the immersive theatre community as a whole. <\/span><\/p>\n

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\"tension
Ian Boisvert as the Master of Ceremonies<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

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The sheer\u00a0scale of Theatre Macabre<\/i> itself is one of the most impressive aspects of the experience; the performance takes place on multiple floors and rooms, each brimming with detail that keen guests will see as\u00a0bordering on Sleep No More<\/i><\/a> levels of complexity.\u00a0 <\/span>Papers, paraphernalia, clothes, and the various trappings of everyday activity in the 20th century make the space feel truly lived in; it\u2019s easy to accept that performers both work and\u00a0sleep on this property.\u00a0 <\/span>Meanwhile, a handful of elegantly dressed “regulars” are similarly\u00a0more than\u00a0necessity.<\/span><\/p>\n

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\"tension
Demi Cobar as Victoria<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

Each of these performers and long-time attendees is portrayed by a rotating cast of stellar actors, many of whom guests will gleefully recognize from Tension<\/i> and Lust<\/i> events.\u00a0 <\/span>Thanks to the combination of their skills, Bousman\u2019s direction, and Sears\u2019 boundless dialogue, the entire cast is prepared to react accordingly to nearly every potential response from paying guests.\u00a0 I<\/span>n casting Theatre Macabre<\/i>, Bousman, Sears, and Bijelonic have again outdone themselves with the strength of their performers and\u00a0each actor’s\u00a0detailed understanding of his or her role.<\/span><\/p>\n

As a participant, your individual \u201ctrack\u201d throughout the show will be wholly determined by the choices you make and the actions that result from them\u2014some will find themselves on stage, engaging in\u00a0 morally ambiguous performances, while some will instead work quietly to tear the Theatre down from within. \u00a0Regardless of their path, every attendee will progress through Theatre Macabre<\/i> with that sinking feeling that they hold the power of life and death in their hands; few sensations are so jarring and energizing.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Audience agency in Theatre Macabre <\/i>is expansive, nearly complete in this production\u2014a trademark by now of Tension LLC productions\u2014put into action here in brilliant fashion. \u00a0What you choose dictates your own triumph or tragedy; few productions so deftly maintain narrative control while still granting such autonomy to their guests.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"tension
Bobby King as the Master of Ceremonies<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

Theatre Macabre <\/i>is terrifying, exhilarating art at its best; it takes audiences on a wild, personalized ride into the unknown.\u00a0 <\/span>It\u2019s not a haunted house; it\u2019s not just a demonstration of the vast and stunning discomfort\u00a0generated by\u00a0Ascension<\/i><\/a>, Tension LLC\u2019s first foray into large-scale immersive productions\u2014it reaches\u00a0far\u00a0beyond any expectations, and is still so<\/em> much more than it seems.\u00a0 <\/span>It\u2019s the kind of multi-faceted narrative that begs repeating\u2014in fact, many\u00a0guests have already\u00a0attended twice or even a third time\u2014to peel off more layers and find what they<\/i> want. As for me, knowing all<\/em> the secrets of Theatre Macabre<\/i> is a pipe dream\u2014my story here is my own, and different from all others.\u00a0 <\/span>But the curtain\u2019s now open on Theatre Macabre, <\/i>and the true potential of immersive theatre along with it, and the show must<\/em> go on. <\/span><\/p>\n

Theatre Macabre runs through November 4th, 2018.\u00a0Tickets can be purchased here<\/a>. You can also\u00a0explore the Macabre world via Instagram<\/a>, Twitter<\/a>, or their website<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Featured photo: Julia Henning as Alexandria<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

On\u00a0my trip to Tension LLC\u2019s Theatre Macabre, I met a man with one arm who leaned in close and told me \u201cyou should never be afraid to tell people what you want.\u00a0\u00a0Tell them exactly what you want.\u201d\u00a0 The advice lingered with me even as the ninety minute show whizzed by in a fury\u2014a tornado of…<\/p>\n

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