METAMORPHOSIS

Created by Clara Francesca & Leo Lion, inspired by the classic absurdist novella by Franz Kafka

KafkaTech at Studio Exhibit Photography Studios, 62 Orchard Street, 2nd floor, NYC

Tuesday, May 7 through Sunday, May 12

Attending an immersive theater experience has potential to be memorable enough. Attending an immersive theater experience inspired by Kafka’s Metamorphosis” - now, that’s something else.

Phoenix Theatre Ensemble has made a home out of the studio space at 62 Orchard Street for the week, presenting their theater experience set in a corporate retreat, where audience members are made active participants.

Let me preface this review by saying, I went to this experience alone - something that definitely enhanced my experience. I can imagine if I was with a friend, I might have struggled with embracing it in its entirety. The two leaders of the retreat, Molly and Jim, came in dressed in stark white clothing, with an unsettling level of enthusiasm. Each audience member was given a mask to wear throughout the show, as well as an iPod and a headset.

The start of the experience was extremely intriguing, as the framing of a corporate retreat not only highlighted the themes of the well-known source material, but the incorporation of synchronized video, audio and projection elements made the experience even more unsettling.

Each audience member was told to press ‘play’ on their iPod at the same time, and we were taken into something of a guided meditation - this definitely enhanced the themes of “Metamorphosis”, and added to a level of suspense. Unfortunately, the suspense was immediately lost as soon as the stark fluorescent lights came back on, and we were made to participate in some sort of escape room/scavenger hunt, searching for fake money hidden around the room.

At this point, I felt the energy in the room dip. Audience members were confused with what they had to do (as was I), and it felt as though there was no real ‘story’ or through-line to carry us through the experience. Despite the references to Kafka’s work sprinkled throughout, it felt more like a experience that was supposed to feel disturbing, rather than a truly disturbing exploration of the themes presented in “Metamorphosis”. Yes, the setting of a corporate retreat was extremely intelligent, as it allowed for a different level of interaction among audience members and the actors - but, at a certain point, the setting was what constrained the piece, as it didn’t let the characters themselves break out of these somewhat stereotypical roles of counselors/retreat leaders.

Without giving too much of the ending away, the inevitable descent into chaos fell flat, and frankly, the middle portion of the experience was much more chaotic. The repetition of this idea that we all have a ‘bug’ inside of us that must be crushed, lost its effect after the 3rd or 4th time they said it.

The experience is an incredibly ambitious attempt to explore the truly detrimental effects late-stage capitalism has on everyone, but in cramming so many of these elements into such an unconventional structure, the result feels haphazard.

Click HERE for tickets.

Review by Niranjani Reddi.

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Opera Buffa!