![]() The entire performance is in low to no light, with some very dim lamps theoretically offering enough visibility to read documents, which in practice meant I could not read anything due to my poor eyesight. Sleep no more may be a good experience for some but you'll need to have excellent low light vision to even have an experience. After the attendants corral the dispersed guests to see the climax, everyone is herded toward the gift shop to buy a booklet that doesn't explain anything. It seems hundreds of people are involved with the production, and the directors talk about the "concept" of the experience, but in the end it doesn't seems like anything more than a very elaborate Halloween haunted house that isn't even haunted. ![]() Throughout the experience, there is ominous monotonal music interspersed with clips of 1930s jazz, but somehow this didn't result in it being scary. To us, the link the directors purport to Shakespeare's Macbeth is pretty weak, and the other storylines also dissolved. We started to follow a storyline, but it fell apart. There is supposed to be a story, or set of intertwined stories, that you can piece together as you explore the hotel, but in our experience, there was no cohesive story. We heard some guests say they saw more scenes the next time they went, which could be because different scenes happen on different floors/rooms, or because they rushed ahead of the crowd to watch a scene. But, seeing as these scenes occurred in tight areas, and because the other guests were flocking after the actors to try to figure out the story, the actors were always engulfed by several dozen guests and we often couldn't see at all. Every now and then, while the guests explore corridors and rooms on various floors, actors - some trained at Julliard or other notable places - perform silent scenes while dressed in 1930s apparel, some of which are somewhat acrobatic. We came across numerous others who had attended multiple times, and apparently some try to collect these experiences. Sometimes an actor brings a guest away, breaking the rule of not interacting. I walk with a cane, so I wanted to stay with my spouse, and luckily I was able to, as there were a lot of stairs and walking around very dark places. However, there is the possibility of groups being separated from one another. The staff set rules for the guests, such as no speaking or engaging with the actors, which is interesting because this creates the sense that either the actors are ghosts or that all the guests are ghosts. Others might like the mystique of the masks, but I found it uncomfortable and hot. It is reminiscent of Poe's short story "Masque of the Red Death" in that guests must wear masquerade masks at all times and navigate the dimly lit environment (in this case, a five-storey hotel) on their own. "Sleep No More" at the McKittrick Hotel is a very interesting experience, but it's not for everyone and may be less coherent than the directors believe. Not sure…ģ) The very end of the show, which I found powerful and shocking the first time, was played much safer in last night’s performance, and it just did not have the same effect. I’m not sure the reason for this except that I thought perhaps some of the detail/objects were removed from the rooms to prevent pilfering, and the lights were turned down so the rooms wouldn’t look bare. I’m thinking of the Macbeth bedroom and the sanatorium room with the cots. I do think the experience is more powerful/intense if you go it alone.Ģ) Certain rooms/scenes were so dark that you could barely see what was going on. This could have been because they were running late with getting everyone in due to checking everyone’s Covid tests and vaccination cards. But some things about the show had also changed from the pre-Covid era.ġ) They didn’t try to separate couples/groups, and they didn’t have you hang out in the bar at the beginning. My experience was different the second time around, partly because I knew the lay of the land, had some things in mind that I wanted to focus on, and felt slightly more comfortable in the environment. I had such FOMO the first time that I couldn’t wait to go back to see those scenes I heard about but missed (including the techno party scene). But the most intriguing part of it is that there’s always something else to explore. The physicality of the acting/movement is impressive, and somehow the actors manage to maneuver around the audience. Sleep no More is completely transporting (and creepy). Last night I returned for a second time, seeing the newly reopened and slightly revised version of the show. I attended Sleep No More for the first time in early 2020–right before it was shut down due to Covid.
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