Sleep No More is AMAZING

[yay_gerb]

Thanks for posting. Only 2 of those tracks are actually used in the show, though.

[LauLau79]

: ( I thought I found a gem. But at least you guys like it, hopefully as much as I do!!

[mlsheehan]

Saw this last Saturday at the late performance, and all I can say is, "WOW". I don't believe that I've ever experienced anything remotely like this. I can't stop thinking about it, either.

I sure hope I can make it back to see more of the show. I followed Macbeth for about 1/2 a cycle and lost him in the crowd on the stairs, but caught most of the rest of his cycle later, did some exploring on the 5th floor, and did lots of random other things. We saw the 2 males do the pas-de-deux near the phone booth (twice). I believe one was the male witch, but who was the other character that ends up dead? So many other questions, but I’ll let them run around in my head.

My only quibble was the banquet scene takes forever to play out. After seeing it all 3 times, I hope never to see it again. Otherwise, it was great and truly memorable experience. Thanks to BWW for I don't think I would have found out about this one.

[RippedMan]

Can anyone post a cast list?

[upinthegods]

There are two casts - and some performers play multiple roles.

Virtually the entire Boston cast reprise their roles and they are listed in the Wikipedia entry for the Boston show. Much of the second cast were listed in the New York Times review. So putting the two lists together yields the list below. It is probably incorrect - perhaps someone can correct it?

Eric Jackson-Bradley, Nicholas Bruder as Macbeth
Luke Murphy, John Sorensen-Jolink as Macduff
Phil Atkins, as Duncan
Robert Najarian as Malcolm
Jeffery Lyon as Banquo
Thomas Kee, Matthew Oaks as Porter
Tori Sparks, Sophie Bortolussi as Lady Macbeth
Alli Ross as Lady Macduff
Jordan Morley as Witch
Stephanie Eaton, Ching-I Chang as Witch
Kelly Bartnik, Hope T Davis as Witch
Careena Melia as Hecate
Poornima Kirby as The Second Mrs. de Winter
Alexander LaFrance as Bellhop/Taxidermist
Sogdiana Azhiben, Paul Singh as Speakeasy Bartender
Annie Goodchild as Annie Darcy
Hayley Jane Soggin as Elsie Price
Matt Spano as Charlie, Man in Bar
Lucy York as Matron.

[JeaniusIsMe]

Here's the cast list from the last time I went, at the end of May. It's slightly different from the last one posted:
Duncan- Phil Atkins
Bald Witch/Catherine Campbell- Kelly Bartnik, Hope T. Davis
Lady Macbeth/Agnes Naismith- Sophie Bortolussi, Tori Sparks
Macbeth/Rehearsal Director- Eric Jackson Bradley
Macbeth/Porter- Nicholas Bruder
Sexy Witch/Nurse Shaw- Ching-I Chang, Stephanie Eaton
Banquo/J. Fulton- Gabriel Forestieri, Jeffery Lyon
Hecate- Careena Melia
Boy Witch/Speakeasy Barman- Jordan Morley, Paul Singh
Macduff/Bellhop/Mr. Bargarran- Luke Murphy, John Sorensen-Jolnik
Porter/Orderly/Understudy- Matthew Oaks
Malcolm- Rob Najarian
Lady Macduff/Matron- Alli Ross, Lucy York (also listed as Understudy)

[Shubert Alley Cat]

I've heard it is quite hot inside the hotel when experiencing SLEEP NO MORE. Is it OK to wear shorts? I am extremely warm-blooded, so I will likely be dressing as cooly as possible when I attend (Sat 7/16 late show). Thanks for any insights from those of you who have already attended.

[givesmevoice]

You'll definitely be fine in shorts.

[charlesjguiteau]

Some easy pointers for the overheated types like ShubertAlleycat. My husband hated the heat generated by wearing the mask the first time we went. For visit #2 he brought little 1" squares of self-adhesive foam rubber pads to stick inside the pressure points of the mask before donning it. Worked swell.

Also, on the 5th floor you'll find the "outdoor" maze of dead branches which is kept breezy and cool. Similarly on the 3rd floor you'll find the ruins of a vast brick foundation that are also kept chilly.

Plus the show should keep giving you chills if you let yourself really fall under its spell :)

[mlsheehan]

Last Saturday the cast was the same as JeaniusIsMe listed above with the expection of:

Hecate- Careena Melia, Maya Lubinski
Malcolm- Adam Scher

I'm planning a trip back in October. I hope it's still playing. I'd very much like to see it again.

[upinthegods]

This is going to run and run...... they are having auditions for new cast members next week and they have also advertised a "permanent full-time" post for a box-office manager.

As can be seen from the previous post, some of the original cast members are now starting to move on.

[mlsheehan]

This is good news to me. I hope it plays and stays fresh for quite a while.

[ABB2357]

I'm still processing the experience so can't share very much except that it was one of the most amazing things I've ever seen. So annoyed my NYC trip is over because if I could I would go again as soon as humanly possible.

[AlfieByrne]

Were anybody underwhelmed by this "show"? I did like it, actually, but it just didn't meet my expectation. I was expecting something groundbreaking, but most of the time, I was too frustrated to figure out who was who. And it just felt like an over-extended haunted maze walk-through at some theme parks during Halloween season.

It was neat that they stuffed every drawer with period props and such... but I just wasn't too impressed, with all the hype. It definitely was new and worth checking out at least once.

[upinthegods]

What many people overlook is that "Sleep No More" is a dance show - albeit a dance show with a difference. However, almost all the performers are career dancers - not actors - and, therefore, attendees who complain that there is "no dialogue" or "plot" are missing the point.

The set and location are, indeed, amazing but what makes the show unique is that the dancers perform miracles without the audience even realizing they are watching a dance show!

[FindingNamo]

I have a hard time following, upinthegods. I think it's odd for you to say people are watching a "dance show" and that the dancers "perform miracles" and that somehow, the audience doesn't know it's a dance show.

[upinthegods]

I'm sorry if my point wasn't clear. I was merely suggesting that, in my view, some of the (few) critical comments on Sleep No More indicate that those attendees had been expecting dialogue and/or a linear "plot". If indeed it has been obvious to everyone that this is a dance show I can but apologize.

[mlsheehan]

Ok, I have a strange question about ticketing. When I look through the available ticket times, (except for the few performances in September) the late entrance time is "sold out". I'm talking the "8PM" and "11:59PM" times.

Does something special happen with those entrance times? Why the heavy demand on the entrance time that gets you the least? There doesn't appear to be a difference in price. I would think that most people would want to get in as early as possible to spend the most time in the environment.

Just curious on your thoughts on this. Thanks.

[Katurian2]

The late entrance times are cheaper than the earlier entrance times.

[luvtheEmcee]

Some of you would probably be interested in this:

http://www.wnyc.org/shows/lopate/2011/jul/05/sleep-no-more/

[Shubert Alley Cat]

Well, I finally went last Saturday (7/16) and had a swell time. First of all, I did wear comfy clothing and was NOT hot during the experience except when I had to move quickly up and down stairs to follow an actor. The mask was not terribly uncomfortable either.

SPOILERS, I guess . . . Here are the highlights of my experience.



*I saw the "Is That All There Is?" lip synch but I swear it was in the bar in the hotel and it was done by a man, not the woman in the red dress.

*I saw MacBeth kill Duncan with the pillow, followed him to the bathtub scene with the missus, and also saw Lady M's freakout.

*I got to see the rave . . . weird.

*I loved the theatricality of the final tableau.

*While the MacBeth stuff was pretty easy to follow (I know this story well), I did not get the stuff happening with the REBECCA characters. I became caught up with the woman with the suitcase at the end of the second cycle. She looks at some pictures and then a guy comes out of the wardrobe (is this the Narnia thing?) and kisses her goodnight. Then I believe she starts the cycle over and when she goes out into the street, she has this liitle box -- inside the box was a note that says "We have her." WTF was this all about? Later on she is checking into the hotel. She also was constantly looking at pictures of a woman -- was this the first Mrs. DeWinter, Rebecca? I am very confounded by all of this . . . does anyone have any insights?

I appreciate all the direction I received from the board to help me prepare for my expereince. I got more out of it as a result.

[PReeves2]

Saw the show and was underwhelmed. Didn't really care enough about the characters to go rushing ahead of the crowd to follow any of them. Felt like I was in a crowded subway car the entire night and didn't like getting pushed and shoved around by the actors and audience members. Found the experience mostly annoying.

[qolbinau]

Kind of agree PReeves2, but think it was still an interesting experience and there were a few cool scenes.

I lol'd at one scene, with the locket, when it is opened everyone just SWOOPS in to try and see what's inside and the actors seem completely lost in a sea of white masks.

[PReeves2]

i do think it was an interesting approach with the audience wearing masks, but as one of the earlier posts said it did feel like I was walking through a haunted house at Six Flags during Halloween.

[qolbinau]

I don't know if they could have styled them in a different way maybe but a mask of some kind was absolutely necessarily....someone took their mask off during the bathtub scene with Lady Macbeth and (the king? no idea - tip: reading a wikipedia summary of MacBeth is not sufficient to follow this show!) and it absolutely killed the mood. It was very awkward. And of course it's the easiest way to discriminate between performers and spectators.

Although it must be necessary for safety reasons I thought the "exit" signs everywhere kind of killed the mood too (not sure if anyone mentioned this).

I really liked the street with the shops though...my friend and I went to the candy shop and actually ate some of it lol, it is pretty cool.

[dshnookie]

*** SPOILERS ***

WOW WOW WOW

I just got back and have to thank everyone who has posted little tidbits about the show, they really helped me out and allowed me to get a lot out of the show on my first run through. I got tickets for the 11pm slot, and am so happy I did. I got to follow characters around with ease initially as a lot of people hadn't entered yet.

My goal was to follow 3 characters each hour, following a new one when the show "reset". I followed Macbeth first and I have to say, if you follow Macbeth you will leave truly gratified. I think Macbeth offered me 11-12 different scenes and most if not all were just marvelous. I was TIRED after just following him, and couldn't believe I had two more hours in the space. The choreography alone is worth price of admission, it's so beautiful - especially between Macbeth and Lady Macbeth in their bedroom (multiple occasions), Macbeth and a character's fight scene in the room with the pool table and the cardboard box walls (I ate it in the cardboard boxes on my way out chasing Macbeth), Macbeth with the witches in the hotel lobby (are you catching a pattern here? :P), Lady Macbeth also had some beautiful choreography in her room, and also in her plexi-glass "closet" I guess you would call it. The choreo with Lady Macduff and two other characters in the hotel lobby sitting area as they fought over the glass of "milk" was nice as well. I followed Lady Macbeth for the 2nd hour, and while I initially wanted to follow one of the witches for the 3rd hour, I ended up following Lady Macduff, who I'm almost positive was the pregnant woman.

I found that by following Macbeth I got such an amazing experience out of it, that following the other two characters later on was not as exciting or interesting. I knew I'd see a lot of double scenes by following Lady Macbeth next as she has quite a few moments with Macbeth, but it just felt really really cool to be able to recall what Macbeth was doing somewhere else in the hotel while watching Lady Macbeth do something else on her own, and then watch the two reconvene. I will say she did fall into me once in her sequined gown, and stood in front of me completely nude when she got out of the bathtub in the room of tubs, it's amazing how invested these actors are and their boldness and fearlessness.

I'm happy to answer any questions or go into details about the scenes I saw while following those three characters if anyone wants to know.

If you go, do NOT miss the witch's orgy/rave ... complete .. mind .. f#ck. (following Macbeth will get you there).

My own two cents would be:
1. Dont worry if you lose a character in a stairwell, just follow the people as they're most likely following that character too and you will get to them. Lady Macbeth took me up what seemed like 4 flights of stairs, Lady Macduff took me up 3 and it was just insane to be running around so much. It cannot be stressed enough to wear sneakers. Following three characters, I was able to stick with them the entire time except for a brief moment where I lost Lady Macbeth and she had some sort of exchange with the nurse but I found her just as they entered the room with the tubs. Get as close as you want, but be able to guess when a scene is winding down and position yourself near a doorway so it'll be easier to follow a character as they run out.
2. Whichever floor you get left off on at the start, just run to the Ballroom as you will see a lot of the characters start out there, including all of the ones that I followed, dancing and having a ball - Macbeth is upstairs on the balcony looking down at the other characters as they dance, and Lady Macbeth gives him a cold stare so he will be easy to spot (if facing the banquet table, he's on the balcony above to your right, closer to the rear corner). I highly suggest you make the effort to follow Macbeth and dont lose him. All three characters brought me back to the ballroom at the end of the hour and you're able to see quite a few characters to choose from to follow next, so you dont really have to check your watch as returning to the ballroom is your cue.

QUESTION: When I followed Macbeth there was a scene where he met up with Lady Macduff, just outside the row of phone booths. They had quite a fight scene and Macbeth seemingly killed her or her baby or both. But then when I followed Lady Macduff this scene did not repeat itself, and the only scene that occurred in front of the row of phone booths was a scene where she uncovered a mirror and took a blanket, folded it like a baby and rocked it, while unpacking her suitcase and opening drawers. I was just curious if the tracks tend to deviate or slightly different things occur at each hour?

Anyway, GO GO GO! It must be experienced once, and some of it is just too difficult to put into words. GO!