A ghost story by the fire in the age of the virtual theatre — It requires a lot of willpower to not open a slick wooden box with a single letter “J” burned into its top. Just a thin string separates me from the secrets of Someone Else’s House, a new virtual experience from Geffen Playhouse’s Stayhouse series. But I was instructed not to…

Participatory drama by Phoenix Tears Productions brings excitement to Zoom — As much as I am impressed with the technical and artistic advances of virtual theatre in the pandemic age, I’m tired of staring into my computer screen. Nothing beats a live show. I frankly thought I was done with Zoom theatre; that is, until I attended Posthumous, a remote interactive…

Bated Breath makes creative use of pandemic restrictions in a sidewalk promenade show — I haven’t been to the theatre since March. So I was excited to approach the corner of Christopher Street and 7th Ave to see my first live (non-virtual) show in Manhattan since the beginning of the pandemic, Voyeur: The Windows of Toulouse-Lautrec. Conceived and directed by Mara Lieberman and produced…

Twin Alchemy’s LARP for two explores love and life-long commitment — I have already forgotten the innocent sweetness of “playing house” in kindergarten. By using tree leaves as “money” to pay for the “groceries,” “baking” sand cakes and decorating them with dandelions, and tucking “kids” to sleep under the tall elm that served as a bedroom in our imaginary house, we…

Coney puts Russians and Brits into a virtual hotel for a diplomatic treaty — “I wanna be in the room where it happens.” This is a sentiment expressed by the character of Aaron Burr in the musical Hamilton but is also a desire familiar to many people. But what if there is no single room where a small group of powerful people determines the…

A most intimate opera invites you to fall in love from afar — NYC’s On Site Opera has been challenging the proscenium setting, traditionally associated with this art, since 2012. The company has produced site-specific work at the Bronx Zoo, the Astor Chinese Garden Court at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and at the Holy Apostles Soup Kitchen, among other unexpected venues. In…

The set of short plays amplifies frustrations of the present moment — When art gets too close to real life, it becomes a bit unsettling. This was my main insight after my encounter with The Corona Variations, a phone experience produced by the Toronto-based Convergence Theatre. The piece consists of six short (about 10 minutes each) “phone plays,” delivered to one audience…

A serial phone adventure made about, and for, a single person: you — A while ago on a subway, I saw an ad for personalized children’s books that insert a child’s name into the narrative to make a kid the main character of the story he or she reads. How in tune with the times where experience design becomes increasingly personalized, I thought…

An over-the-phone adventure by Sinking Ship Creations — I often feel powerless during these days of the COVID-19 pandemic. Besides the passive and protective measures I take, there is not much else I can do. It feels like the entire world is standing still, anxiously waiting for what each new day will bring. Luckily, we have modern technology…