Entertainment :: Theatre
Fear by Joseph Erbentraut
EDGE ContributorThursday Oct 1, 2009 The Neo-Futurists’ current prime-time offering, Fear, might be a lot of things - part theatre, part dance, part art exhibit - but its most fundamental identifying description can be found it what it isn’t: This is not, by any means, your average Halloween haunted house offering.
And, coming from the Neo-Futurists, why would it be? The troupe has become synonymous with innovation, pushing the boundaries of what can be defined as theater with its interactive and challenging work, ranging from its crown-jewel, the late-night show Too Much Light Makes The Baby Go Blind to unique show offerings like this fall’s Fear, curated by ensemble member Noelle Krimm.
Krimm’s creation, described as "a thinking man’s haunted house," draws from the work of Edgar Allan Poe for its source material, with each work being represented in a vignette. Upon their arrival, audience members are separated into groups of fifteen or so to tour the transformed Neo-Futurarium. Upon ascending the stairs, one can’t help but notice a disheveled woman sitting on the floor in the corner shoveling dirt onto her head with a trowel.
The mood set, audience members are ushered into their first room, where they meet their tour guide, whom refers to itself as "the only person you can trust." Audience members are asked to recite vows that they are responsible for their own actions and will not disturb the environment they have entered.
From there, the tour goes from room to room, each using an array of media and performance to accentuate the somber, disturbing mood of a number of Poe’s works including "The Oval Portrait," "The Pit and the Pendulum" and the "The Fall of the House of Usher." In one of the tour’s most stirring offerings - "The Bells" - the audience encounters a group of dancers alternately waltzing and chasing each other, twirling chains, madly. It is demented, beautiful art.
The performances collectively have the feel of a David Lynch film wrapped up in a Dante-esque descent into a introspective hell. Through each visit with Poe’s work, visiting the stories of others’ darkness, one cannot help but reflect on their own disappointments, even questioning the true nature of our world today. It gets inside your head like a psychological thriller, as opposed to a shocking horror.
By the time you exit the show exactly where you began, the dirt-digging woman is found motionless, facedown in a bucket of dirt. You’ll need to fight the urge to turn around and pass back through for another tour. To fight the temptation to dig deeper into the darkness observed over the past hour.
But then again, that was just me. Though this show may not be for everyone, in my book, Fear is a macabre masterpiece you won’t want to miss.
’Fear’ plays at the Neo-Futurarium, 5153 N. Ashland, through October 31, with performances Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. Recessionistas should note that Thursday performances are ’pay-what-you-can.’ Tickets and more information are available at www.neofuturists.org or by calling 773-275-5255.
Joseph covers news, arts and entertainment and lives in Chicago.
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