A ghost story by the fire in the age of the virtual theatre
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| Photo courtesy of Geffen Playhouse. |
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 open the “haunting kit” until I am prompted to do so in the show. Lights are dimmed, curtains pulled down, and the Zoom update is installed: the spooky atmosphere is set. When Jared Mazzochi, the writer and performer for the evening joins the audience (up to 40 households), we all squirm in our seats in anticipation.
What Jared is about to tell us is a true story that happened to his family before he was born. In the 80’s, his parents moved into a mansion that was over 200 years old in Enfield, New Hampshire, with their three little kids. What seemed like a great bargain for a large property ended up costing the family much more in psychological damage. Jered’s brother, eight at the time of the move, was scared for his life by the horrifying events that unfolded at the house during the short time the Mazzochis occupied it. Wanting to get to the bottom of it, and hoping to heal the scars of the past, Jared decided to investigate the history of the house and its original dwellers, the Johnson family.
(Minor spoilers ahead)
Jered conducted impressive research, recreating the family tree of the Johnsons, which he proudly presented to us, complete with the old black and white photographs of its members. Each of our boxes contains a copy of the family tree so we can follow along with the story. Indeed, it would be difficult to do so without the visual reference - the matriarch and the patriarch, Joseph and Polly, had nine children alone!
Completing the dossier are the floor plan with an idyllic etching of the house in the 19th century and a scented candle which all of us light at the beginning (matches are included in the kit). A separate envelope contains five photographs, each audience member has a different set. As Jered leads us along the branches of the Johnson family tree, he calls upon people who have the photos of the certain characters to read their short bios from the back of the cards. This is the most participation required from the audience members, making Someone Else's House a suitable show for introverts. One can decline speaking by just not holding the photograph up to the screen. The Johnsons were a large family, but there are still duplicates, so the responsibility to introduce a new character is never on a single person.
It is, however, required to keep your video on, so we all could hold the space symbolically. The part where Jared shares the results of his investigation at the beginning of the show, happens in gallery mode. There is something haunting in the way the Zoom grid is continued by the row of black and white photographs of the dead people on my desk. One particular woman is staring at me intensely (the cause of death unknown). So does the 13-year-old boy who died after being stung by multiple bees.
(Somewhat bigger spoilers ahead so I suggest you stop reading if you plan to attend the show)
After demonstrating the impressive diorama of Johnson's family tree on his wall, Jared switches locations and we can now see a bit more of this cozy interior. There is a desk with some books on it, a hallway, and an antique wooden chair mounted on the wall. Apparently, this was a practice common in the 18th and 19th century, including among the Shakers, which was a prevalent religious community in the area at the time. I never saw people storing chairs in this way and had to Google it. To me, the “floating chair” looked like a slightly surreal design element visually communicating suspense. The production design of Someone Else's House (by Sibyl Wickersheimer) is full of small and thoughtful details like this one.
As Jared shares more and more from the intertwining stories of two families who occupied the house, the Johnson’s and the Mazzochi’s, strange interference invades the transmission. A glitch in the video or a second-long shot of the overhead view of the room are unobtrusive but they gradually make me feel more and more uneasy. At some point the realization of the inevitability of danger is so tense it can be cut with a knife. But Jared is so into sharing his research with us that he doesn’t pay attention to the lights flickering in the hallway behind him.
Without giving away any more I will just say that Someone Else's House is an interesting experiment of adapting the horror genre to the virtual theatre. The combination of tangible objects and skillful video special effects (by Virtual Design Collective aka VIDCO) unites theatre and film, the living and their ghosts. Perhaps most importantly, Jared Mazzochi, directed by Margot Bordelon, is an engaging storyteller. The faces of the audience members leaning forward, brightened by the glow of their computer screens, feels as if I am listening to a ghost story by the “fire”.
Someone Else's House probably won’t make you lose sleep; it is not extreme by any means. Although not without some spooky moments, and a spectacular grand finale, it makes for a pleasant evening. This show was more about connecting through storytelling, than being afraid of each shadow and squeak at your own place.
After the show is brought to an end abruptly and I blow out my candle, the peculiar aroma lingers in the air for some time. Not a candle person myself, I didn’t notice how much of the atmosphere of the experience was influenced by its complicated scent. Designed by the Uppercase Candle Company, this little candle smells of bitter herbs, antique furniture, and a campfire. I relish in the familiar yet uncanny combination of smells, letting the ghosts of the Johnson/Mazzochi residence settle and rest for the night.
(This review was published on NoProscenium.com on May 11)
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