Sleep No More piqued my interest when I read about it to be an interactive production of Macbeth which in actuality was meant to be – a social experiment where you let go of your inhibitions, your identity, and sink into the utter surrealness of a modern Shakespearean world which is beautifully constructed by the production house. To me, it’s like a David Lynch movie except that it seemed real and I was a part of it.
The McKittrick hotel where the show takes place, is a Chelsea warehouse, and as soon we were inside, we could see people from the hotel already in character. As you get in, the bar setting along with the Jazz music being played transports you into their world. My partner and I were split up into different groups. My group was ushered into an area where we received our Eyes Wide Shut like Venetian masks and were put on a freight elevator. Once you put on those masks, you take on a character of your own and are not supposed to take it off as well as not speak for the entire 3 hours of the experience. The elevator guy dropped me on one of the floors as I found myself alone in a dark passageway. It was heart-racing and unsettling as I wandered alone and was almost gasping for breath because of the eeriness until I found another confused soul and heaved a sigh of relief. Soon after, I came across a herd of masked people and actors who were in a scene and joined the group.
After a little while, I started to explore the floors on my own and when I got a feel of it, also ventured into some dark and dim places. There were around 4-5 floors in total and each floor immaculately set up and nothing short of incredible. There was even a creepy hospital and a graveyard that I ran into. Supposedly there is a story and we are supposed to follow the characters, to unfold it. The characters are hard to keep up with and disappear into the darkness. Don’t be too stressed if you are lost or lose track of the character you were following. There are a few individual interesting experiences to be had as well. The actors often make eye contact with you and there was this instance when I was dragged into a corner by a lady who came out of thin air and whispered some words which I would never know the meaning of.
There seemed to be multiple loops of the same scene and we are supposed to follow different characters in each loop to get the most out of it. I tried but honestly found the storyline a little hard to follow and I wouldn’t be surprised if most people say that they would need multiple visits to fully understand it. The choreography was brilliant and the slo-mo scene is something that I can never forget. I’m new to theatre and may not be the greatest of literary fans, and I didn’t quite get most of the story(until I read up on it later) but it was a spectacular experience. My heart was racing and I was confused and mesmerized at the same time. It was creepy, strangely voyeuristic, and uniquely intriguing. It felt like a fuzzy dream. And I yearn for more.