LIVE DANGEROUSLY AT THE CRIMSON CABARET
REVIEW: THE CRIMSON CABARET
BY RYAN M. LUÉVANO
Immersive theatre is all the rage right now and in the last couple of years it’s been finding it footing on LA. This whole movement started in the UK pioneered by the British theatre company Punchdrunk. Their shows like Faust to the currently running productions of Sleep No More in New York City and Shanghai have whet our appetite for more theatre experiences like these. From the UK, to New York City, to Chicago and now finally to LA, immersive theatre experiences are spreading fast. In LA alone, there seems to be a new “immersive” show popping every month, but they are all not equal. This December, The Unmarked Door, a company that specializes in immersive experiences, has just opened their latest experience, The Crimson Cabaret and it’s one of the finest immersive experiences I’ve encountered in LA.
The premise of Crimson Cabaret is simple: you’re an agent (KGB, Stasi, MI6, or the CIA) in the year 1963 and you are sent to a cabaret in West Berlin on a secret mission. As part of the experience guests are asked to dress in 1960s cocktail attire and place cellphones in an envelope (still on their person) for duration of the experience. These requests although simple, make all the difference. Upon arriving guests are asked to choose a spy name and take a photo booth style picture that you can be sent to you via SMS or email, then the game begins.
After your check-in is complete you are granted entrance into the Crimson Cabaret. The Unmarked Door has built a full-scale cabaret, complete with a bar (complementary cocktail with entry) inside a secret location. Once inside you’re transported back into time to 1960s West Berlin in a smoky cabaret with a stage, dance floor, tables, a live jazz band and various acts performing all night long.
What’s special about the Crimson Cabaret experience is that guests can choose their own level of participation. What this means is that although you are given a mission, you don’t necessarily have to take any steps to actually solve your mission. You can simply have a cocktail, enjoy the performances and take a spin around the dance floor to try your hand at a waltz, tango, or 60s jazz groove that the band pumps out all night long. However, if you’re feeling more adventurous you can find your first contact and begin your mission. In the course of your mission you get to make acquaintances with all the actors, enter the hidden rooms and be an active participant in the drama.
The team at The Unmarked Door have clearly put so much passion and energy to create a unique and special experience. Creative director Rolfe Kent, who is a composer by trade scoring over 50 feature films, has written a completely original score for this experience. All this music (songs, underscoring and instrumentals) is performed live by a five-piece jazz band and live singers. What’s also fascinating about The Crimson Cabaret is that it’s a show-within-a-show. There the spy drama and an actual variety act show with live performance running all night long.
The cabaret act alone is a reason to visit the Crimson Cabaret because it’s sensational. Ryan Leslie Fisher as the MC is leads the evening’s entertainment in a performance that is utterly delightful—he’s channeled Joel Grey, but added his own unique flair. One of the main performers is Mimi (Sara O’Dwyer) who showcases her flawless and mesmerizing burlesque talent throughout the evening, she’s so enticing that staying on mission becomes a challenge. Adding comedy to the evening is the hilarious comedic dancer played by Catie Faye Smith who stumbles in and out of performances with an awkward dance routines that are absurd yet graceful in the best possible way. The femme fatale of the evening is the Russian star Anya (Michelle Vezilj) who upon entering the stage and singing her first note bewitches the room with a misty voice that rides a fine line between seduction and despair.
Come to The Crimson Cabaret because The Unmarked Door have served up a one of a kind chance to live in a 60s spy thriller and watch the best show West Berlin has to offer, if only for one night.
TICKETS AND MORE INFORMATION
DATES: December 5-29, 2019
TICKETS: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/crimson-cabaret-tickets-77447181605
