Crains New York - March 25, 2013 - (Page 42)

Audiences get into the act Continued from Page 41 and hidden stairwells, are fairly inexpensive and quick to produce. And there seems to be no end to the number of willing participants who want to dress up and take part in these productions. Many come back multiple times. All these elements are making multisensory theater a new trend, though one that follows in the footsteps of 1980s pioneer Tony n’ Tina’s Wedding. During the past year, productions such as Sleep No More,Speakeasy Dollhouse, Then She Fell and Totally Tubular Time Machine have opened and are filling their venues to capacity. “People don’t want to sit in a seat anymore,” said Robert Watman, a producer and co-creator of Totally Tubular Time Machine, which bills itself as an “interactive, intergalactic pop-music experience.” “Here they can do a sing-along, hang out with ‘Lady Gaga’ wearing a meat dress and watch dancers perform ‘Thriller,’ ” he said. At Totally Tubular, music fans are given a pair of intergalactic glasses and transported to a 1989 Madonna after-party, thanks to a three-minute ride in a “time machine.”The rest of the evening is an interactive MTV rock-a-thon where guests mingle with lookalikes of Lady Gaga, Justin Bieber, Michael Jackson and double Madonnas—both the ’80s and ’90s versions. Quick profits For Sleep No More, British sitespecific theater company Punchdrunk transformed an old Chelsea warehouse into a 100,000-squarefoot fictional hotel called the McKittrick. More than 100 rooms have been decorated in 1930s and ’40s style. Participants hide behind Venetian Carnival masks and must remain silent throughout the experience.As with Speakeasy Dollhouse, the audience members follow actors from room to room as they try to figure out the mystery. For the most part, creating these shows doesn’t take much time, and they are quick to make a profit. Totally Tubular took six months from conception to performance, while Speakeasy Dollhouse took just four weeks. It costs Ms. Von Buhler a mere $1,500 to put on each show (there are two performances a week). Tickets are sold in advance ‘It feels good to be a part of what’s going on’ and cost $30 for the Saturday matinee performance and $20 for Monday night, with more than 150 people attending each. Her gross revenue is about $8,000 a week. Ms. Von Buhler was able to cut a free deal for the 10,000-squarefoot performance space because she packs the house at times when people don’t usually come. “They sell liquor during times and nights when no one is normally coming,” she said. “Our play is about drinking, so it’s a terrific relationship.” Totally Tubular is performed at midtown’s Culture Club, which is owned by the play’s producer, Mr. Watman. It costs $5,000 per show to produce.Tickets are $60,and between 250 and 300 people attend each week.Mr.Watman also makes money selling show-themed EVERY ROOM’S A STAGE SLEEP NO MORE 530 W. 27th St. Runs nightly. Admission is in 15-minute intervals. Arrivals run from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m.; Friday and Saturday late nights, 11 p.m. to midnight. Information: www.sleepnomorenyc.com; OvationTix, (866) 811-4111 SPEAKEASY DOLLHOUSE 102 Norfolk St. Saturdays at 4 p.m., Mondays at 7 p.m. Information: www.speakeasydollhouse.com THEN SHE FELL 195 Maujer St., Williamsburg, Brooklyn Tues.-Sun. at 7:30 p.m. and 10:30 p.m. Information: www.thenshefell.com TOTALLY TUBULAR TIME MACHINE Culture Club 20 W. 39th St. Saturdays at 8 p.m. Information: www.totallytubularnyc.com 42 | Crain’s New York Business | March 25, 2013 merchandise. Producers of Sleep No More, the most elaborate,professional and expensively produced of these shows, declined to give financial numbers. Extended by popular demand The majority of these productions were initially planned for short, one-time runs. But they are all being extended or returning due to sheer demand. Originally intended as a two-night event last October, Speakeasy Dollhouse has extended its run through 2013. Totally Tubular runs every Saturday night, but Mr.Watman is considering the addition of Friday performances. In the tradition of immersive theater, there are no seats for audience members in Then She Fell.The show, which has an open-ended run,takes place in a three-story former parochial school morphed into the “Kingsland Hospital Ward” in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. It focuses on the writings of Lewis Carroll and the relationship he had with Alice Liddell, the girl for whom he wrote Alice in Wonderland. The show is intimate, with only 10 actors and 15 ticket holders. The producers of these shows believe the trend has caught on in part because of the current culture of technology, which allows people to have more interactive experiences. “People want to be part of an experience, and they want attention,” Ms. Von Buhler said. “That want is heightened because of interactive video games and reality TV, which makes the everyday person famous. Immersive theater is like that.” Indeed, the success of these productions is based on intense audience commitment. Brendan McNerney, an interactive Web developer for Condé Nast, recently attended a Saturday performance of Speakeasy Dollhouse.At 6-foot-5, he stood out in his lime-green zoot suit and matching hat, both of which he already owned. “I love the atmosphere and the dressing up,” said Mr. McNerney, who had already decided to see the show again just two days later. “It feels good not to be a spectator and be part of what’s going on. I got to drink liquor out of a coffee cup,play poker in the bakery basement and watch a woman singing opera a few inches in front of me.” Mr. McNerney has also seen Sleep No More. Since every performance is different, it makes sense that everyone’s takeaway is as well. But for at least one creator, her play has been life-altering and therapeutic. Speakeasy Dollhouse is about finding the truth surrounding Ms. Von Buhler’s grandfather’s murder. Writing the play was cathartic for her. “I may never know what really happened, but I feel his death left a legacy of fear throughout my family,” she said.“We’re all very anxious people.This show has really helped me conquer my own fears.” Ⅲ SOURCE LUNCH: SIMON KILMURRY by Theresa Agovino A documentarian’s broad point of view F or 26 years, American Documentary Inc. has been producing POV, a wide-ranging, awardwinning series for PBS. Last month, it was one of 13 nonprofits globally to receive a $1 million award from the MacArthur Foundation. Simon Kilmurry has been executive director of Brooklyn-based American Documentary since 2006. The Scottish-born 46-year-old says part of the award will be used to help the $3.5 million organization complete construction of a screening room and editing suites. What else are you doing with the money? As a small nonprofit, we’ll have a good-size cash reserve, which is crucial because it can [generate] revenue we can use to experiment.We want to see how documentaries can expand beyond the broadcast space. PBS will broadcast 15 POV documentaries this year. How many submissions do you get? economics of modeling on our site. Last year, you started hosting weekend “hackathons.” What are they, and why are you doing them? We bring together filmmakers with Web designers, app designers, coders.Together they figure out how to best manifest the filmmaker’s idea, whether it is on the Web or the phone or whatever it might be. We want them to have a prototype of a project that they could take to funders for further development. Do you think that certain subjects will be more appealing to those who watch documentaries on TV versus those who watch them on other platforms? No. I have given up trying to predict what will appeal to whom. Over the years, there have been films we have produced that we think will appeal to this segment of the population for this reason. And then judging from the response, you see it wasn’t so.That is part of the fun. WHERE THEY DINED We get 1,100 submissions What documentaries have generated the most response a year, and we have 25 REBAR in recent years? freelance filmmakers who 147 Front St., The Oath, the issue of terhelp us review them. I, Brooklyn (718) 766-9110 rorism, is one that people, along with four others, will www.rebarnyc.com understandably, can have a look at the top 200 or so. In AMBIENCE: very high emotional rethe fall, I convene an Hardwood floors, sponse to, especially when [outside] advisory panel, exposed-brick it is nuanced and complex. and we have them look at walls, colorful paintings and Food,Inc.,an exploration of about 40 films. The rule is mismatched the industrialization of the staff just listens and chandeliers—the agriculture that some peodoesn’t say anything.There perfect fit for arty ple felt was attacking farmwill be a film I think [the Dumbo ers. Anything to do with panel] will love, and they’ll WHAT THEY ATE: gay rights and Scouting say it is the worst thing they Ⅲ Celery-root soup, kale salad touches a hot button. have seen in years. That is the most refreshing part of Ⅲ Squash soup, apple-and-brie How many documentaries do the process. You have to be panini you see a year? open to the different TAB: $36.69, Hundreds. I don’t know. responses. Then I work with tip I’ve never counted. On [a with my team and PBS to recent] Monday night, I make the final selection. watched films from about 7 p.m. to You want the stories to resonate. 1 a.m. I’ll do that three times a week How is digital changing what you do? and then spend one day on the weekIt has changed how people engage end watching films. I’m still surwith content. They aren’t tied to a prised at how they can draw me in. broadcast schedule. You have to make I’ll start a film and I realize I’ve been it available when they want it. We do standing for an hour while watching special prereleases on PBS iPad apps it because it is so good. to build momentum for a film. And not everything gets into a film. Digi- What film has had that effect on you tal allows us to make what didn’t get in recently? into stand-alone pieces. We have a If I single one out,people will kill me. film about young girls getting recruited into the modeling industry. We Do you go to movies for fun? have an infographic looking at the Yes. I even go to documentaries. Ⅲ INSIDE TIP: The restaurant has a small movie theater, with a bar, that shows independent films. http://www.rebarnyc.com http://www.sleepnomorenyc.com http://www.speakeasydollhouse.com http://www.thenshefell.com http://www.totallytubularnyc.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Crains New York - March 25, 2013

In the Boroughs
In the Markets
Real Estate Deals
The Insider
Business People
Opinion
Alair Townsend
Greg David
40 Under 40
Classifieds
For the Record
Small Business
New York, New York
Source Lunch
Out and About
Snaps

Crains New York - March 25, 2013