New York in Video: Subway Breakdance, Sleep No More, Flash Mob

The Laura Brooklyn Tour. East River Park.

It’s a blisteringly cold weekend here in NYC. We’re definitely making the best of it, but walking around outside is impossibly miserable difficult. We cozied up at Five Leaves, one of Brooklyn’s best brunch spots, “worth waiting around the block for,” according to Air BnB.

Bacon-wraped figs with dijon mustard- perfect balance of sweet, savory and spicy.

Mushroom toast with sautéd kale. The red wine sauce was to die for.

Leaving the warmth behind, we headed to Bushwick, a neighborhood in northern Brooklyn, to check out graffiti art and shop around at vintage boutiques.

The Roaring 20′s

Later that night, we headed to Grand Central Station to partake in the Centennial Celebration. The live big band music in that majestically grand station transported us back to another time (and little did we realize, set the tone for the roaring 20′s night ahead of us).

Surprise of the evening? Laura’s friend Cesar (meet him here) was part of a flash mob that night. We didn’t know when or where it would be, but we just happened to stumble upon it at the Centennial Celebration @ Grand Central Station. What are the chances??

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After a perfect Persian dinner at Pars Grill House in Chelsea, we headed over the the McKittrick Hotel for an 11:00 PM showing of Sleep No More.

Sleep No More

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The interactive play was easily one of the most memorable experiences I’ve ever had in the theatrical world. The setting, five floors in a warehouse made, in part, to look like an old hotel, contains various sceneries. You can wander through a forest or a wooded maze, lurk around a cemetery, walk through a street and peep in the shops, or stroll around old bedrooms and living areas. The entire show is loosely based on Macbeth and set in the roaring 20′s.

Once you enter the hotel and check your coat and bag, you are led to the bar, where fabulously dressed flappers greet you with a giddy, “Join us for a drink! Would you like an absinthe or champagne cocktail?” We opted for the mulled wine Dragon’s Blood instead. When you check into the “hotel,” you are given a playing card, which instructs when you are able to enter. Once your card is called, you given a mask which you must wear at all times.

This promotes anonymity and silence (no talking allowed). In fact, the actors don’t say much throughout the entire performance (although a desperate woman may approach you and whisper into your ear “no more! no more!” or some other such ramblings. Everyone enters a massive elevator, and the attendant lets a small amount of people out on each floor. We were the last to step out, entering an enchanted forest back lit by moonlight and shrouded in mist. What an amazing first impression!

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Laura and I intended on staying together, but we split almost immediately. They encourage you to experience the evening alone. I spent the first hour or so exploring every nook and cranny of the five levels, enjoying the atmosphere and reading and touching everything in site, including eating candy from the candy store jars.

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You can choose to follow charters as they travel around the building from room to room, floor to floor, interacting with each other or alone. Often, you will happen upon a scene quite accidentally and become enthralled. When the characters split and go their separate ways, you must choose who you find more interesting to stalk (or you can just ignore the actors and cruise around, exploring and searching for more interactions).

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After about an hour of exploring, I decided I was bored and wanted to be more engaged with the actors. I made a concerted effort to find and follow people who interested me. I was a big fan of murder scenes and large group interactions (like when all the characters come together mid-show for a dance party or towards the end when they preform the slow-motion dinner scene).

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citation Dinner scene, one of my favorites.

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The actors all seemed to be professional dancers; their movements were very fluid, acrobatic, often violent, and dance-oriented. One scene that I walked right in the middle of was a dance-off between a man and the maid using a door as a prop (as in, they danced with, on and around the door, throwing one another, using it as leverage). It was quite interesting, and I had to giggle when I sat down on a sofa, apparently in the actors’ space, and was gently pushed by the actor out of the way. He completely incorporated the move of softly shoving me into his choreography. It was impressive.

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And by the way, at any point in the night, you can take a break from the whole thing, remove your mask, and grab a drink at the bar on the second floor.

The experience was ultimately unique and enthralling.

Breakdance on the Subway

And we had a free show on the subway on our way to see Cat Power.

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