Death. The dark. That scratching in the walls and that flicker of motion just at the edge of your sight. Universal, visceral fears that leave their traces on us all. Written, produced, and directed by Annie Lesser, in collaboration with Heidi Calloway and Teresa Loera, The Unknown seeks to explore those things and more, with the premise that what we don’t know is the scariest thing of all.
The Unknown is composed of a haunt experience and an immersive lounge. Together, the two form a cohesive event that somehow feels like a fantastic Halloween party.
Your night begins by meeting the doorkeeper (Kate Morgan), who spins a tale and opens the door to The Unknown. Walking through the doorway, you enter the lounge, where you can explore the different stations around the perimeter. They invite you to uncover the fears of others, shake your booty and discuss your most intimate fears with the guide at the silent disco (Robert Rancanco), or share a drink and a tale with the bartender (Claire Stephens) – and don’t forget to answer the phone! Each mini-experience is infused with folklore and urban legends, and the performers are so intimate and conversational that it felt as if I was just hanging with a group of old friends, sharing stories and playing spooky party games from our childhood.
The haunt itself is timed entry, and when the moment arrives, one of the performers (Genevieve Kennedy) leads me to a dark corner, and asked me how I reacted to unknown and frightening situations. She opens a door, and ushers me into a basement which is lined in curtains and contains a chair with ropes wrapped around the arms, a woman in a black mask , and a variety of other items. I sit in the chair, and when presented with the terms of my experience, consent to have my hands loosely bound to the chair. With that, the journey begins.
There were several extremely beautiful and evocative moments in the haunt that were genuinely creepy and unnerving. Throughout the experience, light and darkness shift, building a dream-like environment, where you are never quite sure what you were seeing. The Instigators of the Unknown (Sélynne Silver and Keight Leighn) deftly blend physical contact and overlapping whispers to build a fantastic sense of tension.
Unfortunately, for me, the atmosphere was broken by the performers continually asking for my direct consent to continue. While I appreciate the thought and concern behind the decision, I wish the questions had been themed to the experience and asked more subtly, or that they had simply chosen a safeword to allow consent to be revoked.
That minor quibble aside, I had a great time – Lesser has the gift of creating interactions that are natural and intimate, making the conversations easy. The Unknown celebrates the thinning of the veil, balancing spooky and fun in a way that brings to mind the true origins of Halloween, and the constantly shifting sands of our shared fears – though the stories may change over time, the terror of what lies in wait always remains.
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