Masque Macabre Brings a Poe-Inspired Immersive Horror Party to Chicago

It’s no secret that Los Angeles has become the central hub for immersive theater, with a unique concentration on horror-centric productions. While most cities can’t compete with the sheer number of immersive shows in the LA area, Chicago is emerging as an immersive destination, with more and more quality content, now including Masque Macabre.

Haunting sat down with Straw Dog Theater to discuss their upcoming show Masque Macabre, as well as the expansion of the immersive community in their home-base. We were fortunate enough to have input from the following members: Michael Dailey (Co-Artistic Director of Strawdog Theatre Company), Anderson Lawfer (Co-Artistic Director of Strawdog Theatre Company & Co-Director of Masque Macabre), Leah Barish (Managing Director, Strawdog Theatre Company, Eli Newell (Co-Director of Masque Macabre), and Janet Howe (Co-Director of Masque Macabre).

Who is Strawdog?

Strawdog Theatre Company is “committed to ensemble acting and an immersive design approach, offering Chicago the premiere storefront theatre experience. We develop new work, re-imagine classic plays, explore new fusions of music and theatre, ask provocative questions and deliver the unexpected to our audience.” With a huge and incredibly experienced production team, Strawdog brings three lighting designers, three directors, a four-person violence and intimacy team, five people on the stage management team, and many others to make this project happen. Their past productions include shows such as Damascus, Distance, and The Night Season.

Terry Bell and Andrew Bailes in a publicity image for Strawdog Theatre Company’s world premiere of MASQUE MACABRE. Photo by Jon Cole.

Masque Macabre

About a year ago Strawdog decided that they wanted to start exploring some new exciting work. Most of their creative team are fans of haunted houses, but this style does not mesh well with the values set forth by the company. “We had to find a piece and format that were true to our brand but also pushed us in a new direction. When we knew it was going to be an exploratory immersive show, we started searching for people who a) had experience working in that field and b) seemed to be fearless and willing to spend the better portion of a year working on it,” explains Lawfer.

The new experience they decided upon was an exploratory immersive horror experience entitled Masque Macabre, which “asks guests to confront their demons” in a 5000 square foot space. Macabre sets fourteen “storylines into motion [where] the audience will get to curate their own experience as they travel through the space”. This production treats audience members as a guest of a party (bars included), where “there will always be guests and characters within earshot”. It is open-world, providing audiences with the agency to curate their own narrative. Dailey admits, “you could see the show fifty times and each experience would be slightly different.”

Inspirations

“We are all interested in different styles of horror, obviously 19th-century American horror was a big similarity we all shared, but there’s also Lovecraft, Gilman, and tons of modern stuff we liked as well. In terms of films, we speak about Rosemary’s Baby, Carrie, Last House on the Left, and Amityville as inspirations.”

Poe is also a major interest for the creative team. While they can’t reveal much, as to not spoil the experience, Lawfer explains, “We incorporate a TON of Poe into this show. You should be on the lookout for The Cask of Amontillado, Berenice, and The Masque of the Red Death, plus many, many more”! Howe mentions that despite this, “this is not a classic Gothic feeling Poe experience. It is rugged, raw, and threatens to go off the rails at any moment. We chose to make Masque Macabre contemporary based on the architecture of the space. It would be a stretch to ask an audience to believe they had suddenly entered a secluded castle or a dilapidated mansion, instead, we took ownership of the space putting the play in 2018 Chicago”.

Horror, Gore, and Violence, But Not a Haunted House

Anderson Lawfer, Co-Artistic Director of Strawdog Theatre Company & Co-Director of Masque Macabre, shares his excitement for the growth of immersive horror in Chicago. While he’s a fan of fellow Chicago immersive experiences such as extreme haunt Miasma, and is anticipating attending the upcoming Rough House Production’s Walls of Harrow House, Lawfer notes Macabre isn’t similar to either. “What makes ours different is the connection we will have with the audience”.

“This isn’t a promenade-style Haunted House” he explains. While describing Macabre as a “haunted house” wouldn’t be accurate, elements such a blood, gore, and violence are definitely reoccurring themes, even though jump scares are notably missing. Lawfer adds that the” [Masque Macabre team] knew that in an open world style show we couldn’t use jump scares as a device. Instead, we spent time developing characters whose descent into chaos you will care about watching”.

Shaina Schrooten and Brian Hinkle in a publicity image for Strawdog Theatre Company’s world premiere of MASQUE MACABRE. Photo by Jon Cole.

Pre-Show Immersion

The Straw Dog Theater crew wants audiences to feel immersed in the world of Masque Macabre even before they show up at the theatre for their 70-minute experience. “The “Survive” page of our website (and the accounts you can explore there) are an extension of this. The depth of the social media world interacting with the play world continues to evolve as the script evolves” explains Leah Barish, Managing Director, Strawdog Theatre Company.

“Leading up to the party, Youtuber William Wilson (@WilliamsRavens) will be dropping vlogs that will share include important details about the event and clues about how to “get invited.” We’ve even done a contest through his Twitter to give away tickets to the show! He’s also blowing up twitter and insta all day every day. Annabel (@TheAnnabelLeeEx) is the event planner behind Masque Macabre and will be tweeting more and more as we get closer, so you can follow her to see how the event eventually comes together.”

She adds, “I think it would be particularly fun for audiences to follow these characters on social media before they see the show (all feeds are spoiler free!). However, [she] also know[s] that when [she] sees a play or a movie or read a book that [she] love, [she] want more when it’s over! So diving into the rich social media lives of these characters after you experience the production could be a really fun way extend the experience for yourself”.

Physical and Emotional Intensity

So, what should you expect as far as intensity and physical interaction? Janet Howe, Co-Director of Masque Macabre, explains that “[the show] does not require interactivity or contact with its audience. Audience members may be invited for an interactive experience that might involve light contact but they are entirely optional. Everything in the show is an invitation and the audience is never forced to do anything”. This isn’t to suggest that the show isn’t immersive as there are some “magical and delightfully rewarding interactive portions for those who enjoy feeling a part of the action”.

As for emotional intensity, or themes that may make some uncomfortable, audience members can find a full list of content warnings at masquemacabre.com. In addition to listing emotional triggers, it should also be noted that the site mentions that all but one small room is wheelchair accessible. Howe shares that “a personal interest of [hers] is in accessibility in immersive works. It would be incredible to see Chicago really lead the charge in accessible immersive theatre”.

The Future of Immersive Theater in Chicago

Howe would love to see more immersive works in Chicago overall, as it is not currently very widespread, and she would love to see growth in the community. She would specifically be interested in seeing more audience-driven work. She muses that “much of what [she has] encountered has the audience as non-essential spectator and [she’d] be curious to see what else we can do. A personal interest of [hers] is inaccessibility in immersive works. It would be incredible to see Chicago really lead the charge in accessible immersive theatre”.

Eli Newell, Co-Director of Masque Macabre, ruminates that “There is the expression ‘walk a mile in another’s shoes’— from where I’m standing, nothing sparks empathy quite like the opportunity to literally walk the path of an individual as they work through fear, joy, rage, grief, love and even the mundane”. Within the Chicago immersive scene, the goal for the team behind Masque Macabre in their current and future projects is to always place that empathy at the center of the process: to tell human stories that resonate unexpectedly through these relatively young applications of forms. Michael Daily adds “The immersive scene in Chicago is young and growing and we are adding to that growth by applying our 31 years of production experience to the genre”.

Final Thoughts

Masque Macabre aims for people who love horror “to experience something with a bit more character and story substance”. And above all, they “want people to have a great time out with their friends and spend the night after they leave talking and laughing and sharing their different experiences, and then [they} want them to come back again.

Purchase your ticket to Masque Macabre here, and dive into the characters social channels here and with the hashtag #PartyOrDie.

*** Featured Image: Patrick Kelly, Laura Nelson and Michaela Petro in a publicity image for Strawdog Theatre Company’s world premiere of MASQUE MACABRE. Photo by Jon Cole.

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