Do you feel that in the air? The dreadful joy of October is here. The air gets crisp, the ghouls take over, and Halloween is there serving as the light at the end of the tunnel… or month. Yes people! We have entered the spookiest season, where you are bombarded with plenty of bloody options to have some macabre good times. I love this month. The creativity that it brings out of the artistic folks is incredible, a treat to the spectator. And I have to say I started my month very well when last Thursday, I had the privilege to attend Radiotheatre’s THE 7th Annual H.P.LOVECRAFT FESTIVAL at the Kraine Theatre.
The award winning show which has been a staple of the theatrical horror season in NYC, has come back, and it is a delight to sit through. The people from Radiotheatre have curated an amazing set of plays based on the work of horror master H.P Lovecraft. Canon works like The Call of Cthulhu and cult-favorite Re-Animator are part of their lineup this year, as well as his less known work like He. It’s from the latter group that opening night bestowed upon us the magnificent evil that Lovecraft’s words unleash on you. And the choices were very satisfactory.
First we had the horrifying YIG, about a snake tribal god that seeks revenge upon those that hurt its children. That was followed by Hypnos, in which a woman in an asylum recounts the events that brought her there. And to cap the night off they finished with The Horrors At Red Hook, where a detective investigates a cult that had moved to the Red Hook area. All these plots followed one person on their way to madness. Each one had a great voice behind it, creating the atmosphere, living the world right in front of us and ultimately going down the downward spiral into lunacy. Major props to Frank Zilinyi, Chloe Lewis, and Dan Bianchi for being able to construct a stage with their voices. To help the performance, the technical crew added some fun effects like fog machines, strobe lights, the sounds of nightmares, etc… just so you can feel the fear these characters are in. And it works. It all worked! The art of radio theatre is a hard one to put up. Any mistake and the whole thing can look like a bad reading with effects. Don’t worry about that here. This should be a template on how to do this kind of show.
I’m a huge fan of horror, so it’s needless to say I’m very critical of it. Many genre events, specifically horror theater, fail to capture the imagination as much as literary work or films. Not this one. This one is a unique experience which no HP Lovecraft fan should miss. Actually scratch that. No horror fanatic should miss! You still have this weekend to catch it. Honestly, it’s the best way to start Halloween season. Check http://www.radiotheatrenyc.com for more information, and make sure you see the line up.
Out of four stars:
Twisted Talk: Are you getting excited for Halloween? How are you going to celebrate throughout the month? Discuss below!
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