It's like listening to radio in the dark. You sit in blackness at the Odyssey Theater while various short plays take place on an equally unlit stage. Sound is the sense that takes over; the actors are onstage but unseen as they move about and speak their lines. Music and sound effects are heard from time to time. It's all very spooky, experimental and heartfelt (the actors worked for months on Theater in the Dark, and even created some of the stygian skits.
It turns out that the concept was borrowed from London's Battersea Arts Centre, which in 1998 did a popular summer season in the dark. There is also a company in L.A., NoHo's Zombie Joe's Underground, that does black horror shows with shock lighting effects. Who knew that a total eclipse could have theatrical applications?
Sixteen plays were performed at the Odyssey: some of them featured as many as eleven actors (Fallen Beast, A Voice in the Darkness); others were solo pieces, brief stories, really (e.g. Beth Hogan telling why she likes to shop at Whole Foods). There are several ghoulish skits, mostly involving cannibalism and gluttony; but there are also unexpected changes of pace, such as a Sufi parable, The Ants, written by Sossi; and a mini-bio of Nijinsky. Which in turn leads nicely to the concluding number, “Dancing in the Dark,” performed by Jack Axelrod.
Did I enjoy the evening? The answer is yes, but not so much that I'd want to see -- oops, listen to -- Part Two.
