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| Immersive hit THEN SHE FELL closes after 4444 performances | |
| Posted by: Official_Press_Release 12:28 pm EDT 08/10/20 | |
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| Third Rail Projects Immersive Hit THEN SHE FELL Closes after Seven and a Half Years And 4,444 Performances Top 10 of 2012. One of "this year's most memorable productions." "I felt like a bewildered but enchanted child, made privy to the arcana of another, darker world… Creepy and thrilling." — Ben Brantley, The New York Times "Wildly imaginative… wonderfully written, directed and choreographed." — The New Yorker "One of the most hauntingly lovely pieces of theater that I've ever experienced… The experience is deeply personal, re-creating the wonders and terrors of childhood with hallucinatory vividness." — Vogue Third Rail Projects' award-winning THEN SHE FELL, which suspended shows on March 12, 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, will permanently close the production, a show that set records for dance, immersive theater, and off-Broadway with 4,444 performances total, over the course of seven and a half years. Written, directed, designed and choreographed by Zach Morris, Tom Pearson and Jennine Willett in collaboration with the originating cast, THEN SHE FELL evoked the inner, psychological landscapes of Lewis Carroll (Alice's Adventures in Wonderland), Alice Liddell (the real Alice), and iconic characters from Carroll’s texts. Every aspect of each audience member’s experience was meticulously designed, from lush environments to the smells, tastes, and objects that they discovered as they explored the space, unravelling a narrative that balanced dream, reality, fact, and fiction. Morris, Pearson, and Willett, co-directors of Then She Fell and of Third Rail Projects, explained the decision to close the show, in a joint statement: “Like so many other businesses at this time, we are suffering the results of the pandemic shutdown, and we found ourselves unable to continue to pay the associated costs of holding a show in indefinite limbo without foreseeable income from ticket sales. Not wishing to compromise the design of the show or risk anyone’s health, we have made the difficult decision to end this amazing run at 4,444 performances. We hope someday there will be another way to share Then She Fell again with audiences. We recognize the impact of this decision is great and affects many: the directors, staff, the many performers, designers, vendors, and partners, our audiences, and the culture of immersive theater at large.” Then She Fell became a touchstone for many in the immersive theater movement that defined a decade. Its closure, like so many shows during this time, marks a cultural loss. Morris said, "I have been grappling to understand what the impact of this pandemic and its long-term economic fallout will be on the broader performance community. Across the country, we’re seeing regional stages and organizations, numerous projects and companies whose existence was already tenuous, close. We’re seeing artists leave the city. I’ve often imagined New York as sort of a hothouse, one that was able to give rise to a whole ecosystem of performance, from the radically avant-garde to totally mainstream endeavors and everything in between. I fear that what we are experiencing could be an extinction level event for many sectors of this ecology. Now more than ever, we need to invest in and support artists and creators, who are the natural resources that will make this ecosystem rebound.” Willett further commented, “Then She Fell exemplified a unique approach to crafting audience experiences that resonated with audiences and critics, and the recognition it received paved the way for opportunities for the directors and the company. The remarkable audience response and longevity of Then She Fell has had a profound impact on our work as multi-disciplinary artists and educators. It is heartbreaking to reconcile that this type of performance may not be possible for a while. With its small numbers and close proximity between performers and audience, it had empathy and intimacy at its core. It may take the longest for this type of work to have a safe return, but we imagine when it does, the need for this type of engagement between audience and performer will be even more profound and impactful.” Pearson added, “Limitations have always led to invention. It’s what caused us to re-define our formats in the wake of the 2008 market crash and led us to the creation of Then She Fell. That, plus a real desire to connect to audiences, that is what we continue to commit to and challenge ourselves with in order to create new projects for this new era. So, stand by.” Morris went on to say, “Then She Fell was an investigation of how one might design performance so that every audience member could be at the center of their own dream-like journey, creating poetic space where individuals could find themselves seen, heard, and integral to the action, and thereby find themselves reflected in it. Working with an extraordinary group of collaborators over the years, I am thankful to have been able to practice the notion of making art as an offering, to be reminded of the import of being able to create and hold space, and reaffirmed in the value of and transformative power of human-to-human connection.” Willett concurred, “We are so grateful for the successful run that afforded us the chance to share this work so widely, expanding our reach nationally and internationally and fostering rich collaborations with artists, communities, and industries that will continue into the future.” In conclusion, Pearson remarked, “Then She Fell was never a very profitable business model, but it provided an unusual level of stability for all of us in a very volatile field and created jobs opportunities for more than 90 performers and 70 staff over the course of its long run, not to mention the many neighborhood business relationships the show partnered with and supported. The show also put our artistic endeavors on the map in a much more substantive way and created a slew of new opportunities for us with commissions, consultations, workshops, and a consistent ability to branch out and experiment in other genres. It has been a calling card of sorts and a door opener to countless possibilities, but of all of the types of performance work that we create, Then She Fell has always been one of the most intimate and unique. We will miss it, but we are also energized to create new projects that help shape the current culture we find ourselves in, and help define what comes next, with brand new projects. Though we are closing Then She Fell, Third Rail Projects continues” THEN SHE FELL took place at The Kingsland Ward, with a first run at Arts@Renaissance in the outpatient wing on the campus of the former Greenpoint Hospital, and in several extensions of the show at St. Johns the Evangelical Lutheran Church’s former parochial school, a century-old institutional building in Williamsburg, Brooklyn where the action played out on 3 floors. The show was a fully immersive, multi-sensory experience in which only 15 audience members at a time explored a dreamlike world where every alcove, corner, and corridor was transformed into a lushly designed performance space. Inspired by the life and writings of Lewis Carroll, ‘Then She Fell’ offered an ‘Alice-like’ experience for audience members, as they explored rooms, often by themselves, discovering hidden scenes; encountering performers one-on-one; unearthing clues that illuminated a shrouded history; using skeleton keys to gain access to guarded secrets; and imbibing custom-designed elixirs. This genre-defining production of THEN SHE FELL was originally directed, designed, written and choreographed by Zach Morris, Tom Pearson, and Jennine Willett in collaboration with original cast members: Elizabeth Carena, Alberto Denis, Stacie C. Tobar, Rebekah Morin, Marissa Nielsen-Pincus, Tara O'Con, and Zoë Schieber. The production featured production design by Zach Morris, Tom Pearson, and Jennine Willett; original music & sound design by Sean Hagerty, with collaborating musicians Brian Olin and Isaiah Singer; costumes by Karen Young; lighting design by Kryssy Wright; production management by Debra Beardsley; technical direction by Carlton C. Ward. THEN SHE FELL at the time of closing was performed by the company: Erika Boudreau-Barbee, Andrew Broaddus, Quinten Burley, Cameron Michael Burns, Kyle Castillo, Devika Chandnani, Serena Chang, Andrew Chapman, Ross Daniel, Elisa Davis, Alberto Denis, Lena Engelstein, Justin Faircloth, Lindsey Ferguson, Julia Galanski, Gierre J. Godley, Jamie Graham, Carolyn Hall, Joseph Harris, Cody Hayman, Shiloh Hodges, Julia Jurgilewicz, Madison Krekel, Justin Lynch, Rebekah Morin, Lauren Muraski, Marissa Nielsen-Pincus, Tara O’Con, Jenna Purcell, Claudia Lynn Rightmire, Kelsey Rondeau, Julie Seal, Taylor Semin, Mackenzie Sherburne, Jessy Smith, Charly Wenzel, Clair Westby, and Lucy Wild. Supported by Kristen Carcone, Larry Daniels, Caitlin Dutton-Reaver, Mary Madsen, Edward Rice, Kim Savarino, Alex M. Schell, Bre Short, Jeff Sykes, and Niko Tsocanos. The production featured production management by Brittany Crowell; assistant direction by Marissa Nielsen-Pincus; stage management by Kristin Dwyer; assistant stage management by Kasey Blanco and Amy Castro; additional stage management by Stephanie Armitage, Leyla DeMolina, Caroline Labreche, Patrick St. John, and Terra Warman; production assistance by Shelby Gilberto and Kyla Kantor; rehearsal direction by Mary Madsen, Jenna Purcell, and Julie Seal; production maintenance by Kasey Blanco and Rebekah Morin; wardrobe by Kelsey Buerger; and beverage maintenance by Patrick St. John. In its formation and throughout its long-run and many extensions, we also acknowledge the contribution of Kristina Vnook as stage manager, and Julia Kelly, the company’s first rehearsal director for Then She Fell. Third Rail Projects has been hailed as one of the foremost companies creating site-specific, immersive, and experiential performance. The company is led by Artistic Directors Zach Morris (https://SpinCyclenyc.us2.list-manage.com/track/click?u=61180cceb17bf1abf1d15ee2d&id=5f03af4d33&e=abef2e891e) , Tom Pearson (https://SpinCyclenyc.us2.list-manage.com/track/click?u=61180cceb17bf1abf1d15ee2d&id=9f768d6145&e=abef2e891e) , and Jennine Willett (https://SpinCyclenyc.us2.list-manage.com/track/click?u=61180cceb17bf1abf1d15ee2d&id=ef83cd375c&e=abef2e891e) , and is dedicated to re-envisioning ways in which audiences engage with contemporary performance. Then She Fell (https://SpinCyclenyc.us2.list-manage.com/track/click?u=61180cceb17bf1abf1d15ee2d&id=04e91916e1&e=abef2e891e) , was named as one of the “Top Ten Shows of 2012” by Ben Brantley of The New York Times and acclaimed as one of the best theater experiences of 2013 by Vogue. The artistic directors have made work in New York and nationally since 2000 with projects including Ghost Light at Lincoln Center Theater, the immersive theater hit The Grand Paradise in Brooklyn, Sweet & Lucky with Denver Center for the Performing Arts, Ikaros with La Jolla Playhouse in San Diego,and Learning Curve in Chicago with Albany Park Theater Project, as well as internationally through the Global Performance Studio (GPS), which combines the company’s creative and educational offerings through a program of cultural listening and exchange. Third Rail Projects and its directors has been the recipients of several prestigious awards, including: two New York Dance and Performance (Bessie) Awards; a Chita Rivera Award for Choreography; a Drama Desk Awards Nomination for Unique Theatrical Experience; several fellowship awards including two CEC Artslink Back Apartment Residencies (Russia); a Theater Fellowship from the Bogliasco Foundation (Italy); an IllumiNation Award from the Ford Foundation and National Museum of the American Indian; and more. Third Rail Projects has also been recognized as part of the creative team of the Emmy Award-winning virtual reality adaptation of Neil Gaiman's Wolves in the Walls. In 2016, the artistic directors were named among the 100 most influential people in Brooklyn Culture by Brooklyn Magazine. Visit thirdrailprojects.com (https://SpinCyclenyc.us2.list-manage.com/track/click?u=61180cceb17bf1abf1d15ee2d&id=408886c4e3&e=abef2e891e) to learn more. ### Then She Fell was made possible, in part, with support from Arts@Renaissance and St. Nicks Alliance; The Brooklyn Community Foundation; New York City Council Member Diana Reyna; Official Wine Sponsor, Macari Wines; Materials for the Arts/New York City Department of Cultural Affairs and Department of Sanitation; T. Edward Wines; Groundworks Inc.; Beverage Consultant Sarah Sutel, Mixologist Kathy Hubler, Chefs Megan Johnson and Leigh Friend (Casellula); New York Costumes; The [QuA2D] Art Mill Residency in Jeffersonville, NY provided by Daniel Castellanos & John Wenk; NYC Dance Response Fund, a program of Dance/NYC established by the Mertz Gilmore Foundation; the Lutheran Church of St. John, the Evangelist and Pastor Jonathan Priest; Third Rail's fiscal sponsor Fractured Atlas; and by Third Rail Projects, with support from individual and institutional donors, and volunteers. Third Rail Projects also extends its sincerest gratitude to Arts Brookfield for its significant support throughout the development of Then She Fell. |
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| I saw it in 2016... | |
| Posted by: theaterbear 09:36 pm EDT 08/11/20 | |
| In reply to: Immersive hit THEN SHE FELL closes after 4444 performances - Official_Press_Release 12:28 pm EDT 08/10/20 | |
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| and found it fascinating. The physical work, the way it used the space and the timing of everything was pretty incredible. There were moments so surreal that I started to question what was happening. The mirror exercise with multiple Alice's was extraordinary. | |
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| re: Immersive hit THEN SHE FELL closes after 4444 performances | |
| Posted by: NewtonUK 06:34 pm EDT 08/10/20 | |
| In reply to: Immersive hit THEN SHE FELL closes after 4444 performances - Official_Press_Release 12:28 pm EDT 08/10/20 | |
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| I see almost everything, and know about virtually everything. 4,444 performances and this is the first I ever heard of this show. | |
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| re: Immersive hit THEN SHE FELL closes after 4444 performances | |
| Posted by: StageLover 04:30 pm EDT 08/11/20 | |
| In reply to: re: Immersive hit THEN SHE FELL closes after 4444 performances - NewtonUK 06:34 pm EDT 08/10/20 | |
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| I'm with you; never heard of it! | |
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| re: Immersive hit THEN SHE FELL closes after 4444 performances | |
| Last Edit: Singapore/Fling 08:28 pm EDT 08/10/20 | |
| Posted by: Singapore/Fling 08:27 pm EDT 08/10/20 | |
| In reply to: re: Immersive hit THEN SHE FELL closes after 4444 performances - NewtonUK 06:34 pm EDT 08/10/20 | |
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| Well, anybody who claims to know about virtually everything has no way of actually measuring if that is true, because you don't know what you don't know. You know (at best) virtually everything that you think is worth knowing, which is not remotely the same thing. | |
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| re: Immersive hit THEN SHE FELL closes after 4444 performances | |
| Posted by: whereismikeyfl 07:37 pm EDT 08/10/20 | |
| In reply to: re: Immersive hit THEN SHE FELL closes after 4444 performances - NewtonUK 06:34 pm EDT 08/10/20 | |
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| I suspect that you and other people here have read about the show...but just not in the last year or two. This thing ran for a LONG time and as with most long runs the press peaks and drops off. (I cannot even think how many years it has been since I read a story about Phantom or Lion King....and they have a lot more seats to sell than this show.) |
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| re: Immersive hit THEN SHE FELL closes after 4444 performances | |
| Posted by: ryhog 06:59 pm EDT 08/10/20 | |
| In reply to: re: Immersive hit THEN SHE FELL closes after 4444 performances - NewtonUK 06:34 pm EDT 08/10/20 | |
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| I can't explain that, but I also assume that, as I do, you pretty much read or at least skim the major media outlets every day/week/month. As noted, Then She Fell got pretty good coverage including a Brantley review. Did you go on a Buddhist retreat for some period of time? My guess is that you DID read about it, decided it was not for you, and moved on. Our brains only hold a certain volume of information that is not of use to us. | |
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| Poorly advertised to tourists at least. | |
| Posted by: dramedy 01:17 pm EDT 08/10/20 | |
| In reply to: Immersive hit THEN SHE FELL closes after 4444 performances - Official_Press_Release 12:28 pm EDT 08/10/20 | |
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| I’ve never heard of it. I go to nyc twice a year and do some offbroadway. Why had I never heard of this show until now? | |
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| You missed something extraordinary | |
| Posted by: nyhkguy 01:01 pm EDT 08/11/20 | |
| In reply to: Poorly advertised to tourists at least. - dramedy 01:17 pm EDT 08/10/20 | |
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| Given each performance had only 15 audience members, and most scenes were played in front of groupings of 4, 2 and in many cases just 1, it was an incredibly unique and intimate experience. To have an actor performing just for you felt very decadent. I hate audience participation but when it's just you and an actor, I was not self conscious the way I would be if it was in front of other audience members. I loved it so much I went again taking a friend, and the way the play is structured, you get a different combination of experiences each time. With the small audience size and terrific word of mouth, the show never had to advertise or discount; a few years ago tickets were in the $100 range and I would expect it was even higher by the time it closed. I think the show was such a huge cash cow for Third Rail that they have to consider bringing it back, especially if they can get a break on rent. I'm a little surprised the production has not been franchised out to some of the bigger, theatre cities like Chicago or London. |
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| Link | Youtube ad |
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| I’m guessing it is close the show to stop money flow | |
| Posted by: dramedy 01:51 pm EDT 08/11/20 | |
| In reply to: You missed something extraordinary - nyhkguy 01:01 pm EDT 08/11/20 | |
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| And reopen when things are back to normal in a year or two. | |
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| re: Poorly advertised to tourists at least. | |
| Posted by: NeoAdamite 06:31 am EDT 08/11/20 | |
| In reply to: Poorly advertised to tourists at least. - dramedy 01:17 pm EDT 08/10/20 | |
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| It was a Times Critic's Pick when it opened, but it was in a relatively inaccessible part of Brooklyn, so definitely not tourist fare. I don't know that there was any advertising at all after the first year. I saw it perhaps five years ago. It was about 45 minutes, so they did multiple shows each evening. Unlike SLEEP NO MORE, it was entirely guided (though one's guide kept changing). Overall I found it interesting but not exciting - I don't recall recommending it to friends. |
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| re: Poorly advertised to tourists at least. | |
| Posted by: Singapore/Fling 07:18 pm EDT 08/11/20 | |
| In reply to: re: Poorly advertised to tourists at least. - NeoAdamite 06:31 am EDT 08/11/20 | |
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| Relatively inaccessible? It was a block from the Grand Street L stop, which is about 15 minutes from Union Square. Definitely one of the more accessible parts of Brooklyn from Manhattan. | |
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| re: Poorly advertised to tourists at least. | |
| Posted by: AC126748 07:01 pm EDT 08/10/20 | |
| In reply to: Poorly advertised to tourists at least. - dramedy 01:17 pm EDT 08/10/20 | |
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| The show ran for almost 8 years and 4000+ performances, so I guess it did just fine finding its audience without your tourist dollars. | |
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| re: Poorly advertised to tourists at least. | |
| Last Edit: Ann 02:32 pm EDT 08/10/20 | |
| Posted by: Ann 02:31 pm EDT 08/10/20 | |
| In reply to: Poorly advertised to tourists at least. - dramedy 01:17 pm EDT 08/10/20 | |
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| Really? I thought you had commented when Then She Fell and Sleep No More were compared/discussed. | |
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| The halal cart near my work is also poorly-advertised to tourists. What a failure! | |
| Posted by: earlybird 02:16 pm EDT 08/10/20 | |
| In reply to: Poorly advertised to tourists at least. - dramedy 01:17 pm EDT 08/10/20 | |
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| He's been there for years, and he always has a long line. But not a single one of them is a tourist! He should just close up shop now. | |
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| Not funny | |
| Posted by: dramedy 05:09 pm EDT 08/10/20 | |
| In reply to: The halal cart near my work is also poorly-advertised to tourists. What a failure! - earlybird 02:16 pm EDT 08/10/20 | |
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| Sometimes it’s better not to post if you can’t contribute something meaningful to the discussion. | |
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| re: Not funny | |
| Posted by: earlybird 10:43 am EDT 08/11/20 | |
| In reply to: Not funny - dramedy 05:09 pm EDT 08/10/20 | |
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| I apologize for hurting you with my tone and/phrasing, but I don’t agree that it didn’t add value. My post was meant to draw a comparison to the many, many business models that don’t rely on tourist advertising, across all industries. I chose to phrase it as a joke because to me, the hyperbolic extreme of the joke matched the extreme degree of illogic in your criticism of the production’s model. But you’re right that I could have, and should have communicated my disagreement in a kinder way. I apologize. |
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| I am not trying to be presumptuous... | |
| Posted by: ryhog 06:28 pm EDT 08/10/20 | |
| In reply to: Not funny - dramedy 05:09 pm EDT 08/10/20 | |
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| when I say that this was not for you, for any number of reasons. | |
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| re: Not funny | |
| Posted by: PlazaBoy 05:48 pm EDT 08/10/20 | |
| In reply to: Not funny - dramedy 05:09 pm EDT 08/10/20 | |
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| Agreed. I don't understand posts that don't advance the conversation. Of course, I'm no fan of sarcasm/snark so that may shape my perspective. | |
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| re: Not funny | |
| Posted by: Chromolume 07:36 pm EDT 08/10/20 | |
| In reply to: re: Not funny - PlazaBoy 05:48 pm EDT 08/10/20 | |
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| Of course, none of these posts are advancing the conversation. ;-) | |
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| Funny is a matter of opinion... | |
| Posted by: HadriansMall 05:16 pm EDT 08/10/20 | |
| In reply to: Not funny - dramedy 05:09 pm EDT 08/10/20 | |
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| I found it funny. Mean-spirited, yes, but still got a chuckle out of me. | |
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| It wasn't poorly advertised. | |
| Posted by: dlevy 02:00 pm EDT 08/10/20 | |
| In reply to: Poorly advertised to tourists at least. - dramedy 01:17 pm EDT 08/10/20 | |
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| They didn't need advertising, so they didn't waste money on it. That doesn't mean it was poorly advertised. The world of New York independent theater does not revolve around tourist dollars or eyeballs. | |
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| re: Poorly advertised to tourists at least. | |
| Last Edit: whereismikeyfl 01:50 pm EDT 08/10/20 | |
| Posted by: whereismikeyfl 01:46 pm EDT 08/10/20 | |
| In reply to: Poorly advertised to tourists at least. - dramedy 01:17 pm EDT 08/10/20 | |
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| They did not do a lot of advertising, but Then She Fell got a lot of press. The Times, the New Yorker, Howlround, etc. Probably got more attention than most off-off-Broadway. Even Radiohole and the Brick seemed to get less attention than Then She Fell. And they really did not have to work that hard to get audiences. The word of mouth was always good. |
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| re: Poorly advertised to tourists at least. | |
| Posted by: larry13 01:30 pm EDT 08/10/20 | |
| In reply to: Poorly advertised to tourists at least. - dramedy 01:17 pm EDT 08/10/20 | |
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| I live in NYC and see a lot offbroadway and had never heard of it. I'm also struck by the numbers: they did close to 600 performances a year?? | |
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| re: Poorly advertised to tourists at least. | |
| Posted by: davei2000 01:52 pm EDT 08/10/20 | |
| In reply to: re: Poorly advertised to tourists at least. - larry13 01:30 pm EDT 08/10/20 | |
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| Audiences of no more than 15 at a time. In Brooklyn, and not a well-traveled area. It did quite well without advertising. Brantley reviewed it...Like Sleep No More on a tinier scale... | |
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| That’s probably too immersive for me | |
| Posted by: dramedy 05:06 pm EDT 08/10/20 | |
| In reply to: re: Poorly advertised to tourists at least. - davei2000 01:52 pm EDT 08/10/20 | |
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| 15 people max. At least sleep no more is a few hundred so one can choose how interactive Or just voyeuristic one wants to be. | |
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