You may recall that a few months ago, I spent my first weekend in NYC to see Sleep No More. It’s crazy enough to go to a city for two days to see a play…once. Well, I’m here to tell you that I’ve now done it twice. If you remember from my first article, I’d always wanted to see the play Sleep No More. Although “play” is a bit of an understatement for what this show actually entails. It is set in a six-story hotel room and is 100% immersive. Every floor of the hotel has something new happening, and you as the audience are encouraged to explore everything that you can. I thought for sure that I would be seeing it only one time, but they did a special extension into September.Â
The first time I saw the show, the best way I could describe the way I felt was “haunted”. I wanted to see it again so bad. My friend I originally saw it with was in agreement. And, after talking my partner’s ear off about it, he expressed how much he wished he could have experienced it. So, when the opportunity came to spend another weekend with my friend at Barnard, how could I possibly turn it down? This time was especially exciting because my partner would be seeing it for the first time, as would my friend living in NYC.Â
This time around, before the show started, we spent a lot of time at The Met. It is an absolutely spectacular art museum. If you asked me what my favorite part was, it’s probably their hall of statues beneath a lovely glass ceiling. If you asked my partner, it would be the section on medieval knight armor (a section we check out at every art museum we’ve been to together). Navigation was only a bit of a challenge, and although we were almost late to things several times we managed to work out where we needed to go.Â
It’s still just as hard to describe Sleep No More. A mix of escape room, historical fantasy, Shakespeare tragedy, murder mystery, contemporary dance showcase, haunted house, speakeasy, and more–it defies simple categorization. I’m just so grateful I got to see it a second time, and that my partner could experience something I love so much. Unlike the first time I saw it, I don’t feel as haunted. I simply feel appreciative, like getting to say goodbye. I won’t be seeing the show again. However, the creators are putting on a new production, Life In Trust, once again immersive, and this time inspired by A Picture of Dorian Gray. Someday, NYC, I’ll be back again.