What I liked
The lighting, improv, and horror elements were my favorite parts. I really enjoyed Alex Kerns awkwardness and ability to make a sold-out room feel small. I liked how she interacted with a lot of people throughout the show; as it made it so that there was plenty of room for hilarity. She improvised a lot and thus I was never sure where the show was going to go. Thus, I liked the surprise of it all. In general the idea of a “party” made this show a good vehicle for exploring very interesting themes of isolation and self-consciousness. The lighting only further added to those elements, as the lights really beamed in on Cynthia when she was at her most self-conscious. But what REALLY fascinated me was the last 1/3 of it where it becomes sorta horror theater. The use of lighting and jittery movements is what pushed this show as a must see for me. I loved how the lighting got more and more prominent as the show went on and started highlighting the quiet crazy of Alex Kern’s character.
What I didn't like
This is more of a personal preference but while I enjoyed the show as a whole. The last 1/3 is directly up my alley. And I frankly would’ve preferred more creepy elements like that for the majority of the show. Not to say the first 2/3 were bad, I just really enjoyed the last 1/3 alot. The lighting was phenomenal and her weirdness really made this feel like something out of a horror movie that I was not expecting.
But again that’s just personal preference. The show overall is great.
My overall impression
A dinner party that slowly descends into madness. Alex Kern as Cynthia is such a fascinating character study into the mind of a hostess with clearly alot on her plate. She is funny, vulnerable, and so incredibly talented. She had full control of the room (which is impressive given that it was sold-out). Her audience interactions were hilarious and weird. Mildly uncomfortable but still fun to watch. By far, however, my favorite part was the descent into madness. I really enjoyed the use of lighting and improv in this show. The slow unhinged-ness of it all is exactly why this is a must see. What starts off as a simple bit of awkwardness slowly transforms into horror theater.
