The Spirits’ Speakeasy Offers Spooky Fun This Halloween
When Miss Margery collapsed while channeling messages from the other side, the audience was so engrossed many gasped with concern. Locked in one of Henry Houdini’s escape boxes, with head and fingers peeking out to prove there was no trickery afoot, she continued to receive messages from her other-worldly contacts until passing out from exertion. It was quite a scene, then, as a panicked Houdini unlocked the contraption and led her to a back area to recover. The evening’s MC, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, resumed his hosting duties and updated the quieted crowd on Miss Margery’s condition.
This was The Spirits’ Speakeasy, a delightfully inventive, and creative portrayal of what it may have been like in the early days of spiritualism when the mediums of the day held regular seances, gave lively performances with great fanfare, and occasionally were challenged to prove their spiritual gifts. The setting for the theatrics was the perfectly chosen Sincerely, Ophelia, the Second Avenue speakeasy, just up the street from Union Square.
The action takes place throughout the speakeasy’s three intimate and darkened rooms where guests are free to wander and have up-close access to the seances, mind readings, card tricks, or switch gears and step up to the bar for a specialty cocktail. Before the action commenced, however, Sir Arthur greeted the standing room only group and explained the intent of the evening, and with walking stick and overgrown mustache, he was the perfect choice to set the scene and time period.
Krystyn Lambert as Miss Margery
The evening’s fun includes illusions and psychic readings from genuine mediums, magicians and mentalists who take turns throughout the night and rotate in and out of the rooms. Krystyn Lambert, Patrick Terry, Lee Allen Barrett have backgrounds in magic and illusion; Brian Silliman is debonair as Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, and Rori Nogee as Bess Houdini, performs a rollicking selection of old-timey numbers with comedic flair. At one point, due to too many swigs from her ever-so-constant flask, she has trouble holding up the microphone and needed assistance from a member of the audience.
Patrick Terry as Henry Houdini
The Spirts’ Speakeasy is a production of Broadway Murder Mysteries, an immersive live entertainment company founded in March 2020 when many Broadway performers, writers, and talent were out of work. Because of this shut down, the production company was formed to keep these players working while creating new and inventive shows. Says Founder Monica Hammond of The Spirits’ Speakeasy, “Based on the true story of Houdini and Margery’s rivalry during the height of the spiritualist movement, we’re melding the past and present into an unbelievable evening of connection to both the living and the dead. This experience is designed for theater, magic and nightlife fans who love spooky season and want a truly exceptional night out with the best talent that NYC has to offer.”
Prepare to be enveloped in an atmosphere reminiscent of the golden age of spiritualism with flickering lights and creepy décor, and where guests are invited to become part of the act. The Spirits’ Speakeasy offers a meticulously curated selection of period-specific cocktails, designed to enhance the otherworldly ambiance of the evening.
Sincerely, Ophelia is located at 221 2nd Ave Suite B, New York City, and the show is scheduled for a limited run until November 3rd, 2024. Go to the Spirits Speakeasy website for more information.
Photo Credit: The Spirits Speakeasy
