This L.A. play wants you to feel the story viscerally — by keeping you blindfolded

I americium blindfolded and seated successful a vintage armchair acceptable successful the halfway of a darkened, red-lit country with Gothic accents. An histrion is performing nearby. I perceive their voice, but cannot, of course, spot them. I abruptly outpouring upward successful my seat, alarmed astatine the interaction of immoderate benignant of cloth — oregon possibly a feather? — crossed my ankles.

I’ll ne'er beryllium wholly sure. For wearing the tiny veil crossed my eyes was a request to enactment successful “Poe: Pulse & Pendulum,” the debut offering from caller troupe Theatre Obscura L.A. The company’s archetypal show contains 2 one-act plays, modern interpretations of Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Pit and the Pendulum” and “The Tell-Tale Heart.”

While the stories are acquainted to many, Theatre Obscura increases the levels of discomfort. In this room, I americium astatine times unsettled, astatine erstwhile tracking the movements of the actors portion attempting to stay hyper alert of immoderate abrupt interaction oregon scent. “The Pit and the Pendulum,” the archetypal fractional of the program, translates particularly good to this setting, its acheronian consciousness of demented confinement keeping my nerves connected precocious alert.

Conjuring specified a authorities of anxiousness was the point.

“If you instrumentality the ocular away, it’s going to marque you consciousness uneasy,” says Paul Millet, who devised the concept.

There are leap scares. Downtown lawsuit abstraction the Count’s Den has been outfitted with astir 50 speakers for the Obscura shows, which tally done April 12. Some are disposable earlier 1 puts connected the blindfold. Many, though, are hidden nether seats oregon couches, arsenic the audio volition way the actors astir the room, oregon possibly a abrupt clang oregon doorway opening volition person maine jolting my attraction elsewhere.

“The Pit and the Pendulum” is simply a communicative of torture, and arsenic the narrator, present played by Melissa Lugo, desperately speaks of a leaf swinging above, actors volition instrumentality us, timing their waves with each swoosh of the audio. I was prepared for that one, arsenic a chap theatergoer adjacent fto retired a brushed yelp erstwhile the unseen gestures archetypal arrived supra their head.

For many, show is the astir coveted sense. “If you instrumentality that away, you’re already people uncomfortable,” Millet says. “So we thin into that. We cognize you’re going to beryllium uncomfortable. We cognize this is not the norm. But get connected that thrust with us. Be consenting to beryllium uncomfortable. Discomfort, I think, helps to heighten the experience, and ideally let it to trigger the affectional reactions that the communicative does.”

“Poe: Pulse & Pendulum” is 2 one-act, audio-focused performances of Edgar Allan Poe stories.

(Joe Camareno / Theatre Obscura)

Still, interaction is constricted successful the show. Occasionally a rattling of a chair, but small more. The fluttering I felt adjacent my ankles was to mimic the sensation of a moving critter. The troupe volition inquire for assemblage consent, and participants tin opt out. While I went successful wondering if “Poe: Pulse & Pendulum” would question to callback much utmost haunt experiences with lengthy waivers, Millet wanted to support it airy — an audio play, primarily, with conscionable a fewer in-the-flesh signals.

“We privation radical to consciousness unease, but I don’t privation anyone taken retired of the communicative due to the fact that a bound oregon enactment was crossed,” Millet says.

Scent, too, is utilized with restraint. There are moments erstwhile guests volition get a whiff of a fragrance that pairs with the storyline. Millet considers the archetypal tally of Theatre Obscure to beryllium an experimentation successful however overmuch interaction and scent audiences whitethorn privation to endure. Smell, helium says, is tricky, arsenic the aroma whitethorn linger and go a distraction.

Millet has been honing the conception since 2023. Previously, helium was portion of the squad down Wicked Lit, which ended successful 2019 aft moving for a fig of years astatine unsocial locations specified arsenic Altadena’s Mountain View Mausoleum. Those immersive performances would diagnostic casts and guests walking the venue. Theatre Obscura, however, is afloat seated.

“Poe: Pulse & Pendulum” focuses connected the fearfulness that thing whitethorn hap to america erstwhile stripped of sight.

(Joe Camareno / Theatre Obscura)

And portion the stories of Poe lend themselves to the Halloween season, spooky events progressively hap twelvemonth round. Long-running accumulation “The Willows” is acceptable to wrapper successful aboriginal April, and “Monster Party,” a play portion that takes guests to a devilishly extravagant cocktail party, is re-launching successful mid-April. Millet, a longtime theatre shaper who has a time occupation successful tv editing, is hoping to basal retired by avoiding “the glut” of fearfulness events that hap each September and October.

Theatre Obscura whitethorn look challenges, namely persuading imaginable guests that “The Pit and the Pendulum” is much than simply a unrecorded speechmaking with audio effects.

“You tin consciousness the question of the characters astir you,” Millet says. “You’re successful the situation with the communicative arsenic it unfolds. You tin acquisition it connected a much visceral level.”

Blindfolded, I felt Theatre Obscura was mostly playing disconnected our fears alternatively than giving successful to them, mostly keying successful connected our anticipation that thing whitethorn hap to america erstwhile stripped of sight. Lugo successful overmuch of “The Pit and the Pendulum” circles guests, who are seated sporadically astir the room, allowing each of america to ideate however adjacent oregon acold we whitethorn beryllium from the spread we are told is astatine its center. Each amusement deals with claustrophobia successful immoderate way, either of a space, oregon of a mind.

“The Tell-Tale Heart” is louder, much crowded. The sounds of crashing solid and creaky floorboards had my caput moving overtime to gully a floorplan, lone to past person it distorted erstwhile actors would unexpectedly susurration successful some of my ears to bring distant the protagonist’s nightmares. While I expected Theatre Obscura to beryllium somewhat much assertive successful its uses of interaction and scent, it’s a amusement that asks america to unrecorded successful our heads, and to beryllium successful our ain feeling of trepidation.

“I was intrigued,” Millet says, “with truly trying to prosecute the audience’s imagination.”