If the great surrealist painter Salvador Dalí and iconic LSD proponent Timothy Leary designed an after-hours club during the height of a pandemic in Cabaret-era Berlin, it would definitely look something like Eschaton.
Its title comes from the Greek for (roughly) the end of history, or the last event in some higher power’s divine plan. Eschaton didn’t start out as a virtual show, with audiences meandering via mouse clicks through the tantalizing shenanigans of a labyrinthine club where a weird new adventure lies within each of a dozen or so Zoom rooms.
“As an audience member, I’m somebody who finds it nerve-wracking when someone in the show calls on you. So it’s important to me that our audience knows they are in good hands. You can’t be just like ‘Where are you from? OK, cool,’ and then it’s like all the air gets sucked out of the room because nobody knows what to say next.
Along with Blum and Whitehead, Grayson was joined in devising the piece with ensemble members in London, Berlin, New York City, and Tennessee. Audience members have visited Eschaton from as far away as Tokyo.
Finding that energy was crucial to Grayson’s artistic survival over the long lockdown. After Eschaton’s first show, they packed up their laptop, cameras, and sound system and descended from the attic back to the living quarters.
Next dates for Eschaton are TBA. See info.eschaton.club for updated info.
