The Critically Acclaimed Disturbed series is Back at Oracle Productions
CHICAGO, September 22, 2008 – Opening October 10th, Oracle Productions submits their third installment of horrifying Halloween entertainment. The warped minds of Oracle’s artistic collective are at it again with Disturbed III, a fifteen minute theatre-of-horror performance in an annual series that is becoming a Halloween staple among Chicago thrill-seekers. It is an inverted haunted house; Oracle’s intimate space requires the audience to stay stationary, and it is infused with dramatic narrative. The action pops out of every unexpected corner in a twisted, confined environment. This year, Oracle unabashedly closes the gap between imagination and realism in the gallery of a brainsick artist who has turned human anatomy into a medium of gruesome, surgical sculpture.
Fifteen minute performances run every half our, 8PM to 11:30PM October 10-11, 16-19, 23-26, 28-11/01 at Oracle Theatre, 3809 N. Broadway. Tickets are $9. Visit www.oracletheatre.org for schedules and online ticket sales; phone and voicemail reservations are not accepted for this event. Press are invited to attend any performance. Email brad@oracletheatre.org for details.
Professional acting, complex multimedia sequences, dramatic narrative, and explicit themes set Disturbed III apart from traditional Halloween entertainment. To create the piece, Oracle company members and associates begin with the question, “What scares me?” Each year, a new source of fear is analyzed by the group, and the story evolves from each individual’s association to the subject. When their ideas meld, the fifteen minute performance piece becomes an instant hit with theatre audiences and horror fans alike. Artistic director Ben Fuchsen explains, “We cram a lot of frightening images, ideas, and startling moments into this modest storefront. Your worst nightmare makes you wake up in a panic-stricken sweat; it was so real and seemed like it was happening. That’s our goal with Disturbed.” Series creator Brad Jayhan-Little adds, “There is a difference between startle and scare. Haunted houses just startle people. DISTURBED will really scare them.”
This year, the media connoisseurs at Oracle have centered their production on a fear of inhuman creatures inspired by a range of experts including imagery by H. R. Giger and characters from H. G. Wells. Performed by two separate casts, Disturbed III is the story of a reclusive genius who has combined his passion for fine art sculpture with his ambitions in medical science. His greatest masterpiece is finally ready, and it is an evolutionary leap forward. The doors to his exhibition open promptly on the half hour, assuming his other studies do not decide to disrupt his presentation and attack his guests.
The production team is assembled entirely from Oracle company members. Of particular note are the applied and prosthetic make-up effects by Justin Warren, as well as prosthetic appendage designs by David O’Brien. Both artists have proposed ambitious designs rarely seen in Chicago storefront theatre. Using techniques and materials found in the movie industry as well as salvaged materials rebuilt to suit their needs, Oracle is exploring a new standard in production design. The details are slowly trickling out, but it has been confirmed that Mr. O’Brien is working on huge, functional, bio-mechanical wings. The icing on the cake: Aaron Covich, of Gimpydog Productions, has guaranteed to “astound you with a moving picture” somewhere along the way.
Both talented casts are directed by artistic director Ben Fuchsen (TAPE, SCOTLAND ROAD at Oracle), assisted by Max Truax (TERMEN VOX MACHINA at Oracle, NO DARKNESS ROUND MY STONE with Trap Door Theatre), and include company member David Boren and founding member Aaron Shapiro. Mr. Boren has performed in every Disturbed. “It’s my favorite time of year, my favorite project at Oracle, and it was a huge part of my decision to become a company member.” Along with Mr. Warren, he played an integral role in this year’s conceptual design. “Justin had this idea from watching an animated short from Canada, and we sat down and hashed out a skeleton story. We brought it to the group – and everyone got onboard. We never thought it would materialize. Now, it’s bigger than life.”
The fruits of this ambitious venture have twice proven Oracle’s success as a center for creative collaboration. Time Out Chicago called the original Disturbed, “crap-your-pants scary,” claiming, “…the storefront mind-fuck…makes for a wicked (Halloween) alternative.” Last year, Metromix Chicago described Disturbed II as “More bone chilling than any haunted spectacle.” Once again combining live action, multimedia, prosthetic make-up and special effects, Disturbed III will twist and gnarl the psyche of participants.
WARNING: Due to explicit imagery and violent action, Disturbed III is for adults 18 and older ONLY. More specifically, it is for participants who enjoy the once-a-year thrills of a horrifying haunted house. Fifteen minute performances run every half hour, 8PM to 11:30PM October 10-11, 16-19, 22-26, 28-11/01 at Oracle Theatre, 3809 N. Broadway. Tickets are $9. Visit www.oracletheatre.org for schedules and online ticket sales; phone and voicemail reservations are not accepted for this event.
Happy Halloween…
