The Reception

Playing with the convention of the living room party, THE RECEPTION begins as a humor-filled, raucous celebration. Dressed to the nines, five performers dance, eat, drink, sing, tell stories, gossip and carry on. But something is not quite right and slowly, through elements of horror and suspense, repetition, detailed social choreography and a remarkably transformative set, a haunting and unanchored world is uncovered where the partygoers cling to each other like survivors of a shipwreck. THE RECEPTION delves into the dark underbelly of the social and how we survive when a world begins to crumble.

Co-creation: Sean Donovan and Sebastián Calderón Bentin
Direction: Sebastián Calderón Bentin and Sean Donovan
Choreography: Sean Donovan, in collaboration with the company of performers
Performers: Jane Comfort, Leslie Cuyjet, Sean Donovan, Hannah Heller, Ishmael Houston-Jones
Video Designer: Austin Switser
Sound: Brandon Wolcott and Tyler Kieffer
Set Design: Neal Wilkinson
Costume Design: Felix Ciprián
Lighting Design: Mandy Ringger

“This is the kind of party in which everything seems sociable and shallow until someone starts screaming: a bit of Buñuel with a timely dash of “Twin Peaks.” – The New Yorker

“Exhilaratingly funny and utterly bizarre…beautifully precise. This is one party you are not going to want to miss.” – This Week in NY

“The Reception, all about the feeling of a party, is a bit of comedy, a bit of structuralist pornography, and a bit of divine intervention — clearly some higher power had a part in this process and at their rehearsals.” –  StageBuddy.com

“It is all achieved with subtle grace by the performers and a superb technical team that makes all the dramatic transformations memorable. This one deserves to be seen again, for a longer run.” –  TheaterScene.net

“So enthralling is this moving sedation that a new transformation almost escapes our consciousness.” – DanceEnthusiast.com