'Paranormal Activity' at the Ahmanson is truly scary. And it may be the year's best staged production

What’s scarier, a satellite with ghosts oregon a satellite without them?

I pondered this question connected the thrust downtown to spot “Paranormal Activity,” a signifier play based connected the Paramount Pictures movie franchise of the aforesaid title. I confess that I’ve not seen immoderate of the 7 films successful the series. But it’s not snobbery that has kept maine away. I’m inactive recovering from my grandma having taken maine arsenic a kid to spot “Damien — Omen II.”

I’m excessively aged for nighttime terrors. But astatine my age, wellness security companies are a bully woody much frightening than the devil. What‘s scarier, a satellite with demonic forces oregon a satellite with unforeseen aesculapian bills? Give maine Damien!

In short, I assumed “Paranormal Activity,” which conscionable completed a tally astatine Chicago Shakespeare Theater, wasn’t for me. Boy, was I wrong. The production, which opened astatine the Ahmanson Theatre connected Friday nether the absorption of Felix Barrett, is brilliantly pulled off. I caught myself wondering during the archetypal act, “Is this the champion staged accumulation of the year?”

I yelped successful my seat. I reached for my companion a fewer times erstwhile panic overcame me. I closed my eyes erstwhile I knew thing unspeakable was going to happen. The scenic and dependable elements were synchronized to nutrient maximum terror. The illusions and projections had maine seeing things I couldn’t judge I was seeing. And yet what made the deepest content connected maine was the lifelike concern of the young joined mates astatine the halfway of the play, written and restaged by Levi Holloway, the writer of the spooky Broadway play “Grey House.”

James (Patrick Heusinger) and Lou (Cher Álvarez) person moved from Chicago to London for a caller start. His institution has enactment them up successful a spacious location (by pricey London standards) with a fewer eerie quirks. The radiators marque rather the racket and the energy seems to person a caput of its own.

Lou has been struggling with her intelligence health, though there’s much going connected than psychiatry tin explain. James is doing his champion to beryllium a diligent and knowing husband, but erstwhile Lou tells him astir the unusual things that person happened erstwhile she’s alone, helium can’t assistance wondering whether she’s been taking her meds.

Coming upon their one-year anniversary, they look to beryllium figuring however to determination guardant arsenic a couple. They emotion each other, but it feels similar a marque oregon interruption moment. One root of hostility rises supra the rest. James has built a nursery upstairs, but Lou isn’t definite that it’s the close clip to effort to person a baby.

Carolanne (Shannon Cochran), James’ pious parent successful Boca Raton who makes intrusive video calls, is determined to person a grandbaby earlier she dies and worries that each Lou’s psychiatric medications whitethorn beryllium getting successful the way.

James grew up religious, but mislaid his faith. (He excessively ponders whether a satellite without ghosts is scarier than a satellite with them.) Lou assumes her hubby is an atheist and doesn’t recognize erstwhile she discovers a Bible successful the house. Mysterious things support happening — euphony abruptly blasts, doors slam, the lights spell retired and the alarm strategy roars successful the mediate of the night. But “Paranormal Activity” suggests — successful a neo-Pinteresque manner — that the unknowability of different idiosyncratic is much terrifying than supernatural pyrotechnics.

In moments of conflict, Lou withdraws portion James feverishly tries to engage. It seems similar she’s the 1 who’s hiding something, but James’ veneer of normality is not rather what it seems. They’re some keeping secrets, but however precisely are their marital problems related to the inexplicable bumps successful the night?

I didn’t recognize astatine archetypal wherefore James and Lou didn’t fly the location the infinitesimal shadows appeared retired of nowhere. I would person booked a edifice country arsenic soon arsenic Alexa started taking cues from immoderate unholy presence. But it’s not the location that’s haunted truthful overmuch arsenic the couple. Lou assumes she’s to blame. A shadow, perchance related to the decease of her parents successful a location occurrence erstwhile she was a girl, has been tormenting her for ages.

The occupation successful Chicago has followed them to London. There seems to beryllium nary escape. Etheline Cotgrave (Kate Fry), a mean with her ain podcast, pays an exigency sojourn to the location and detects not lone unsafe occult enactment but marital informing signs. When each hellhole breaks escaped during her quasi-scientific seance, she recognizes that the occupation is beyond her capacities and that the location spells their doom.

Cher Álvarez successful “Paranormal Activity” astatine Chicago Shakespeare Theater.

(Kyle Flubacker)

At this point, I had lone my asthma inhaler to comfortableness me. How tin a signifier play beryllium truthful scary? “2:22 – A Ghost Story,” a spooky play that came to the Ahmanson successful 2022, wasn’t astir arsenic effective.

Credit goes not lone to the writer but to the accumulation team. Barrett (best known for his immersive staging of Punchdrunk’s “ Sleep No More”) and his collaborators are masters of misdirection. While audiences are focused connected 1 country of the stage, thing furtive is happening connected another.

The split-level location (brought to beingness by scenic decorator Fly Davis, who besides did the costumes) provides the mendacious information of a broad view. Yet Anna Watson‘s ingenious lighting keeps definite areas plunged successful darkness, and that disturbing nursery doorway is usually closed.

Gareth Fry’s dependable plan recognizes that our ears are the gateways to our tense systems. Luke Halls’ video plan lends the occult eruptions capable plausible deniability to support the characters (and the audience) stupidly hoping that everything volition someway beryllium each right. Chris Fisher’s illusions volition marque you deliberation you’re seeing double. You are!

Amid each this otherworldly craziness, Holloway’s dialog is much naturalistic than astir home dramas. And the actors are unerringly authentic. Heusinger’s James has a seductive earnestness that conceals immoderate shocking quality developments. But determination are cracks successful the facade.

Álvarez‘s Lou is adjacent harder to get a grip on. Her reticence is self-protective, but she tin travel disconnected arsenic cold. The warmth of the couple’s connection, however, is ne'er successful doubt.

Cochran and Fry person showier supporting roles that let them to play up the eccentricities of their characters. Thankfully, Cochran, a formidable realist who won an Obie for her show successful Tracy Letts’ “Bug,” isn’t consigned to video telephone appearances arsenic James’ mother. I won’t springiness distant however she turns up, but Cochran makes fearfulness distressingly real. As for Fry, erstwhile her Etheline loses her sangfroid, I was acceptable to bolt.

Holloway’s quality observations are faultless, but the solution of the communicative isn’t afloat satisfying. Certain crippled points are overexplained; others are near to autumn by the wayside. The play is much awesome mathematically than poetically. I’m a proponent of the Henry James schoolhouse of shade stories. In his novella “The Turn of the Screw,” the transportation betwixt the supernatural and the intelligence is allowed to suggestively simmer.

Artists cognize that enigmas bring america person to the truth. When that happens successful “Paranormal Activity,” the fearfulness is eye-opening.

Of people the precise unusual incidental involving my car alarm aft I returned location from the amusement was purely coincidental. I mean, conscionable due to the fact that it’s ne'er gone disconnected earlier for nary crushed aft I parked extracurricular my doorway is nary crushed to judge that thing peculiar was going on.