New Musical Has A Sci-Fi And Disco Feel With Great Songs
The new stage musical Sex in Mechanicalville describes itself as: “Sex, simulation, dystopia and disco; like dancing on a volcano,” and it certainly delivers. An eclectic and electric vaudeville-esque show Sex in Mechanicalville hooks you the second you walk into the space. Heavily inspired by “Greek tragedy, the films of Rainer Werner Fassbinder and the writings of Stanislaw Lem and Carl Jung,” you can definitely still see the influences of other sci-fi cinema (The Matrix, Bladerunner), performance art (Klaus Nomi), and risque sexual musicals (Rocky Horror, Repo! The Genetic Opera).
Written and performed by Sally Horowitz, front-person of 2010s power-pop group Secret Lover, Sex in Mechanicalville is based around Horowitz’s original character S. The Supplicant (who performs currently in venues around New York City). The story, while not giving too much away, presents itself immediately as a story within a story, and feels like the story within was written by a highly sophisticated AI blending stories of the rise and exploitation of an innocent pop star (in this case a character called the Supplicant) with near future techno-apocalypse stories. The original Nu Disco soundtrack hits the mark tying the visual and story aesthetic of piece together blending the contemporary appeal with heavy dose of retro sound giving the impression of smiling through tragedy.
The one criticism I had was that I wish the second half had a little bit more narrative in the end. The latter half was incredibly song heavy, even though the songs were all killer. The music and dance routines created in the second half emphasized the darker tinges of the world the Supplicant found themselves existing in, performing happiness while visibly bound and panicked as they find that they may never escape the stage before the world ends around them.
In all Sex in Mechanicalville is one hell of an interesting performance, blending and combining genres and styles to draw the audience in while also keeping them at a distance (as the outer story progresses). It’s absolutely worth the time, energy, and money to give this new
You can catch Sex in Mechanicalville: February 13th at Dixon Place, 161A Chrystie St., New York, New York 10002. You can hear/purchase the soundtrack through Nicey Music.
(TRIGGER WARNING: gaslighting, there is a physical/sexual assault briefly depicted onstage. FULL DISCLOSURE: The writer of this review has a personal connection to a member of this production.)
