'Paranormal Activity' Broadway review — gripping new horror play has the scares and the substance

Read our review of Paranormal Activity on Broadway, a new play written by Levi Holloway and inspired by the same-named horror film franchise.

Summary

• Paranormal Activity on Broadway follows a couple trying in vain to escape their haunted past
• The show is inspired by the world of the Paranormal Activity films but features an original plot
• The show's well-crafted story of marital trouble is enhanced by its terrifying special effects and vice versa
• The show is recommended for fans of the Paranormal Activity films and other horror movies

On first glance, one might view the stage version of Paranormal Activity as just another example of Hollywood IP expansion creeping into Broadway. A spinoff of the 2007 found-footage horror film assembled almost solely by writer/director/editor/cinematographer Oren Eli, the show may also appear to be of the theme-park variety, where stagecraft and spectacle are its primary merits. But the Paranormal Activity play is remarkable for the way it fits within a broader theatrical lineage, accentuated by its technical virtues.

Take away the slamming doors, flickering lights, and shrieking fire alarms, and Grey House playwright Levi Holloway's story is a classic marital drama. Recent London transplants James (Travis A. Knight) and Lou (Cher Álvarez) have fled Chicago for peace of mind and a fresh start after Lou’s mental illness took a toll on their lives. But strange things keep happening in their new place: cold spots, bizarre sounds, malfunctioning TVs, a general feeling of unease.

These oddities start to roil the couple’s bond, James at once reassuring Lou that he’ll be with her through this difficult period of her life and yet repeatedly talking over her. Lou tries to stress how, if the burden will ultimately affect both of them, it’s important that they trust one another and clearly communicate. The more the apartment is shaken by unusual occurrences, the more the core of their relationship fractures. James is eager to present himself as a good guy, able to listen to his wife’s anxieties and offer solutions, but his inherent skepticism of her fear reads to her as condescending and self-interested. Lou’s desperate pleas for someone to simply be on her side are met with more talk from James but little interest in seriously making sense of her past.

There’s a version of Paranormal Activity that’s lower-tech, stripped of its horror tropes and focused solely on the gradual breakdown of James and Lou's marriage. That would likely still be a solid show, but the disturbances in the house help accentuate the characters' cracking facade, ultimately cementing the show not merely as a piece of empty spectacle, but as a piece of drama. James and Lou sit comfortably next to other disastrous theatrical marriages in plays like Harold Pinter’s Betrayal, David Lindsay-Abaire’s Rabbit Hole, and Yasmina Reza’s God of Carnage.

Paranormal Activity is exceptionally well-suited to the stage: While many found-footage movies involve characters moving around with a camera, the Paranormal Activity franchise deploys a mostly stationary camera on a tripod, training its audience to scan the frame for anomalies themselves. The play, directed by Punchdrunk artistic director Felix Barrett (Sleep No More), translates this through a two-story set shrouded in darkness. The audience stays on edge as they keep their eyes peeled in each room of the apartment. Was that a shadow that passed through the living room? Or someone’s arms reaching out from the dark?

Paranormal Activity’s nightmare fuel makes for a wonderfully inventive and terrifying variation on the American domestic drama, taking a couple on the brink and turning the ghosts of their guilt and unhappiness into an entrancing extravaganza.

Paranormal Activity summary

James and Lou have recently moved to London, escaping emotional turmoil back in Chicago. As they attempt to settle into their new apartment, they start to realize that all is not well in their new home. But it may not be the home itself that’s haunted; the ghosts might be within one of them.

Paranormal Activity is set within the world of the hit film franchise, but the plot of the stage show is fully original. The movies have collectively grossed over $891 million, and the first film, which grossed nearly $200 million from an initial budget of $15,000 (plus an additional $200,000 when DreamWorks stepped in as distributor), is considered one of the most profitable movies ever made.

What to expect at Paranormal Activity

Scenic designer Fly Davis provides a terrifically lived-in two-story apartment set, recalling those of other domestic dramas like August: Osage County and Next to Normal. Anna Watson, as lighting designer, knows when to amp up the theatricality, as in during a seance featuring flashing lights, and when to keep it subtle, like when car headlights pour through the windows.

Gareth Fry’s sound design is diligently used for jump scares, and perhaps a touch on the loud side, but in its quieter moments, Fry and Watson’s work, particularly in darkness, is magnificent. Chris Fisher’s illusions are also exceptionally crafted and executed, but most importantly, they help theatricalize the gradual breakdown of James and Lou’s marriage.

What people are saying about Paranormal Activity

Theatregoers agree: It's scary good. As of writing, Paranormal Activity on Broadway has a 90% audience approval rating on Show-Score, averaged from over 500 reviews from audience members.

• “INSANE. Genuinely scary and expertly crafted.” - Show-Score user Helen B
• “I loved the show, the effects were amazing and the energy of the show kept people on the edge the whole time until the end.” - Show-Score user Marie B
• “Paranormal Activity is a play about being haunted by your past. The direction is creative and the adaptation takes the best elements of horror and theatre and merges them together into a heart-pounding 2 hours.” - Show-Score user Renita J

Read more audience reviews of Paranormal Activity on Show-Score.

Who should see Paranormal Activity

• Fans of the Paranormal Activity franchise, and of horror movies in general, will not be disappointed. The show is a full-on dread machine.
• Cher Álvarez gives Lou’s line readings a wonderful musicality, anchoring Paranormal Activity with a real gravitas and sense of realism, particularly as she struggles to be heard and understood by her husband.
• Those interested in psychology and behavioral studies will be interested in Paranormal Activity as a clever examination of how therapy language makes its way into real-life conversations and relationships.

Learn more about Paranormal Activity on Broadway

Paranormal Activity gives the marriage-breakdown play a horror facelift, presenting a white-knuckle experience in which the drama meaningfully informs its stagecraft and vice versa. Supported by playwright Levi Holloway's durable script and Felix Barrett’s handsome direction, Paranormal Activity shines as solid drama about a haunted past fueling marital discord that happens to have exceptional special effects. It stands out as one of the scariest pieces of entertainment in recent memory.

Learn more and get Paranormal Activity tickets on New York Theatre Guide. Paranormal Activity is at the August Wilson Theatre through January 3.

Photo credit: Paranormal Activity on Broadway. (Photos by Matthew Murphy)