🐀 The Portrait of The Stage Rat
Welcome to The Stage Rat—your insider guide to NYC theatre, where I sniff out what’s brilliant and dig up hidden gems.
This isn’t just about finding good shows. It’s about something bigger. Thousands of rats (yes, you) are shaking up theatre, making it bolder, wilder, and fun. So consider this your golden invitation to join the mischief.
Now, let’s take a glimpse at this week’s portrait behind the curtain…
THE RAT’S RECOMMENDATION:
“The Picture of Dorian Gray”
Cheese Score: 🧀🧀🧀🧀🧀 (5/5)
Description: A mesmerizing, shape-shifting spectacle where Sarah Snook inhabits 26 characters, blending live theatre, film, and augmented reality in a dazzling reimagining of The Picture of Dorian Gray.
Why You Should Care:
Sarah Snook’s Shape-Shifting Spectacle – One actor, 26 characters, and a masterclass in transformation. Snook’s sniper-like ability to shift in and out of identities with an eerie, almost hypnotic precision is a marvel. Incorporating every accent you can think of, onstage costume changes and a magically appearing cigarette.
Live Cinema – This isn’t just theatre borrowing from film—it’s theatre and film colliding in real time. It’s like we’re behind the scenes. Moving screens glide across the stage, pre-recorded and live footage blur together, and moments unfold from multiple perspectives at once. It’s the best use of camera work I’ve ever seen. Never getting stale, always finding new angles and opportunities to surprise.
Augmented Reality – Snook brings out an iPhone on stage, capturing moments live and warping them in real-time, creating an unsettling mirror effect. The AR isn’t just a gimmick—it’s a direct commentary on self-preservation, image obsession, and the way technology distorts what we see. It’s haunting, it’s disorienting, and it’s the perfect modern fit for Wilde’s dark fable.
Where – Music Box Theatre, NYC Show Duration - 2 hours
Who to Bring – Your friend who photoshops their profile photos, the artist who peaked at their first gallery show, the philosophy bro who quotes Nietzsche but lives with his parents, your ex who thinks gaslighting is an art form, and the influencer clinging to relevance like a lifeboat on the Titanic.
Rat Tip – The sightlines are excellent from every angle, as the show is projected onto a massive series of screens that hang like a portrait. The story moves quickly at times, so it's worth sitting down with some cheese, maybe some bread—or even a $1 slice from the subway floor—to read the original text
Have you seen it? What's your rating?
Overall Cheese rating: 5/5
Tickets: To get a ticket for Dorian Gray 👀 enter this week’s ticket lottery below.
Free Tickets to Dorian Gray
Do you smell that? 🧀 It’s the sweet, sweet scent of FREE TICKETS!
Subscribe to the Stage Rat for chance to win free tickets for next week’s lottery.
Until next week, keep it dramatic, keep it ratty, and always aim for center stage! 🐀✨.
P.S. Thanks for being part of this weird rat family. Please reply to this email and let us rats know how we are doing?
With lots of Ratitude,
The Stage Rat