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Performance Group Invites Strangers to Dine Together at Pop-Up Parties

"Show:Up!" is an immersive pop-up performance experience in which actors play hosts for a dinner party or brunch and the audience participate as guests.
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BROOKLYN — A group of local performers is inviting guests into strangers’ homes for a unique experience of immersive theater and dining.

“Imagine a fabulous dinner party, hosted by your closest friends that you’ve never met, in a place that you’ve never been,” reads an advertisement for pop-up performance "Show:UP!"

Two actors serve as hosts for the get-together, and attendees must interact with one another over drinks and catered food through the course of the production.

Each meal takes place at a new apartment or home, which is usually found by producers through Airbnb or local connections, according to director William Bryant Miles.

Performers have a set character they must stick to, but essentially improvise their conversations with guests based on participants’ reactions.

“Every event is different and because of the nature of a dinner party, there are times when people are so invested in it that they forget they’re part of an experience, or that someone is an actor,” Miles said.

“I was really influenced by reality TV and fascinated by the way it blurs the lines of reality and script. This explores the concept of what is performance and what is reality, you’ll never know where we draw the line.”

Once prospective diners sign up for a ticket, they’re emailed the brunch or dinner location at least 12 hours in advance of the party. While participants remain unaware of what they’re getting into, they do receive social media accounts to follow that give a glimpse into their hosts' lives.

Miles, who has a background in theater, said he was frustrated with the limited opportunities to connect with fellow audience members at standard shows.

“Even if you and I watch the same play, if we didn’t go together, sometimes it gets awkward to start a conversation about it,” he said.

“'Show:UP!' lets you share the experience with the person next to you and enhances the discourse because you are really a part of what’s happening.”

The Bed-Stuy resident and his team have hosted seven pop-up dinner parties throughout Brooklyn, Harlem, and Washington, D.C., since the project’s inception in September.

The group aims to explore certain topics in each event, with recent dinners focusing on the theme of relationships. Actors might surprise attendees with heated disagreements or convey tension between one another.  

Breanna Williams, who attended a Valentine’s Day dinner in Clinton Hill, said the lack of details in advance allowed her to “go with the flow” and have a good time.

“It was super organic, and I didn’t know anyone going into it,” she said. “It was an all-around 360 experience and I walked away with two new friendships.”

Unlike other immersive shows like “Tony n' Tina’s Wedding” or “Sleep No More," which take place in a theater space,  the casual setting of "Show:UP!" allows participants to enter “a different state of mind," Williams added. 

“The more you give to the actors, the more you get out of it. It breaks down the fourth wall and allows you to get outside of yourself.”

Tickets for the experience, which includes a catered meal and drinks, cost $65. Check out the "Show:UP!" website for details.