(© Jane Kratochvil)
Life and Trust, an immersive follow up to Sleep No More from the producing team Emursive, closed abruptly on April 19 after beginning performances in the summer of 2024. The show took place at the purpose-created “Conwell Tower,” located at 69 Beaver Street in New York’s Financial District.
No official reasoning was provided for the show’s sudden closure; a brief statement was issued on the production’s website after tickets were mysteriously refunded over the weekend. The Life and Trust Instagram account has been scrubbed of all posts except for the closing notice. Staff were reportedly told only an hour before the news became public.
Written by Jon Roson, directed by Teddy Bergman, and featuring experience direction and scenic design by Gabriel Hainer Evansohn, Life and Trust was a riff on the Faustian legend set on the eve of the Great Crash, where audiences roam through a site-specific skyscraper that also serves as home to Conwell Coffee Hall.
Codirected and choreographed by Jeff Kuperman and RIck Kuperman, the production has creative casting and movement direction by Stefanie Batten Bland, and co-choreography and associate direction by Kristen Carcone, Lauren Yalango-Grant, Christopher Cree, and Emily Terndrup.
On the creative team were Emilio Sosa (costume designer), J. Jared Janas (hair and makeup designer), Jeanette Yew (lighting designer), Ray Sun (video designer), Taylor Bense (music director and composer), Owen Belton (music composer), Brendan Aanes, Michael Kiley, Nick Kourtides (sound designer), Greg Hanson (sound and show control systems designer), Grace Laubacher (scenic designer), Jessie Flynn (details designer and art director), Lorenzo Pisoni (magic designer), Alicia Rodis (intimacy director), and Ann James (sensitivity specialist).
The company of more than 40 included Bria Bacon, Tony Bordonaro, Sophie Bortolussi, Nathaniel Buchsbaum, Marc J Cardarelli, Aaron Dalla Villa, Tiffany Violet De Alba, Charles-Alexis Desgagnés, Mia DiLena, Brendan Duggan, Zachary Eisenstat, Raymond Ejiofor, Kim Fischer, Jennifer Florentino, Reshma Gajjar, Douglas J Gillespie, Annie Grove, Alonso Guzman, Dorchel Haqq, Casey Bronwyn Howes, Karl Kenzler, Heather Lang, Majella Bess Loughran, Jodi McFadden, Nando Morland, Parker Murphy, Kevin M Pajarillaga, Marla Phelan, Randolph Curtis Rand, Luca Renzi, Gabriella Sibeko, Tori Sparks, Brandin Steffensen, Derek Tabada, Tony Torn, Mike Tyus, Robert Vail, Ryan VanCompernolle, Jacob Michael Warren, Maleek M Washington, and Madeline Wright.
Of Life and Trust, our critic said, “This new show at the very least offers an opportunity to reflect on both the allure and limitations of this kind of immersive spectacle.”