This violin is the focus for the second of five automatons that Dan made earlier this year for a show in NYC. The first, a pair of opera gloved hands clapping was previously featured here. The gloves were my mom’s. As always when posting about Dan’s work I must be somewhat circumspect, but this week with the opening of the immersive theater show Masquerade the “gloves” have mostly come off. Masquerade is a version of Phantom of the Opera. Reviews have been positive. Playwright Andrew Lloyd Webber approved this production and even came to see a performance. Dan finished and delivered his five pieces before coming to the cabin, but while vacationing in Michigan all of the wheels came off sort-of-speak. Dan was able to put all to right upon his return to NYC. Anyway, he got paid and might also get comped tickets to see the show. This show has a dress code. He might have to rent a tux.

This is not Dan’s first foray into immersive theater. Last year, he worked for almost a year on another show called Life and Trust. We visited him in NYC near the end of his employment there. Emursive, the production company. had previously produced the highly successful Sleep No More and when we visited Dan, I got us all tickets for that show, but arriving at the theater that night we were shutout. Sleep No More closed quickly afterwards. As it turns out Emursive owed their landlord $4.5M in back rent. This may also have something to do with the quick demise of Life and Trust, which closed after only a brief run. Its reviews were positive too. I am reminded of The Producers, a show about theater flimflam artists. Anyway, Dan got paid and he also got comped tickets.