Night of the Living Dead, Live in Denver!

When one thinks of stage, the word "Zombie" really shouldn't come to mind. Shakespeare maybe, musicals, or even nudity – but certainly not the classic zombie story, Night of the Living Dead.

Wait, what?

In a small, local Denver venue, a cast and crew of about 20, led by theatrical genius Kris Hipps, has gone and done the impossible; adapted the original, 1960's version of Night of the Living Dead film to stage. Faithful to the original story while adding a generous dose of humor, they give life, or un-life, back to the black and white horror classic.

Armed with a brilliant adaptation of the script, wonderful performers, and a few key props – you're sure to be entertained from start to the new, hilarious, finale.

Running for its first season (Weekends through October) in Denver, I hope to see this again in future years, and maybe even spread to a national level. The Zombie epidemic begins with The Bug Theater in Denver.


Film meets stage, literally

What were the most important scenes to you in the original presentation of the film? Was it the cemetery, with the ever-popular “they're coming to get you, barbara!”, the farm house, the gas run, or all of the above?

The problem then is, how do we get a glimpse of what is going on outside of the house, without a major, time consuming, costly, stage change? How about, a projector and about 20 minutes of prerecorded footage?

Adding “movie” footage to a stage production is something I'd never heard of, let alone expected to work so seamlessly. Coordinated perfectly with what you see on stage, this strange solution to stage change bridged the gap between live theater and film wonderfully.

A few changes have been made

Why did this farmhouse already have a body count in the original movie? The opening act of Night of the Living Dead gives you what I would call a “deleted scene” to explain the incidents in the house before Barbara even reaches the cemetery.

Catatonic Barbara, with her blonde 50's flip and trench coat, gets a few more lines in the stage parody. Just in case you weren't convinced Barbara had lost her mind while babbling about the cemetary incident and candy, she makes a very interesting suggestion about her ideal escape plan, and other, random psychotic episodes.

What were Harry Cooper and family doing on the afternoon the world ended? Dressed up, on a family outing of sorts – or a picnic? Some of the pre-shot footage gives us an idea what kind of loving person Harry Cooper is (why it's so easy to hate him every time), and how his bedridden daughter was injured in the first place.

Most zombie flicks have a scene with looters, taking things from stores, houses, and apartments that do not belong to them. In this case, there are looters – they're not who you normally envision desiring a television of their own.

The Players

Credit is given where credit is due – This cast and crew was amazing, and all deserve ample credit, and a bigger budget to market to the masses. I'd like to have had a word with the cast, but they were no where in sight post-production, so you just get my impression of them from the stage.

First and foremost, Kris Hipps and Duane Brown, for bringing this brilliant show to me – and entertaining me for the full two hours, plus a few dreams, and the entirety of this weekend. Both participated in the cast, and pulled performances that made it very, very difficult to keep a straight face.

Joseph Graves, who played my favorite character – Ben. The hero of the play, working hard to calm Barbara down, knock Harry Cooper in the mouth, and secure their farmhouse fortress. Joseph Graves gave Ben a whole new look – not the hulking body-guard-esque Bens of the movies, but rather a normal guy just doing what he thinks he should, while still being a strong lead role.

Laura Rohrbacher, aka Barbara. One thing that had always bothered me about Barbara in the 1960's version was her lack of personality...and complete catatonic state after the first 15 minutes of the film. Laura certainly gave life to Barbara throughout the play, while still being true enough to the original. The majority of her outbursts confirmed her stressed state, and were delivered perfectly.

Really, I could go on for paragraphs about the entire cast – but I digress, all of the performances were amazing, and I thoroughly recommend anyone who gets a chance, go see the play!

Why should you take the time?

This time of year – that is, right around Halloween, the primary attraction for most people are Haunted Houses, or parties. Haunted Houses can be a lot of fun with the right group of people, where you stand in line in the cold, spend money, then get a few scares for about 15-20 minutes. Parties are great, until all of your friends plan them on the same weekend, or you just don't have friends...or they don't have parties.

So, why not spend $15, the same price as most haunted houses, and be thoroughly entertained for 2 full hours. Socializing, potentially drinking, and laughing your ass off at one of the best pseudo-spoofs of George A. Romero's Night of the Living Dead. Dress as a zombie, and receive an instant discount at the door!

Made for fans of the original, and thoroughly enjoyed by those who weren't even aware of a black and white version – if you have any concept of zombies, you're sure to have a great time! A quick tip; watch the black and white version after attending this play – I promise it will never look the same again.

Also, zombies are important to Halloween, and for such a small production, every row had a variety of people seated, anxiously watching the stage to see how on Earth they pulled this off. Men, women, young people, zombie people, old people, friends, families and every other type of person in between.