“Kubrickian” reviewed by Julia W. Rath

* “Kubrickian”, written by Zack Peercy and directed by AJ Schwartz, is one of the longest 90-minute shows that I can remember. The story is largely an excuse to revisit all of Stanley Kubrick’s films and especially the theme from “2001: A Space Odyssey.” What seemed like a promising endeavor, intended to be in Kubrickian style, is little more than a disappointment.

My guest coined the term “jukebox play” to describe the structure of the show, not because music was overriding but because the story was intentionally invented to string together a series of plot summaries of Kubrick’s movies and to talk about how they were made. Except for the novelty of putting all of this information together in one place, the story lacks a larger message behind it or even a reason for being. The story pretends to be deep but there is no deeper meaning behind it, except talk about violence in Kubrick’s films foreshadows the violence that occurs in this performance. With no introduction and no curtain call (except for the director giving a thumb’s up to the actors), I was reminded of what it was like taking improv classes many years ago. While some segments in “Kubrickian” have some running theme between them, most are snapshots or impressions with nothing behind them except to fill up time.

A bit like Shakespeare’s play within a play, three men find themselves within what could be a Stanley Kubrick movie. They have apparently been abducted by aliens and have been imprisoned in some type of holding tank where there is no means of escape. All throughout, we see the men interact with each other in different ways. Chris (Taylor Mercado Owen) is the one most familiar with Kubrick and talks about him all the time. He works at a grocery store to pay the bills. He believes that Kubrick is a genius—and when he isn’t, then he “fucks with your mind.” Danny (Rio Soliz Ragazzone) is an engineering graduate who wants to move into the IT field. He is less familiar with Kubrick and has a chip on his shoulder with regard to the way his father has treated him. We know the least about Howard (Ben Auxier), who largely sits in one corner of the room, except that we are told he is a professor of religious philosophy.

The performance begins with the three men doing yoga postures. Grady Gilbert’s movement design is nicely done, with the characters traveling from one spot on the yoga mat to another throughout the show, and we get to see the men in all types of exercise positions. However, it’s often not clear why they constantly have to be in motion, except to make this less of a cerebral story and for them to move their bodies just for the sake of doing so. This is the element which is most reminiscent of improv classes, where you have to come up with short scenes to express an idea and let your body do most of the talking. In “Kubrickian”, there are some strings of short scenes necessary to tell the story, and others not so much. Halfway through the play and again towards the end, the story shifts gears when the aliens get involved, helping to generate some type of plotline.

The hardest part about following this story is trying to remember what happened in all of the various Kubrick films as well as the actors who played in them. And remember that these films are maybe 30 or 40 years old, so unless you’ve viewed them recently, you’re a bit behind the eight ball. But not fully knowing what these films are about in detail is not essential for grasping this story. The good part (if there is one) is that the plot summaries which are being described do provide some context for the action. A subplot is that Chris’s enthusiasm for Kubrick is in part due to the fact that his father introduced him to his films, whereas Danny has generally had a bad relationship with his father. I liked the ending though, and especially the scene just before it that leads up to the ending. This part is very creative. But just because you can make this play doesn’t mean that you should. As a totality, it is rather immature and amateurish and needs work. Its overall purposelessness doesn’t rise to the level of being existential. But in keeping with the play’s intent to be existential, there is no introduction at the beginning and no curtain call at the end.

The set design is minimalist: with an off-white curtain in the back of the stage and a tan yoga mat on the floor. I liked the edge of the square stage which fell off into a blue pattern, indirectly lit by horizontal LED lights. Yet I didn’t appreciate staring into that rectangular lamp at the back of the stage whenever the aliens “made an appearance.” Sound mix is off, with portions involving the aliens being too loud relative to the softer voices of the men in conversation. Yet I appreciated the prism design on the jacket that Chris wears; this indeed is reminiscent of Kubrick’s style.

My guest said that this play felt like a first draft, and he barely understood it. To my mind, its aspirations weren’t high enough. I expected a more psychedelic experience with colorful lights and 1960s sound. I wanted to be scared. I wanted more music. I wanted the characters to be more relatable. The focus becomes diluted, rather than enhanced, as a result of the alien abduction theme and subsequent torture. The playwright ought to have taken the lead from a good Kubrick movie or a good Stephen King novel, that is, to use the characters to successfully manipulate the audience’s emotions and heighten them. If done well, this is the type of production that should have had us on the edge of our seats. The best we can do is to feel unease throughout. Unfortunately, everything is so disconnected that we never really care about the characters: They are just there!

The advance piece says that this is meant to be “a haunting and hilarious look at masculinity, creativity, and capitalism.” Maybe the first, possibly the second, but capitalism? I’m sure that Kubrick made good money on his films, but this isn’t the point of the story. And while there are some funny one-liners and some excellent uses of (male) body language, I expected a more thoughtful insight into Kubrick himself and the essence of his artistic vision. I wanted to see how the force of his imagination has been infused within today’s plot and characters. So while I liked the cleverness of the scene just before the ending, I was looking for something more meaningful and exciting that I could talk about after the show was over. Consequently, I left the theatre scratching my head and saying, “So what?”

“Kubrickian” is playing through March 28, 2026, at the Factory Theater, 1623 W. Howard Street, in Chicago.

General admission tickets are $30.

Performance schedule:

Fridays and Saturdays – 8:00 p.m.
Sundays – 3:00 p.m.

For more information and to purchase tickets, please go to: https://thefactorytheater.com/ or call the box office at 312-275-5757.

To see what others are saying, visit www.theatreinchicago.com, go to Review Round-Up and click at ” Kubrickian”.