Flaming Sin:
London's Grand Guignol

A double-bill from London's Grand Guignol theatre featuring the U.S. Premiere of Noel Coward's long-lost one-act comedy "The Better Half" and Christopher Holland's "The Old Women, or A Crime In A Madhouse."

Creepshow Camp

Young devotees of Horror, Sci-Fi and Suspense have a summer camp to call their own! Creepshow Camps face ?fright? with curiosity and creativity, revealing the secret techniques behind scary entertainments? vitality and power. Workshops led by our dedicated staff of teaching artists engage participants, hands-on, in activities that teach and reinforce the fundamental skills in monster make-up, special effects, sleight of hand and stage combat. In our theatre venue, The Hypnodrome, campers screen classic horror movies and rehearse on-stage for a farewell performance given for family and friends at the end of every Creepshow Camp session. Two-week summer sessions for kids 9 - 14 start June 16.

Last week Thrillpeddlers enjoyed the height of serendipity with the fabulous Cockettes. That Thrillpeddlers embrace the spirit of San Francisco’s legendary psychedelic drag ensemble is no surprise. The group was part of a late-60s/early-70s bi-coastal queer hippie performing arts clique that included Charles Ludlam’s Ridiculous Theatrical Company and John Waters’ Dreamland Studios. Their work would eventually bring high camp to pop culture influencing Bette Midler, Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman, The Muppets, Alice Cooper, The Rocky Horror Show, and countless other acts and entertainers that captured my imagination as a kid and continue to color my work in the theatre to this day. When I recently asked Jet, a Cockette and later a member of the offshoot group The Angels of Light, to tell an audience “Who were The Angels of Light?” he replied “We are your ancestors.”

My mi casa es su casa invitation to the Cockettes has brought them trooping through the Hypnodrome’s door leaving a trail of glitter and grins in their wake. What a wondrous blessing! That said, I still can’t quite believe the incredible week that was because Sweet Pam, Rumi Missabu and big-hearted Fayette Hauser are en Hypnodrome. This morning Pam emailed me this photograph of her. Thrillpeddler Mel Gordon snapped it years ago in New York when Pam was performing The Palm Casino Review.

And so to events of last week. On Sunday, Hypnodrome played host to Rumi’s revival of his beloved Camaraderie Art Salon. Dubbed “A Cocktail of Glamour & Anarchy“, the bill included Thrillpeddlers’ “Blue Hour” acts “The Lonely Doll” and Simone Corday’s “Night Manager” along with acts from Camaraderie Art’s outrageous coterie of performers. Cockette Pam Tent a.k.a. Sweet Pam read from her memoir “Midnight at the Palace”, Tahara and Jet a.k.a. Jilala made their first visit to the ‘drome and Jim dressed in glam hag drag for the very first time (and was mistaken for Rumi more than once!).

Fayetta and I spent the whole week scheming about her costume design for Thrillpeddlers’ revival of playwright/performer Charles Busch’s Theodora, She-Bitch of Byzantium and we accepted Charles’ invitation to see his new production of Shanghai Moon in Sag Harbor, New York next month.

On Friday, Sweet Pam and I joined Daniel Zilber and his wife Adrien to take advantage of tix Fayette had scored for us to see the extraordinary vocal group The Manhattan Transfer (her brother Tim Hauser just happens to be a founding member of the group). It’s been over a quarter of a century since Daniel and I saw them perform at the Starlight Amphitheatre in our hometown of Kansas City. Those many years ago singer Alan Paul ripped a wife-beater t-shirt off his chest after singing “Gloria” and tossed to me, then a fifteen year old boy who’d sneaked into a vacated front row seat for their encore. Needless to say, Alan was blown away on Friday when I pulled the remains of that T-shirt out of my pocket and asked him to autograph it. See the photo to get an idea of his surprise and horror.

The night was a little bittersweet, since it was the first time I’d ever been absent from a Hypnodrome performance. Had it not held such promise for all, I never would have headed for the concert. By all reports, the gang at the Hypnodrome did me proud.

With this much to tell about a week at home, I wonder what adventures are in store when Jim and I head off to New York on June 1st to take part in honoring the Cockettes and performing a little Grand Guignol in an east coast installment of “A Cocktail of Glamour & Anarchy.” Stay tuned…

The SF Weekly published critic Chloe Veltman’s formal review of our show “Flaming Sin: London’s Grand Guignol” this week (we’ve previously linked to her blog post about the show). Her review is the kind of thoughtful, in-depth look at our work that’s been all too rare over the years. While we certainly have fans among the city’s critics, and have received many glowing notices, it’s always nice when someone recognizes that there’s more to what we do besides blood and cheap thrills (not that there’s anything wrong with blood and cheap thrills).

From the review:

Yet as formulaic and tame as Grand Guignol programs seem by today’s standards, a trip to the Hypnodrome to experience Thrillpeddlers’ latest — and perhaps greatest — foray into the genre, FLAMING SIN: London’s Grand Guignol, will fricassee your emotions and play tricks with your mind… Blending compact writing, fast-paced direction, and nuanced performances, Thrillpeddlers’ salacious evening of out-there entertainment does nothing if not dispel the common belief that Grand Guignol theater is an outmoded form, of marginal interest to anyone but horror history enthusiasts and academics. To borrow Dr. Frankenstein’s famous assertion: “It’s alive.”

Read the full review.

Attention all Grand Guignol collectors! A copy of the March 1950 edition of the men’s pin-up magazine SEE is up for sale on eBay. This issue features a rare article about the Grand Guignol theatre. It was one of the first articles I found when I started my research in the mid 1980s, and has been posted on our GrandGuignol.com website since its inception.

The article features several photos of the theatre, performances, and audience. Three pages in all.

We don’t know the seller, nor can we personally vouch for him/her, but with 100% positive feedback and over 1300 transactions, well… that’s good enough for us to recommend this auction.

If you follow follow eBay, you know how rarely Grand Guignol-related items appear on the site. This looks like a good opportunity to grab something fun for the collection.

Click “view & bid” below for all the details, and happy bidding!

A very special event at our Hypnodrome theatre on Sunday, April 20th, 7:00pm. Hosted by Rumi Missabu of the Cockettes and featuring many special guests. Sure to be a wild night!

The reviews are coming in for our current show “Flaming Sin: London’s Grand Guignol” and we’re, well… thrilled. We had no idea how people would react to an evening of Noel Coward sophistication, Grand Guignol excess, and a very “blue” floor show, but it looks like we’re not the only ones crazy enough to think it’s a fun time.

The San Francisco Bay Guardian’s Giattina offers a great capsule review:

Going to the Hypnodrome, where Grand Guignol theater company Thrillpeddlers dwell, is spooky enough. The cast of characters that greet you as you enter the ramshackle warehouse situated on a deserted SoMa corner under a freeway overpass exude a distinct Addams Family vibe. Even though they couldn’t be more welcoming, you can’t help be a little fretful of these macabre-loving creatures of the night. What might they do to you once you’ve let your guard down? It’s guaranteed that they’ll treat you to an arousing evening of theater, as they have done for many audiences over the past 18 years. The current production brings to life an early work of Noel Coward’s, The Better Half, written for the Grand Guignol of London in 1921 when the master of English wit was only 22, and then swiftly buried by Lord Chamberlain, who did not approve of the “loose” morals depicted in this short, sexy one-act in which Alice Louise as Alice executes the loquacious dialogue at just the right clip. After that little joy ride, André de Lorde and Alfred Binet’s thoroughly eerie Old Women traps you in a deep freeze. The post-show skits and film clips range from the kinky to creepy — especially when the lights go all the way out.

Ann Rostow writes in the San Francisco Bay Times:

Flaming Sin makes for grand theatrical fun for fans of Coward and horror alike; this show is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

Chloe Veltman, theatre critic for the SF Weekly, writes:

Thrillpeddlers, the city’s very own permanant company devoted to recreating the works of the now long-defunct Parisian Grand Guignol theatre… should become a regular stop on the San Francisco trail for locals and visitors looking to sample something of the city’s more lurid side.

And:

By the time I staggered out of The Hypnodrome at around 11.30 the other night, I felt emotionally exhausted and spiritually uplifted. It was one of the stranger evenings I’ve spent at the theatre. I don’t think I’ll forget it in a hurry.

“Flaming Sin” is scheduled to run through May 3rd. There’s still time to buy tickets through BrownPaperTickets.com.

We’re just one day away from the release of Tim Burton’s Sweeney Todd DVD, and the movie blogs are buzzing about it. Thrillpeddlers are featured in the documentary Grand Guignol: A Theatrical Tradition, which seems to be a stand-out among the DVD’s bonus features.

From Dread Central:

Grand Guignol: A Theatrical Tradition, takes a look at the birth of horror theatre in France and the impact it had on both the Broadway musical and, of course, the film itself. As a huge fan of everything Grand Guignol, seeing its history documented from its birth in 1897 to present day was an absolute dream for me! Riddled with still photos and lots of insight, this is one part of this set you just don’t want to miss.

From ING:

Perhaps the most interesting and slightly off-topic featurettes is Grand Guignol: A Theatrical Tradition. Grand Guignol chronicles the history of a horror theater in France and its influence on the Broadway production of Sweeney Todd.

From Obsessed With Film:

Grand Guignol: A Theatrical Tradition - LOVED this nice doc about the history of the Grand Guignol, which very much informs this musical and film adaptation. Once again, many of the old sites that once housed Grand Guignol plays still stand in London to this day, which just amazes me.

From DVD Maniacs:

Grand Guignol: A Theatrical Tradition (19:12) is a fascinating featurette that explores the origins of the Parisian theatrical tradition that started in 1897 in an old deconsecrated chapel and became a phenomena. There are some great pictures of various productions and footage from the theater itself, and some interesting interviews with authors and experts who have written about the history of Grand Guignol. We learn how the theater managed to capture the atmosphere of horror and in turn made a mark for itself. From there the differences between Grand Guignol and English Melodrama are covered before Sweeney Todd’s place in both traditions is covered. Also discussed how sometimes social commentary would creep into the plays and how the French Grand Guignol plays influenced early American horror films.

From DVD Movie Guide:

Grand Guignol: A Theatrical Tradition lasts 19 minutes and 14 seconds. In it we hear from Cardiff School of Creative and Cultural Industries Professors Richard J. Hand and Michael Wilson, The Grand Guignol: Theatre of Fear and Terror author Mel Gordon, “Le Theatre du Grand-Guignol” director Charles Nonon’s great-grandson Eric Horton, “Thrillpeddlers Hypnodrome” producer Russell Blackwood, and “Thrillpeddlers” co-founder/playwright Daniel Zilber. We get an examination of the history of Grand Guignol theater and aspects of the genre. “Tradition” digs into the subject well and proves quite informative.

From Soundtrack.net:

Grand Guignol: A Theatrical Tradition is a 19-minute exploration of the old 19th century Parisian tradition of macabre theater. It’s very in-depth and takes us from the back alleys of Paris where the theater found its roots (reminding me very much of the Théâtre des Vampires in Interview with the Vampire) to the modern day incarnation in San Francisco.

And finally, from DVD File:

Grand Guignol: A Theatrical Tradition (19:14) is my favorite featurette; it focuses on a particular style of theater and film, which began in Paris in 1897 and eventually evolved into today’s horror genre.

Please note, the Grand Guignol bonus feature is only on the special 2-Disc Collector’s Edition.

If you weren’t able to tune into yesterday’s interview of Richard Hand and Eddie Muller on KALW’s “Open Air,” we’ve got you covered. Here’s the full audio of their segment, hosted by Alan Farley. You can listen to the program from your browser by clicking the “play” button on the audio player below, or use the download link to download the mp3 file to your computer. The file is compatible with all iPods and digital audio players. The segment is 29 minutes long (13.3 MB).

Richard and Eddie discuss the history of the Grand Guignol, how Noel Coward came to write a Grand Guignol play, how the play was lost and discovered, and our current (U.S. premiere) production at the Hypnodrome. It’s required listening for Noel Coward fans and Grand Guignol fans alike.

…Or right-click the link below and “save as” to download:
Download Thrillpeddlers on KALW’s “Open Air”

San Francisco public radio station KALW (91.7 FM) will feature Thrillpeddlers on the “Open Air” broadcast this Tuesday, March 25th at 1:00pm. Host Alan Farley interviews professor Richard Hand and director Eddie Muller about our U.S. Premiere production of Noel Coward’s long-lost comedy “The Better Half.”

If you’re not in San Francisco, you can listen live via the KALW website (Windows Media and RealAudio only).

Writer Kelli Stanley blogs about a preview performance of our new show, “Flaming Sin: London’s Grand Guignol.” She summarizes her in-depth review this way:

So even if you’re not particularly a fan of the Vault of Horror, troop down to the Hypnodrome on 10th street in San Francisco — for a twenty dollar seat, you’ll get a night of rich entertainment: a scintillating and brilliantly-directed new Noel Coward confection, and a stomach-churning, over-the-top George Romero-style French classic. How can you miss?

It’s great to see that audiences coming for the Noel Coward can also appreciate our more ‘traditional’ Grand Guignol fare. Good theatre is good theatre, right?

[Read Kelli’s full post at Writing In The Dark]

As the April 1st release date nears, the first reviews of Tim Burton’s Sweeney Todd DVD are starting to hit the web. Why do we care? Thrillpeddlers are featured in the documentary Grand Guignol: A Theatrical Tradition included on the 2-disc collector’s edition. It looks like the DVD producers did an excellent job of lining up some truly interesting bonus features, and it’s great to see that they’re getting some good press.

This from Fangoria:

Disc two includes a fine collection of featurettes that cover specific elements of the SWEENEY production, as well as the tale’s background. The latter are actually of the greatest interest, as Sweeney’s London takes a look at the squalid side of the city’s history, along the way revealing the gruesome origins of the traditional barber pole, while Sweeney Alive: The Real History of the Demon Barber chronicles the character through historian and author interviews and vintage illustrations. (It’s pointed out here that the villain was partially inspired by 16th-century Scottish cannibal Sawney Bean, who also influenced THE HILLS HAVE EYES and other contemporary chillers, and that the flesheating which some might find SWEENEY’s most shocking element was actually a staple of many traditional fairy tales.) Grand Guignol: A Theatrical Tradition takes a fascinating look at the famous French showcase for onstage gore, noting its origins as “naturalist” drama, its influence on early Hollywood fright fare and how it fell out of favor in the wake of the horrors of WWII.

Can’t wait to see it (and find out if any of my interview made it into the final cut). I’ll post a full write-up on the Grand Guignol featurette as soon as my copy arrives.

You can order the two-disc collector’s edition from Amazon for only $22.99 ($12 off). So what are you waiting for?