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Late-Night Performance (One Night Only) 6/21/25 – The Apohadion Theater

Healing. Community. Protest. These tenants are what music is to intrepid Chimera Theater Collective leader Chris, and they were all things that were on full display in this lively, interactive late night show!

Choosing to seat the audience in the round was an effective choice. It created a community vibe and encouraged participation not just with Chris but with people across the circle too! Overall I appreciated the song choices of the program – it was clear a lot of thought went into their curation. Most of the songs spoke to me about the tumultuous, unforgivable times we’re living in while still allowing me to find hope, protest, and acceptance.

One moment I especially enjoyed was when we were split into 4 groups and led in an improvisation involving singing and rhythm. People got VERY into it, and it was a neat reminder that music can come from nothing but a group of people game to give it a try. Chris was not afraid to own any mistakes that occurred during the performance, freeing the audience to feel comfortable making mistakes too and enjoying song for song’s sake!

The evening lost some momentum in the second act with an attempt to learn harmonies for a slower song via piano, but picked right back up into the third and final portion of the program. I’m curious if for a future iteration of this, Chris and Chimera might lean more into the acapella route of teaching which was very effective for the other songs in the performance.

People singing together is indeed a powerful experience, and at one point Chris said something along the lines of “if you cry during this, hopefully it’s because you were moved and not because I hurt you.” Well, dear reader, I can confirm that I did cry AND was not hurt!! My tears came from the power of music led by a brave facilitator (in INCREDIBLE boots) bringing people together in song. I would encourage you to check it out, but sorry! It was one night only! And on the evening of both Pride and the first full day of summer, a fleeting gathering of strangers singing together felt just right.

Review Submitted on 6/22/25 by Naomi D’Plume, PF25 Independent Review Team