Chicago’s own Levi Holloway has established himself as a leader in the horror-theater genre — yes, it’s a thing. But what’s great about “Paranormal Activity” — the U.S. premiere now at Chicago Shakespeare Theater and soon headed to Los Angeles, Washington D.C. and San Francisco — is that this genre specialist has been paired with Felix Barrett. Barrett is the immersive maestro of the British company Punchdrunk and an artist demonstrably skilled in making audiences feel like they have been trapped in a pitch black room with a demon and cannot get out.
So it goes with “Paranormal Activity,” a show based on the Paramount Pictures movie franchise, which specializes in horror in intimate, domestic settings. The live stage version can’t repeat old plots of course, so it comes with a fresh story about a young married couple (played by Cher Álvarez and Patrick Heusinger) who have moved from Chicago to London to escape their demons from past sins, only to find that …
Nobody wants to read some critic blathering on a horror show without answering the one thing most people will want to know: Will I be scared? And, if so, how scared?
Yes. Very. Cleverly, too.
And this is not some solo analysis. There were more screams, shouts and screeches floating around The Yard Theatre than at a City Hall budget hearing. On the night I was there, people were, to say the least, engaged. “Paranormal Activity,” which also features juicy performances from the Chicago actors Shannon Cochran and Kate Fry, is intentionally a slow, dramatic burn. Like the film franchise (or at least the ones I’ve seen), much care is taken here to establish characters making a desperate lunge for normalcy — in this case for a new life with maybe a kid on the way.
A kid is on the way, it turns out, but not that kind of kid.
This, by the way, is not parody horror. People laugh when they’re scared, but this is not “Get Out.” Not the purpose. The purpose is an old-school scare.
Better yet, this is an analog experience that well knows its biggest asset is the dislocation that an audience used to horror movies feels when it’s being scared by actual humans (well, some actual, some not). There is no CGI nor digital trickery, at least not that one can perceive. Just doors that hide things, rooms with secrets, realistic props that take on lives of their own, all arrayed on an intentionally dull and realistic set by Fly Davis, evoking a house in the nation where this show was first seen. Aside from a more bankable title, “Paranormal Activity” struck me in the end as a more effective show than Holloway’s prior Broadway horror play “Grey House,” which I liked, but that struggled with too much going on.
Cher Álvarez and Patrick Heusinger in “Paranormal Activity” in The Yard at Chicago Shakespeare Theater. (Kyle Flubacker)
This one has a much sparser script. Here, the demons have all the time they need, and if you ever wanted to watch how blackouts can effectively be used in the theater, well, director Barrett offers a blueprint. The show, which is about to tour to those other cities, is in excellent technical shape and cleverly lights (and darkens) the house (which you can easily do at The Yard) to increase the immersive claustrophobia, despite the big theater. The two leads clearly have been directed to be as minimalist as possible, which, especially in the case of Álvarez, who under-vocalizes and is less emotionally demonstrative than ideal, sometimes lowers the blood pressure too much. But you can see the purpose when all hell lets loose.
Note that this is an embrace-the-genre attraction, replete with a medium and most of the other familiar nomenclature. There’s not a lot beyond that. (“Oak,” another new and scary show you currently can see at Raven Theatre, offers more social commentary with its jumps.) This is not one of Holloway’s complex allegories. Au contraire. This is a Halloween show, a date show, a night out where you can draw your sweaty sweetie close.
Although maybe also a show to make you wonder what past action of your own will one day come back to haunt your dreams.
Chris Jones is a Tribune critic.
cjones5@chicagotribune.com
Review: “Paranormal Activity” (3.5 stars)
When: Through Nov. 2
Where: The Yard at Chicago Shakespeare Theater on Navy Pier, 800 E. Grand Ave.
Running time: 2 hours, 5 minutes
Tickets: $62-$115 at 312-295-5600 and chicagoshakes.com
Originally Published: October 17, 2025 at 10:06 AM CDT