If you’re up for a different sort of adventure this spooky season, consider attending the latest piece of theater conceptualized by Jenny McConnell Frederick for Rorschach Theatre. Written by McConnell Frederick, Randy Baker (co-founders and artistic directors), and other members of Rorschach Theatre, and brought to eerie life by the creative team, this is an evening you’ll be puzzling over long after the production ends.
Rorschach is known for its use of found spaces and immersive, experiential theater. Their newest piece, SPARKED: The Vanishing at Buzzard Point, uses audio, video, visual installations, and performances to create a unique evening of storytelling. Inspired by true events in 1933, SPARKED invites audiences into the Five Dead Horses Tavern. The bar’s “Regulars” lead guests in groups on an exploration through space and time, weaving in and out of four empty retail locations at The Stacks as the story of one unimaginable occurrence unfolds: two lovers disappear amid a once-in-a-lifetime storm.
The evening begins as you reach the theater entrance and receive a lightning bolt necklace. My guest and I noticed different-colored options and soon discovered why. As we made our way into the unfinished space, with its looming ceilings and mix of otherworldly and mysterious decor, we headed to the bar area. Various tables and couches surrounded a small center table marked “reserved”; patrons around us speculated it would be used as part of the performance. The storytelling began in earnest with Andrew Quilpa as Byrd, the bartender, setting the scene back in 1933 and giving us the smallest amount of backstory on the two lovers, Loren (Abel Haddish) and Zella (Irene Hamilton), who inexplicably disappeared during the night of a raging storm. One of the bar’s “Regulars” (in our case, Erik Harrison, who also contributed to the writing) asked us to look at our lightning bolts to determine which group we would join. Once we were sorted, we headed off to experience the remaining scenes of the show. (The sequence of these scenes will differ depending on one’s group.)
As we walked into our first location, where we were introduced to the lovers, I was struck by the meticulously crafted mood. Period details told us we had gone back in time to the 1930s. Fringed lamps with low lighting, artwork strewn about the dimly lit bedroom, and music coming through the static-filled radio helped set the tone. Throughout the entire production, I was struck by how special and intricate the sound, lighting, and video were, and how important they were to the overall feel of the piece. Designers Ben Harvey and Dean Leong (lighting), Andrés Poch (video), and Kristina Manente (sound) did an outstanding job — incorporating moving shadows, projection, music, and more to fully create and transform each unfinished space while preserving elements of mystery throughout. Actors Hamilton and Haddish were alternately playful and serious, providing glimpses into their relationship as their time with us unfolded. Later, as I reflected on the performances and information we received, I wished there had been a bit more time spent here to really connect with those two more firmly as the focus of the storyline.
Our second stop was perhaps my favorite. Again, we entered a very spare, high-ceilinged room, destined to become retail space in The Stacks, but currently functioning as a backyard adjacent to Zella’s apartment. I stood through this scene rather than take a provided seat, as in the space before I felt a little constrained in what I could see. Claude, portrayed by Robert Bowen Smith, was a fantastic counterpoint to the scene we had just observed. Vacillating between high-energy bursts and solemn declarations, singing, dancing, and crouching throughout his scene, Smith had me riveted. Plus, the ending to this section was a chilling revelation.
The third stop (for the black-colored lightning bolt crew, at least) was a space filled with visual and audio “clues” of a sort. We were handed a flashlight, and the room remained in darkness except for those. Poems, old letters and photographs, and newspaper clippings joined handwritten questions that had us thinking and questioning what we had already seen, looking for links that could provide more information and context to the story. Finally, all groups returned to the Five Dead Horses bar, and Byrd once again filled in a little more information about Zella and Loren and the way their romance had begun.
My friend and I ended our evening nursing drinks and trying to piece together the events we had witnessed. If you are looking for a clear ending, you won’t find one here. If you want a resolution to the question of what happened that night — if that even is the question you are meant to solve — I’m not sure you’ll find one. I have no problem with a cliffhanger ending, and I read a lot of thrillers and mysteries, but at times I felt frustrated because I wasn’t sure what question I was trying to answer. And maybe that is the answer: some things are just beyond our explanation and understanding.
I believe one of the benefits of exploring the arts is the curiosity they can inspire in us. The next day I found myself googling “Buzzard Point” and “The Stacks” and “is there a power plant on Buzzard Point?” The show intrigued me enough that I carried out my own investigation to satisfy the questions I had developed by watching this piece of art. If a haunted house or dressing up in costume has little appeal, I recommend you take the journey to Buzzard Point and immerse yourself in Rorschach Theatre’s exploration of what may have happened one night long ago.
Running Time: Approximately 80 minutes.
SPARKED: The Vanishing at Buzzard Point plays through November 15, 2026, produced by Rorschach Theatre, performing at The Stacks at Buzzard Point, 101 V Street SW, Washington, DC. Tickets (regular, $50; senior and student, $35; limited number of $20 InkTix for every show) are available online.
SPARKED: The Vanishing at Buzzard Point
Concept and Story by Jenny McConnell Frederick
Written by Jenny McConnell Frederick and Randy Baker, with contributions from Erik Harrison, Andrew Quilpa, and the Company
Directed by Elizabeth Ung, Esteban Marmolejo-Suarez, Jenny McConnell Frederick, and Randy Baker
Set Design: Brandon Roak and Margarita Syrocheva; Costume Design: Jessica Utz; Props Design: Rooster Sultan; Stage Management: Josh Diewald and Madeline Mustin
The complete credits are here.
SEE ALSO:
What sparked Rorschach Theatre’s ‘SPARKED’ at Buzzard Point? (interview feature by Chad Kinsman, October 22, 2026)
