Redmoon Theater stages 'Revolution'

The Redmoon Theater’s “Revolution” was a typical New Year’s Eve bash in much the same way that a Faberge is a typical egg. Yes, there was a champaign toast at midnight, a traditional rendition of “Auld Lang Syne,” and streams of confetti in the air but those ideas were about as “typical” as this evening got.

Photo spread at the link: windycitytimes.com/gay/lesbian/news/photospreadthumbs.php?APUB=wct&ADATE=2014-01-07&AGALLERY=RedmoonChosenHester.

The champaign was poured at the beginning of the evening, along with fine confections by an assortment of acrobatic aerialists who descended from an elaborate chandelier. A trio of alligator-masked pranksters with air rifles poured the confetti. And as for “Auld Lang Syne,” Redmoon’s take had a DJ spinning dance tracks from a makeshift cherry-picker that included a drummer flailing away in a flaming drum kit and lots and lots of bubbles. At the stroke of midnight the song did get sung as a jerry-rigged tractor wheeled out drummers releasing their collective ids on kettle drums, tom-toms and snares with all manner of mallets.

“Revolution” was Redmoon’s remake/remodel of the traditional New Year’s bash, and like its take on All Hallows Eve (“Boneshaker,” see Bent Nights in the online edition of the Nov. 5, 2013, Windy City Times), it grabbed the ideas and went running with them in all directions. Yes, the beverages flowed, the dancing went on for hours, and the food seemed to arrive non-stop, but this party was about the unexpected. Elegant hostesses in 17th-century lace and satin served fine delicacies (everything from pecan tarts, high end chocolates and slices of custom-made cheese cake from Katherine Ann Confections, First Slice Pie, and Glazed and Infused Doughnuts) while acrobatic aerialists floated over the packed dance floor and performed precision ballet from 40 feet in the air. The wittiest and most glamorous bit may have been the high-fashion ladies who appeared to be wearing gowns made up of silken pleats, but on closer inspection said pleats were revealed to be dinner napkins. As if all of the glamor was not enough, local Maceo Haymes and his band The Oh My’s played a set that had the capacity crowd on its feet.

As the inaugural event of Redmoon Theater’s bogarting of the idea of New Year’s Eve, this party was all glamour, warmth and frolics—and nobody had time to complain about the horrid weather.