If you need a reminder of how great the album Abbey Road is, then go see Things Are Going to Change, I Can Feel It. But if you’re seeking thoughtful alternative theater, skip it. The show, presented by the collective Immediate Medium, is billed as an “absurdist tale” in which a Midwestern stewardess becomes president. Sounds funny, but that notion is sadly spotty in this non-narrative piece. The actors, who are all remarkably emotive despite the murky experiment in which they partake, shake and shimmy to classics like “Come Together” and “Maxwell’s Silver Hammer” behind a screen that illuminates their silhouettes. They also participate in a number of more ominous scenes that appear to signify strangulation. (When they put pillowcases on their heads and douse each other with water, the images—projected through a live video feed—recall Abu Ghraib.) These moments are set to other
Abbey Road hits and to ’60s-style dance moves: step left, step right, and booty shake. Throughout the piece, nearly indiscernible spoken text on seizing control of the government overlaps with confessions on abortion and motherhood. It feels like a lot of talking without much meaning; it’s hard to tell what director J.J. Lind intends in this multimedia production. Too many secrets are no fun. In fact, they hurt someone: the audience.