Octet is a chamber choir musical written and composed by Dave Malloy and directed by Annie Tippe. The show "explores addiction and nihilism within the messy context of 21st century technology."[1]
Eight Internet addicts gather in a support group called "Friends of Saul" in a church basement and share their stories, in a score for an a cappella chamber choir and an original libretto inspired by internet comment boards, scientific debates, religious texts, and Sufi poetry.[2][failed verification]
Musical numbers
The musical is structured around a series of hymns and "shares," as the group members explain their relationship to technology. Each song corresponds to one of the Major Arcana cards in a tarot deck.[3][4]
Part 1
I. "Hymn: The Forest" - All
II. "Refresh" - Jessica & Chorus
III. "Candy" - Henry & Chorus
IV. "Glow" - Paula
V. "Fugue State" - All
Part 2
VI. "Hymn: Monster" - Women, All
VII. "Solo" - Karly, Ed, All
VIII. "Actually" - Toby, Chorus
IX. "Little God" - Marvin, Chorus
X. "Tower Tea Ceremony" - All
XI. "Beautiful" - Velma
XII. "Hymn: The Field" - All
Productions
The piece premiered on May 19, 2019, at Off-Broadway at the Signature Theatre in New York City. It was extended three times in June, ultimately finishing on June 30.[5]
The production was Directed and Choreographed by Annie Tippe, with Music Supervision & Music Direction by Or Matias, Scenic Design by Amy Rubin & Brittany Vasta, Costume Design by Brenda Abbandandolo, Lighting Design by Christopher Bowser, Sound Design by Hidenori Nakajo, and Production Stage Management by Jhanaë Bonnick[6]
Octet had its West Coast premiere at Berkeley Repertory Theatre on April 20, 2022, once again directed by Annie Tippe. It ran until May 29, 2022.[7]
On May 22, 2025, Raven Theatre in Chicago, Illinois, announced that it will present the Chicago premiere of Octet, directed by Keira Fromm, as part of its 43rd season.[8] The production is scheduled to run from April 30 to June 7, 2026, this will be the first time it will be performed in the Midwest.[9]
The show opens in September 2025 at Crow's Theatre in Toronto.
This paragraph may be unbalanced towards certain viewpoints. Please help improve it by adding information on neglected viewpoints. Relevant discussion may be found on the talk page.(July 2019)
The piece was well received by the New York press. Ben Brantley of the New York Times calling it "a sublime chamber opera" that "promises to be the most original and topical musical of the year." He praised the performers as "uniformly excellent" and whose "layered and contrapuntal voices produce a dazzling spectrum of effects".[11] Sara Holdren of Vulture wrote that "Octet is that rare and thrilling thing: a new musical that really does feel new. Formally, it’s both unique and invigorating — and it’s rigorous and straightforward enough in its structure for its ideas to spiral into rich, dense fractals. In the face of a virtual world where “there’s no coming back / No rehabilitation / No nuance / Just noise,” it takes a bravely unequivocal yet generous stand. It sings of darkness, blindness, and fear, but it sings also of complexity, connection, redemption, and hope."[3] Adam Feldman of Time Out New York gave Octet 5 ouf of 5 stars and wrote: "Under Annie Tippe’s taut direction, all eight bits of Octet’s byte-size cast perform Malloy’s challenging compositions with exceptional skill, abetted by Or Matias’s musical direction and Hidenori Nakajo’s sound design. As Broadway shows increasingly rely on massive spectacle, Octet proves that well-polished pieces of eight are enough."[12] David Cote of Observer wrote that it was not only "one of the most thought-provoking and soul-stirring musicals I’ve seen in ages, it has an ingeniously woven, harmonically lush score that you’ll want to revisit."[13]
↑ "Season 43 - Raven Theatre Chicago". Raven Theatre Chicago - Bringing modern drama to Chicago's north side for over 35 years. May 15, 2025. Retrieved May 22, 2025.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
