28 SEEDS

When you get a group together to try and turn a steampunk radio play into a steampunk musical, some problems are simply unavoidable.

“The monkey-knife fight was pretty tough to translate to the stage,”

muses playwright/bandmember Meff on the Liars & Believers Theater Company/Walter Sickert & The Army of Broken Toys band collaboration, but struggles like these are not in vain. 28 Seeds works to give its audience a totally unique theater experience, an apocalyptic rock opera that doesn’t stoop to the doldrums of today’s rock musicals.

Seeds originates from the aforementioned Broken Toys, who released 28 Seeds: The Last Radio Play back in 2010. The end of the world is the name of the game, but “government conspiracy, burlesque, ray guns, and tentacles” also show themselves. Today, the LP has grown into a more tangible entity, starting its month-long run as a live show at the Boston Center for the Arts on April 19.

“It’s sort of a musical, but not a musical,” explains Broken Toys member Edrie. “It’s very interactive; it’s Sleep No More meets the crazy thing your uncle does. We want to have the most fully immersive experience as possible.”

Immersive is indeed a driving force in Seeds, from the musical’s characters tweeting in real life about their fabricated universe’s end to an accompanying comic book for theater patrons.

This is a musical that simply refuses to stay on stage.

And for those squeamish about the terms “theater” or “musical,” 28 Seeds is set to become your new best friend.

“I want people who go to rock shows, or people who read comic books to be like, ‘Oh, I feel like there’s a place for me,’” says Meff. “It’s not Andrew Lloyd Weber, it’s totally different.”

28 SEEDS
PRESENTED BY LIARS & BELIEVERS THEATER CO.

RUNS THRU SAT 5.12.12
BOSTON CENTER FOR THE ARTS
PLAZA THEATRE
539 TREMONT ST.
BOSTON
TIMES VARY/16+/$35
@ARMYOFTOYS
LIARSANDBELIEVERS.COM