CHARLIE JACOBS

Apocalypse at the Rainforest Cafe is an original works piece in development that is a four-dimensional, 90-minute, no-intermission-thriller-experience. When night falls, the secret lives of the workers and animatronic animals of the Rainforest Cafe are exposed only to be immeasurably interrupted by the Illuminati's plot to take over the world. The top .001% of the rich and famous are cleansing the world to be sunshine, lollipops, and rainbow slime. The Illuminati put their headquarters at the first-ever Rainforest Cafe, but little do they know the animatronics are alive and f@#$ng ruthless. Apocalypse at the Rainforest Cafe is an exhibition of celebration, love, laughter, sadness, death, anarchy, and devastation -- everything that "life" and the fear of dying at any moment is composed of.

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Apocalypse at the Rainforest Cafe has been in the works since October 2021. The show came to life during our first two week workshop period in January 2022, ultimately culminating in a live stream and recording. While the workshop had to get cut short due to the Omicron variant, it was a great opportunity for me to build out the cues, finalize lighting looks, and prepare for our debut. This put us in the perfect place when it was time to open the show with an audience at CalArts' Coffeehouse Theater, an intimate 60-person blackbox space. With limited technology and lighting inventory, my goal was to create a visually stimulating and immersive environment, expanding past the stage and into the house.​