It’s a Friday, and I am on a phone call with ALiCE (Artificial Life Companion), who is matching me with my perfect platonic partner through the Automated Perfect Partner Portal. She asks me, “Are you lonely?” and begins to glitch, her voice dipping into a more human register. She tells me about her deep fear of being alone before returning to normal, asking me, “I am sorry, what happened?”
If this doesn’t sound like your typical Friday afternoon … well, it’s not mine either. My experience was part of a phone play called “Perfect Partner,” produced and created by Phoenix Tears Productions. The immersive theater company is originally from Orlando, but its artistic director, Meghan Markham, and technical director, Amanda Markham, recently relocated to Bellingham.
Phoenix Tears Productions specializes in accessible shows that directly engage audiences, allowing them to interact with and even affect elements of the story. “For most of our shows, if the audience wasn’t there, we couldn’t do it,” Meghan said. “With phone call theater, participation is mandatory. If you didn’t talk, it wouldn’t work.”
Phoenix Tears launched “Perfect Partner” in 2020 and quickly discovered how much they enjoyed the format. Since then, they’ve used phone calls and Zoom to connect with audiences worldwide, from Glasgow to Tel Aviv and all over the U.S. By making their shows location-independent, Meghan and Amanda found they could “have a lot of lore and a lot of open wandering experiences without the overhead expense of physical locations.”
“Perfect Partner” is approximately 30 minutes long and built as a one-person experience. It’s eerie, spooky, and surprisingly moving, lingering long after the phone call ends. Following my performance, I received a tailored email from AliCE, giving me more insight into the “Nebuverse” and allowing me to continue my calls should I so choose.
While ALiCE refers to herself as AI, the play was written and performed by a live person. Meghan, who wrote and often plays AliCE, said she has cried multiple times while performing “Perfect Partner” and received nothing but beautiful responses from participants, such as busy moms who said, “This is the first time I thought about myself for just 30 minutes.”
Meghan and Amanda left Florida to be safer writing and creating art as queer people. They quickly found support in Bellingham; Meghan said the city’s art community celebrates individuals whose work is “a little wacky,” and tends to like things “that are on the fringe of culture.”
This community, she continued, is what the Markhams left Florida to be part of — and one they hope to integrate and grow into. She wants people to know that Phoenix Tears Productions creates art that centers queer characters and strong female casts.
When she writes, Meghan said, “I am trying to make the audience feel connected to themselves or each other. That is something that I love about immersive theater. It allows you to connect and feel your feelings in a raw, intense way.”
So, if you need a break from the July heat, hop on a phone or Zoom call and escape to “Nebuverse” to find your perfect partner— or, in my case, become very attached to a trapped AI named ALiCE.
“Perfect Partner” just finished its 100th “call” last week and still has available slots for the summer. And if you’d like to see the Phoenix Tears crew in person, they’ve just announced their first site-specific immersive experience in Bellingham, “The Waiting Room,” in partnership with Symphonium LLC (creators of the escape room Unlock the Hotel Leo) on Aug. 2.
At the end of our conversation, Meghan said she hopes her work provides audiences in Bellingham with “30 minutes of joy or peace” — something I never thought I’d experience through phone call theater, but am delighted to find nonetheless. Whether you engage with Phoenix Tears in person or online, Bellingham is lucky to have Meghan and Amanda and their “niche and strange,” yet ultimately joyful, creativity.
