Coming Soon: Monster Party (2026)

Monster Party, the cocktail party from hell set during the height of McCarthyism and its Lavender Scare returns to LA for a six show run.

Originally staged in 2024, with a 2025 fundraiser pop-up in 2025, the show marked the return of LA immersive party impresario Matt Dorado, of Drunken Devil fame, to the scene with a renewed focus on story.

We’ve chatted with Dorado about the show before, more than once, and now look ahead to the remount taking place at LA’s Rita House this April 16-25.

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NO PROSCENIUM: For those who didn’t catch the previous version, what is Monster Party? What makes it immersive?

Matt Dorado: Monster Party is an immersive play that takes place within the context of a cocktail party, c. early 1950s Washington D.C.. Audience members play the role of guests invited to the home of The Baroness, an enigmatic socialite who may or may not have dark ties to some high-ranking political figures. The evening is mostly sandbox-style immersive, where audience members can engage with various characters, including a strange group of fellow party attendees, and The Baroness’ peculiar staff members. The show is set against the backdrop of McCarthyism – specifically the period that would later be known as the Lavender Scare, when queer government workers were outed and fired because they were identified as “national security risks” – so rumors, hearsay, and accusations all play a role in storytelling. It’s as much a show as it is a social experiment, and I’m excited to see how audience members engage with it! 

NP: You’re in a new spot for the 2026 version of the show, are there other changes?

MD: Oh yeah! While the narrative is mostly the same (with some small tweaks here and there), the entire show has been fully reworked and expanded. There are two new characters, adding more depth to the world. Additionally, because we’re now in a house (as opposed to a single room in an art gallery), there are now opportunities for pullaways that happen all throughout the space. It’s the most intricate piece of theatre I’ve created so far in my career, with lots of moving pieces, various show moments, intersecting narratives, and more, all while providing the same nightlife experience folks have come to expect from my projects. 

NP: What was the inspiration for Monster Party, and has that added any new dimensions since the first run in 2024?

MD: Monster Party as a concept has been rolling around in my brain for years. The first iteration was inspired by a Francisco Goya piece (“The sleep of reason produces monsters”), and explored how moral panics – specifically the Lavender Scare – created monsters out of ordinary people. That version of the show ran in October 2024… just about a month before the election. Since then, as you might know, things have spiraled quickly out of control here in America (and, let’s face it, everywhere else), and with that comes a wild new version of Monster Party. In this newly expanded version, we explore how multiple Western American systems – Christianity, warmongering, patriarchy, moral panic – turn people into monsters, terrorizing one another while those in power benefit. The backdrop is the same, but we’ve broken out the narrative to explore how these systems affected folks back then… and still do today. And while we examine this through an extremely campy, melodramatic, and intentionally off-the-wall way, it feels infinitely more relevant than when we had our first run. 

NP: What do you think fans of immersive will find most interesting about this latest experience? 

MD: I think folks are going to enjoy the way this story is told. Gossip is the primary storytelling mechanic here, and guests are encouraged to chat not just with performers, but with each other, in order to drive the narrative. This will allow audience members who love immersive to dig in and get involved with the plot on a deeper level. As the evening goes on, new story points will be tossed into the mix for guests to discover, but some plot points might be revealed earlier or later in the show, depending on the night (and some plot points might not surface at all!) So while the pre-show, interlude, and finale are all the same (they’re all scripted and guide the narrative), the bulk of each show will be different each night, depending on the audience. 

NP: What was the biggest lesson you learned on the previous iterations that you’re happiest about?

MD: If I’m being honest, I think when I produced the proof-of-concept back in 2024, I was still in a “Drunken Devil” mindset. Drunken Devil shows were mostly one-off events, focusing on the “party” element as opposed to the “story.” Also, our budgets were much smaller and our timelines much shorter. I’m very proud of the first iteration but I also think that this story and show deserved more development, more rehearsal, and more time to truly flesh out the world of The Baroness and her hapless guests. A year and a half later, with this new iteration, I’m happy to say that I think we’ve done just that. 

NP: What can fans who are coming to this, or thinking about coming to this, do to get into the mood of the experience?

MD: I may have said this in the Coming Soon article for the first show, but I strongly recommend guests do at least a surface-level dive into McCarthyism and the period of time that would later be called the Lavender Scare. It’s equally fascinating and horrifying, and not unlike the kind of news we’re seeing on a daily basis now. Other than that, I’d say come ready to party! (the tonal whiplash of these statements is really reflective of the show). Monster Party is a zany, chaotic piece of nightlife-theater, and it’s designed to meet guests where they are on the extrovert-introvert scale. So the more you engage, the more information you’ll receive as you piece the story together; but those who’d prefer to sit on the sidelines will have a ringside seat to the madness that unfolds around them. As long as you’re open to having a good time… you will. 

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