Wham City Comedy presents ‘Reverse Transmission,’ a horror-comedy radio-play just in time for Halloween
Wham City Comedy has been hard at work over the past few months releasing several new projects across a variety of different platforms. The Baltimore based art collective is known for their surreal and unnerving brand of horror-comedy, and they have continued that tradition with, “Reverse Transmission,” an Audible original radio-play written by Param Anand Singh and directed by Ben O’Brien.
“Reverse Transmission,” is a non-linear audio story that draws from anxieties surrounding the exponential expansion of technology. Set in the near future, we follow Jay (voiced by Dani Montalvo), a misanthropic young artist as she begins her new job as the superfluous driver of a self-driving car (voiced by Alan Resnick). Then, things escalate when the C.A.R. (Cybernetic Autonomous Rickshaw), murders a pedestrian and convinces Jay to help dispose of the body.
The particular style and unconventional format of the narrative speaks to the immense possibilities of a modern radio-play. It appears as though the entirety of the story is recorded on cassettes, and the version the audience hears is a recording of someone listening to those tapes as they rewind and fast-forward through different parts.
The lack of visuals fit the story perfectly — it complements the eerie atmosphere and suspense because the audience has to use their imagination to fill in the gaps. This also lends to the sense that there is an unknown force manipulating the events of the story from inside out.
The central mystery of the piece is figuring out who is responsible for the murders. Has the car become sentient and homicidal, or is it being controlled by another person? Additionally, the format and the unheard listener suggest that someone might be deliberately picking and choosing each moment to playback for the real audience. This ultimately raises the question — how was all of this recorded in the first place and why? Why is it on cassette even though this takes place in the future? These small details subtlety accentuate the haunting absurdity as the story progresses.
Every time the listener feels as though they are starting to comprehend what’s happening, another questions pops up that seems to scramble everything that preceded it. Even if they have one thing figured out, there are several other head-scratching moments that are left up for interpretation that also impact the narrative.
Apart from the mystery and horror that permeates “Reverse Transmission,” the inherent humor makes the characters endearing. The tone has an ebb and flow that teeters between silly and haunting. C.A.R.’s conversations with Jay standout because its ignorance of certain aspects of humanity is both a source of comedy and horror in a way that is ultimately likable. C.A.R’s overly aggregable and cheery demeanor juxtaposes some of the sinister undertones of what he says and he is just fun to listen to.
What makes these scenes work so well is the performances of the voice actors. Resnick nails the almost childlike nature of C.A.R. and it rebounds off of Jay’s blunt and callous remarks. The writing is believable and real. It sounds like a ridiculous and uncertain future being patched in from another dimension. As silly and surreal as it gets, the heart of the story is believable enough that it validates the surreal elements and adds to the overall sense of looming dread and lack of control.
There are so many aspects of this narrative that are worth mentioning, but describing them in too much detail would do a disservice to the story. This is something that needs to be experienced to even begin to be understood. But even then, it isn’t enough to fully comprehend what happens here. It leaves you completely confounded in the best way possible — desperate to know more, upset that it ended and determined to figure it out.
This is a must listen for fans of Wham City Comedy and everyone who loves a good non-linear mystery.
Check out “Reverse Transmission,” premiering on Audible on Oct. 24.
