What if you had a party and 100 uninvited guests show up?
That’s the premise of “Mrs. Krishnan’s Party,” which Arizona Arts Live is bringing to Tucson for eight performances over nine days beginning Thursday, Feb. 27.
The show will be performed at Maya Tea Warehouse, which is normally closed to the public.
“Our tagline is ‘experiencing unexpected’ and this is not too far from that because it is an unexpected place,” said Arizona Arts Live director Chad Herzog.
Arizona Arts Live is hosting the Indian Ink show as way to promote cultural inclusivity, joy and friendship in a fully immersive theatrical experience, he said. The audience, limited to 118 a night, can come sit at the Top Table (starting at $50) in the center of the room, where they will get first class service and a place to rest their drink.
In the Inner Circle, premium seats (starting at $45) are close to all the action.
Or you can be a Wallflower ($40) closer to the back of the venue or, if you want to be a bit further from the action, check out Cheeky Seats (starting at $35).
Then there’s the Party Animals ($30), the ones who have come to dance and be part of the action.
And there will be plenty of opportunities to dance after DJ James starts spinning the tunes from the upstairs of Mrs. Krishnan’s convenience store.
James decides to invite a few friends over to hear his DJ skills but when way more than a few friends show up so – that would be the audience – Mrs. Krishnan has no choice but to turn it into a great party.
The setting at Maya Tea Warehouse is special because it is not somewhere that people usually get to experience.
“You enter a space that you don’t expect to go to a party in and you go around the corner and here’s this great thing happening in front of your eyes,” Herzog said. “When you walk in, the smells of this tea factory are just incredible … and that alone is a sensory party.”
“For a lot of us, we will be able to relate to the two characters in the piece in one way or another and it is a time that will bring great joy in live experience and laughter and fun,” he added. The show allows “us to maybe unplug from the world around us. It reminds us that families aren’t just something we are born into, it is something we create.”
This is the first time since 2023 that Arizona Arts Live has presented a multi-day event and taken it outside of the UA venues. “The Strange Undoing of Prudencia Heart” sold out during its run at the Shirt Shop Mercantile downtown.
“A lot of the performances we do, it’s about breaking barriers, sharing laughter and discovering friendship.” Herzog said. “‘Mrs. Krishnan’s Party’ is just like that; the celebration invites everyone in. And at this moment in our life, joy is always better when shared.”
Performances are at Thursdays-Saturdays, Feb. 27-March 1 and March 6-8. For tickets, visit arizonaartslive.com.
Arizona Sonoran News is a news service of the University of Arizona School of Journalism.
