Performing the Unscripted: Audience as Author and Participant in “HA HA HA HA HA HA HA”

Presented by Yale Repertory Theatre as a touring production from A Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company, HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA was created and is performed by Julia Masli.  It is directed by Kim Noble. First debuting at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, the work arrives with a credible reputation, having garnered numerous awards and enthusiastic critical acclaim. Running approximately one hour, the piece occupies a space between performance art and spectacle, distinguished by its radical interactivity and its insistence on being entirely different each night. I attended the Saturday, January 24th, 2:00 p.m. performance, where anticipation was palpable among both first-time attendees and audience members returning for a second or third encounter with the show.

The performance opens in near-total darkness, punctuated by a face illuminated only by a small light, chanting a repetitive phrase that immediately establishes rhythm, tension, and ritual. Masli then emerges wearing a costume designed by David Curtis-Ring, Annika Thiems, and Alice Wedge—an outfit that deliberately blurs the boundary between science fiction and conceptual art. The costume signals the surreal logic of the world to come, preparing the audience for a theatrical experience that resists conventional narrative.  From the start, Masli moves into the audience, using repetition and vocal escalation to draw spectators into active participation rather than passive observation.

Central to the work is Masli’s ability to transform audience members into collaborators. She invites individuals to share their “problem,” then uses a combination of minimal stage props and objects sourced from offstage to shape improvised, often absurd responses. These interactions are supported by Original Lighting by Lily Woodford, with co-lighting by Jennifer Fok, which subtly guides focus as Masli travels through the auditorium, eliminating the fourth wall. Live sound design by Sebastian Hernandez captures and manipulates audience responses in real time, culminating in a finale where spectators quite literally become part of the show’s soundtrack.  Original music and sound by Alessio Festuccia, alongside a live trumpet performance from the right center of the “house” by Tim Kane, further reinforce the immediacy and unpredictability of the performance.

While HA HA HA HA HA HA HA is frequently playful and accessible to audiences of all ages—including  a moment during the matinee when a young child was invited onstage—it does not shy away from profound emotional weight. One audience member shared that her problem was that “Russia is bombing my country daily,” a moment that could have derailed the show’s comic momentum. Instead, Masli paused, sat beside the woman on the stairs, and revealed her own identity as a Russian minority in Estonia. The exchange was marked by genuine compassion and a remarkable capacity for presence, underscoring Masli’s skill not only as a performer but as a facilitator of collective empathy.

Masli’s responsiveness extends beyond human interaction. Ambient intrusions—a cell phone ringing, an ambulance racing past outside—are not treated as disruptions but folded into the performance’s evolving logic. In doing so, the show reflects a world saturated with distraction and noise, reframing these interruptions as integral to the shared human experience. HA HA HA HA HA HA HA ultimately invites its audience to feel—joy, discomfort, grief, or connection—without prescribing a singular emotional outcome. It is a performance that trusts its spectators, embraces uncertainty, and finds meaning in the act of collective creation.

HA HA HA HA HA HA HA runs until February 7th.  The run is completely sold out, but more information about the show can be found here: https://yalerep.org/productions/ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha/