When we first ran this production in Fall of 2012 we named the show after one of the main songs written by our dear friend Drew Keriakedes (listen to Drew's tunes). It ran at Theatre Off Jackson in their relatively new upstairs venue after The Wing Luke moved out to their current location. It was one crazy show (cooking on griddles in a classroom!?). For some reason, no one, not even us, could remember the name. It just fell right out of the head. But in my journal this show was always called “Lost Falls”. So, when it came time to remount it the title changed.

 I was a junior in high school when Twin Peaks debuted. I thought it was talking to me. It had everything. Murder. Cheesy high school romance. One-eyed women staring out through the blinds. Red velvet curtains in a black and white checkered room. Illicit drugs in old train cars. And the supernatural lurking behind every corner. Quirky, friendly FBI agents? Who let this through the censors? In one fell swoop I feel it changed television writing.

 I retreated up to the town of Skykomish to write this one. I stayed in the inn there. It turns out that not three days before I arrived two men broke into the only bar in town, smashed and looted the ATM machine, and burned down the back half of the restaurant in their escape. One resident described seeing the getaway car speeding West on Hwy 2 as the flames leapt into the night sky. You see, with the bar gone, the tiny restaurant at the inn became the night time hanging place for all the town, and I got to belly up to the bar and listen to the entire saga. From multiple points of view. It turned out to be quite apt and quite inspiring though I’d rather not burn down or otherwise destroy a perfectly fine business every time I need to write a play.

 To live in this world and soak up all its strangeness was a dream come true. To this day it may be the most successful trippy, food dining experience ever. We’re in a diner. It’s morning. The body of the chef has been discovered in the kitchen. And all the courses look like breakfast, but they are dinner!

Watch: 

 Twin Peaks-  Well, you have to. Watch the whole thing. It gets a bit wonky in Season 2 when it was cancelled and then brought back to life by popular demand but deal with it. It brought surrealism into the living room. Would there be an X Files without Twin Peaks? Also, watch Fire Walk with Me, the movie prequel that came after the whole series ended. And then, fall down the rabbit hole of the newest 3rd season that came out three years ago on Showtime Twin Peaks: The Return.

Rashomon- A masterpiece by Akira Kurosawa, a genius of cinema. It won an Honorary Oscar in 1952. George Lucas and Steven Spielberg said it changed their ideas of movie making. And for me, it was the story told from 3 different points of view in which the truth lies, somewhere. “What is truth?” 

Scotland P.A.- Small town fast food restaurant tragedy. The Scottish play meets McDonalds. Murder in a fryer. If you haven’t seen this one yet, please, treat yourself. Never have the witches been done so well. And there’s a Christopher Walken in it. Done. 

Listen:

Don’t miss the Twin Peaks soundtrack. Littler, mid-sized, Terry used to fall asleep to this album in his dorm.

            “Twin Peaks Theme” by Angelo Badalamenti

            “Falling” by Julee Cruise

But also, Annastasia Workman murdered this score and the twin vocals of Evan Mosher and Devin Bannon were exquisite.

            “Nowhere Town” and “Spruce Tree” by Annastasia Workman

Read:

At the time, I can’t say that I read much fiction to prepare for writing this piece. It was a very cinematic driven script. But, there was a lot of non-fiction reading going on about fast food and the culture it sprouted in America.

Fast Food Nation by Eric Schlosser- Well, it’s all there. The gross, manufactured food and questionable business practices as people like William Rosenberg (Dunkin’ Donuts), Dave Thomas (Wendy’s), Glenn Bell (Taco Bell), and Harland Sanders (Kentucky Fried Chicken) spread across the highways of this country and almost snuffed out a local diner culture. Support your local diner! (When you can go back to restaurants.)

In Defense of Food by Michael Pollan- And if you want some real facts for the fight against processed foods this is the place to start. Any book by Michael Pollen is worth the read.

The Secret History of Twin Peaks by Mark Frost (co-writer of the series)- Well, if you want to be a proper nerd you should pick up a copy and dive into all the notes and alien landings and government conspiracies that could perhaps be swirling around the town of Twin Peaks. David Lynch was not a fan of the book, but so what.

Fact #1:

Nordo was murdered on Oct 12th, 1991.

Fact #2:

There was a giant beaver in this show. It appeared and tapped into the psyche of suspects. The beaver made someone kill Nordo. The beaver costume still hangs around the theater.

Fact #3:

The two mystical bikers, Ralph and Rocky, that became the one mystical biker in the second production may be my favorite character to write for.

“Alcohol is good for preserving anything but secrets”

—  Sauced, by Terry Podgorski.

 There is much to be said about wine, but this post is going to focus on the Nordo history of two special cocktails. You might say these beverages are the spirit of our brand –innovative cuisine that tells a story.

 Coincidentally? These cocktails are available for your home bar through our Cocktail Kit Delivery Service. We’ll deliver them to your home, including recipe cards, with the option of adding on a cheese plate and charcuterie.

 THE CRUMB BUM- from “Sauced” 2010

 Step out of the Seattle rain, just off Main Street and the doors of the Culinarium will open. As your eyes adjust to the light, you make out your destination, the bar. Bathed in light, bottles shining. A man in a tailored vest polishes glasses, his eyes on his work. 

The place is packed, but no one approaches the bar, it’s raised and separated, above the tables. It’s theatre. The other members of the audience nibble and sip.

Welcome to Nordo. 

Once you tuck into your seat, the cocktail list of beverages mixed to match the world of the play is pointed out to you by your cleverly costumed server. “I’ll try the Crumb Bum and add the cocktail flight.” Your beverage is the password, providing entry into the story, the characters, and the concept.

It wasn’t always this way. Nordo’s first two shows and menus “The Modern American Chicken” and “Bounty: An Epic Adventure in Seafood” focused on your plate, with gorgeous wines to pair. No cocktails.

The Barrel’s Best Cocktail Kit.

The set of “Sauced”, 2015, by Terry Podgorski, photo by Bruce Clayton Tom

One dark and stormy night, creators Erin and Terry shared a drink post-show of Bounty. She had cooked for the audience, and he had ran the lightboard and bar backed, running wine to tables. They were exhausted, and exhilarated. 

The actors changed out of costume, and joined them. A bottle of bourbon was revealed and passed, the cast and crew mingling and going over the highs and lows of the performance.

Someone jumped behind the translucent screens that enclosed the dining room. The theatre lights were dimmed and a charade of silhouettes was improvised with the bourbon bottle.

There were new faces laughing, audience members who stayed after the last plate had been cleared, thrilled by the concept and community of coming to table with strangers.

Erin and Terry cheered and led the fun, but spent most of the evening in a volley of conversation about the next big thing. That night in 2010, the idea to do a show about the history of the cocktail was born.

It was aptly titled “Sauced”.

Writer and set designer Terry Podgorski put those late night conversations into the pressure cooker of his writing room (The Waterstreet Hotel in Port Townsend), and added influence from his adoration for film noir and the writings of Dashiell Hammett.

He remembers how the idea of serving cocktails to pair with the dinner menu was formed, and the bartender who made it all happen.

“Sauced was set in a bar with the film noir as its model. And so we began to ask around for who could teach us the secrets behind great cocktails and over and over and over the answer was Murray Stenson. “ 

Terry and Erin found their answer at the place where most go for such things.

Murray Stenson

“Neither of us had been to the Zig Zag at the time. Murray had not yet won the Best Bartender in America award. That would come in a few months. Descending those stairs to the front door of the Zig Zag, bellying up to the bar, and asking Murray if he would take a moment to make us a cocktail and tell us all about mixology is one of the best Nordo memories I have.” 

With a third production scheduled to take place at the warehouse behind the Theo Chocolate factory in Fremont, director and chef Erin Brindley dug in to the idea of a show focused on spirits. There would be four mini-cocktails included in the ticket price, with morsels to match, that told the story of the cocktail. She explained the concept for the show, and the script ideas Terry was working with, and the time period, pre-war 1930’s Seattle.

Terry recalls,

“If you know Murray you know how his eyes can light up and how fast he can talk while he moves about the bar, grasping at bottles, asking questions, his mind whirring. By the end of the night we asked if he would create the menu, and he said yes.

He was humble and never asked for anything. A few days later, we met for brunch and he handed us the menu. Simple and elegant. He said the best cocktails has no more than 3 ingredients, perfectly balanced. And each one was either a slight variant on a classic or an obscure and forgotten recipe he kept filed away in his head. If I remember correctly, the Crumb Bum was one of those obscure ones that he learned from a fellow bartender in New York City that he felt was under appreciated. We've enjoyed plenty since then. Thank you Murray.”

For more information about the show Sauced in its 2010 and 2015 versions, visit the archive.

“What happens when you push a man until the wall is at his back, and there’s nowhere to run?”

— Smoked, by Terry Podgorski.

 THE PINE BOX – Smoked, 2012. (Available in our “Going Clear” Cocktail Kit)

This is a very different sort of bar. The Sauget Ballet is full to the gills with expectant witnesses. There’s a hanging planned, and the small town is thirsty.

The set of “Smoked”, 2018, by Terry Podgorski, photo by Bruce Clayton Tom

You’ve got to elbow in and push past the swinging doors to claim your seat. You may marvel at how the Culinarium has changed since the last show you saw, Sauced. But likely as not, your eyes are feverishly reading the menu, to see what drinks are on tap.

After the collaboration with Murray Stenson on Sauced, Terry spent the next few shows making relationships with other Seattle bartenders, and as Nordo grew, hiring a few of our own. Always, the goal was to tell local stories with our suppliers and ingredients.

Your eyes rest on “The Pine Box”, a stiff gin, served up, with pine liquor. This place has a sense of humor.

Terry remembers how The Pine Box was born.

“Smoked was our third cocktail show when it opened in 2013. And I was on the hunt for interesting and new products for the menu when I heard about Brovo, an all women owned and run distillery that at the time was based in Seattle. They had five liqueurs. A ginger, a lemon balm, rose geranium, lavender, and pine. And all were made without additives. Real plants were used. It fit so perfectly in the Nordo ethos that we hunted them down for a tasting. And from there it was a no-brainer. An old west cocktail show and an all pine liqueur? They were made for one another.”

by Terry Podgorski

Hotel Nordo was one of the best to write. I felt in my own element allowed to revel in all the things I love in entertainment. Ghosts sliding around corners. The epic tale of the otherworld glimpsed through only a few, small lives revolving around one ghastly truth. The macabre merry-go-round of souls trapped by their sins. And artistically, since it was an episodic piece, it was fun to establish a world within a few minutes then tip it on its side immediately and watch the truth of the scene trickle out. I visited serval hotel lobbies for inspiration and observed how people moved about one another in a place made for strangers, filled with strangers. 95% of the time it was boring. People listlessly sip a beer and stare at innocuous sport news or flip through their phone connecting with a home or a job in another place. And most hotel bars look like dressed up airport bars. But then, every once in a while, a person with a bright smile or a sharp wit or a catchy sing-songy voice would surprise you with a glimpse into someone else’s life story.

Watch:

The Others- A favorite ghost story as we see the real world through the eyes of the ghosts, and a ghost would really never know they’re the one doing the haunting. It’s just in their nature to haunt. Ghosts do look to be ghosts.

Twilight Zone (early episodes like 1-6)- The motherlode for this Hotel Nordo because it was both episodic and eerie, and nowhere has it been done better, consistently, than in The Twilight Zone.  Learn to write 46 and 23min whole stories! Learn the recipe for tilting the normal into the unnatural.

The Shining- Number #1 Haunting in a Hotel. It’s a building that breathes and breeds evil, and the humans are only there for it to feed. I read it too for the writing of Hotel Nordo, and while I liked some things about the book better I’m going out on a limb here; I prefer the movie. Sorry Stephen King.

2046 by Wong Kar-Wai- The sequel to perhaps the best love story ever, In the Mood for Love, 2046 is a melancholy dream world out of time and place in which a man waits for love while living in a hotel. It’s all ambiance. And so cool. 

Lost in Translation by Sophia Coppola- Lonely souls passing one another in a hotel lobby and looking for something more between strangers. This is what attracts me to hotels: all the strangers in one place anticipating something from another that will likely never happen.

Listen:

Songs from the show itself. Check out Music for Dining Volume II by Annastasia Workman on Spotify or order a CD from our website.

Tear for Fears - “Shout”

Beyoncé - “Haunted”

David Bowie- “Changes”

“Big Break” and “Ghost” by our Annastasia Workman

Read:

“Stories from The Twilight Zone” by Rod Serling- The source of modern American weird fiction. The recipe for the surreal- 3 parts normal day life and 1 part WTF.

“The Bone Clocks” by David Mitchell- It’s the episodic telling of a larger tale from different characters that drew me to this one. Plus, the luscious language. Plus, the story of the otherworld in our most modern world. 

Short Story “Playmates” by A.M. Burrage- I don’t know. Just really creepy. Friends playing forever in the walls of an abandoned school. Who doesn’t love that?

Fact:

Did you know there is a word for the criminal act of poisoning the water of others? It’s Lurgulary. Think Oregon cult. And it proves, there’s a word for everything. Except maybe, poisoning your own wedding cake.

For those who are new to Nordo, and those who have been with us since we were spring chickens, here is our story.

 In 2009, Nordo co-Artistic Directors Erin Brindley and Terry Podgorski worked for Circus Contraption. When the one-ring Seattle circus closed its doors, Erin and Terry knew they wanted to continue working together.

 Inspired by a short story Terry had written called The Distressed Chicken and utilizing Erin’s experience directing theatre, the pair conceived of an immersive theatrical spoof of fine dining and the culture of the celebrity chef. Simultaneously, it was a love letter to food well-made and well sourced.

 Witness the birth of Chef Nordo Lefesczki (Terry’s lead character) and our Carnal Food Movement  here. 

 The Circus’ accordion player Annastasia Workman was hired to be the composer. The stage manager, Opal Peachey was cast as Nordo’s put-upon young Sous Chef. Maximillian Davis, an acrobat and actor in Circus Contraption’s final show, brought his considerable actor/server experience cast as the Maitre’d.

 The owner of Theo Chocolate, who had leased performance space for the Circus, was convinced not only to let his empty warehouse be used as the dining room playing space, but also his confection kitchen for a dinner theater show disguised as a trendy pop-up restaurant named Café Nordo. The show was called The Modern American Chicken. Featured was the titular Chef Nordo. He was a fanatical celebrity chef, with the most innovative cuisine Seattle had ever seen. He also didn’t exist, (Erin Brindley designed and cooked the menu) but our first patrons didn’t know that.

 We had no idea what we were doing.

 The audience had no idea what we were doing.

 Peruse our first four course menu here.

 And watch a scene from our dining room, the funeral for Henrietta the chicken here.

 To our surprise, they looked past the humble bathrooms, (Honey Buckets dressed up with velvet curtains), our insistence that they not sit with the friends they came with to increase the “adventure” (we learned to stop doing that), and saw what we were: a group of artists full of mirth and heart that wanted to integrate food, music, and service into storytelling. And they, (you?) asked for more.

We didn’t know then we were brick by brick creating an artistic institution that has no comparable rival in the US or the world. A show that integrates food, wine, and storytelling seems to crop up every so often in New York or Chicago, but there is no other company working to perfect the Immersive Theatrical Dining Event as a new form of performance. We were Seattle’s first Immersive theatre company, a term that is just now coming in to fashion. To our knowledge there is no other chef creating food dish after dish, show after show, to help tell a story. There is no other composer writing music to score a menu, or restaurant designer completely changing the look of a restaurant eight times a year. (Although some have tried).

We are foremost theatre artists. Our working relationship grew out of a mutual interest in breaking theatrical convention to create a spectacle that thoroughly entertains, educates, and transports.  Our individual artistic paths crossed at Circus Contraption, where we saw bright-eyed audiences return to show after show because the spectacle captured their hearts and imaginations.  Furthermore, Circus Contraption taught us the viability of a non-profit production company, how to run one, and what to avoid.  With this practical knowledge we founded Café Nordo as a single platform for our skills in storytelling, scenic design, directing, and the culinary arts to make the best dinner theater Seattle has yet to see.

 You’re watching us grow up, growing in to our role in this community, growing in to our beautiful venue, and gathering the courage to go deeper.

We’ll be using this blog to delve into the juicy curiosities of our Nordo community. Particularly those that embrace the written word, and archival history, creating thoughtful content that will make you raise your hand and say,

“More, please!”