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Music, lyrics and text by Dave Malloy. Directed by Marie Farsi. Until November 3 at Streetcar Crowsnest, 345 Carlaw Avenue. or (647) 341-7390 ext. 1010.

Two productions opened this week at Crow鈥檚 Theatre, with Annie Baker鈥檚 highly anticipated 鈥淭he Flick鈥� in the Guloien Theatre an exercise in restraint, subtlety and silence and, next door in the intimate Scotiabank Community Studio, a complex cacophony of music and story that鈥檚 something of 鈥淭he Flick鈥檚鈥� opposite. Instead of the real-life replica of 鈥淭he Flick鈥�, stepping into Dave Malloy鈥檚 song cycle 鈥淕host Quartet鈥� is like entering a whiskey-fuelled jam session with dreamlike logic and visuals. And where 鈥淭he Flick鈥� asks you to lean in and look for details, 鈥淕host Quartet鈥� asks that you sit back and let the show wash over you. But both are an extremely promising start to the fall season in the east end theatre.

In a co-production with the new Eclipse Theatre Company, which focuses on unconventional musical theatre projects (like last year鈥檚 鈥淜iss of the Spider Woman鈥� inside the Don Jail only a few blocks away from the Streetcar Crowsnest), 鈥淕host Quartet鈥� makes its 海角社区官网premiere one of Dave Malloy鈥檚 smaller projects compared to the Tony Award-winning Broadway musical 鈥淣atasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812鈥� and his most recent musical version of 鈥淢oby Dick鈥� (reuniting with 鈥淕reat Comet鈥� director Rachel Chavkin). With 鈥淕host Quartet鈥�, Malloy relieves himself of the trappings of a coherent narrative or established relationships between the show鈥檚 four performers, and instead leans into his playfulness with a song cycle mixing styles of music like jazz, folk, and John Carpenter-like synth, his poetic and humorous lyrics (鈥淚 will transcend and vomit this loser out of me鈥� is a rather powerful line in one of the show鈥檚 rare ballads), and recurring images of celestial, macabre, urban and folkloric nature, from a subway platform, to an astronomer鈥檚 home in the trees, to a haunted house from Edgar Allan Poe to Scheherazade鈥檚 room in the Shah鈥檚 palace.

鈥淚 don鈥檛 know where to begin, I don鈥檛 even know who I am鈥� sings Kyra Guloien and Hailey Gillis, who play sisters Pearl and Rose respectively who both fall in love with an astronomer (Andrew Penner) and to exact revenge, the spurned sister Rose makes a deal with a Bear (Beau Dixon) to hurt them in exchange for a pot of honey, a secret baptism, a piece of stardust and a photo of a ghost. But those lines ring true as the characters shapeshift and seep into other stories in separate centuries and areas of the world. But the anachronism of Ghost Quartet works through the rollicking power of Malloy鈥檚 music and the chemistry between the four balladeers who balance the intensity of the songs鈥� storytelling with the joy of four friends sharing a drink around a campfire. The show鈥檚 standout song, Side 1 Song 7 鈥淎ny Kind of Dead Person,鈥� in which Gillis explains why she鈥檇 rather be a ghost than a zombie, vampire, poltergeist or White Walker (to go 鈥渨oo woo woo all night long鈥�), is a raucous foot-stomper and exemplifies 鈥淕host Quartet鈥� at its best.

But director Marie Farsi鈥檚 production goes to great efforts to underscore the more morose side to the stories as well, making effective use out of a voice manipulator for Guloien鈥檚 songs as a bereaved mother, clutching a harp as a stark spotlight (production design by Patrick Lavender) bathes her in a wash of white light in the darkness. The set itself is a mix of the wild outdoors and antiquated technology (a children鈥檚 piano, thick leather bound books, suspended glass bottles of sparkly blue liquid to act as stars, a record player that simulates the effect of a disco ball), like an old living room was left untended and exposed to the elements (props and costumes by Isabel Martins). And where the story leaves much open to interpretation from the audience, some key lighting effects help to fill in the blanks鈥攖owards its end, both sisters sing together, each under a spotlight aimed from opposite sides so that one is illuminated and the other in darkness depending on where you鈥檙e seated, a complication of the hero and villain dichotomy we鈥檙e used to receiving in our stories.

It鈥檚 fitting that 鈥淕host Quartet鈥� arrive at this time of year, it reflects the textiles, visuals, warm libations, ghostly subjects and overall #fallmood we鈥檙e looking for to send us 鈥渨oo woo woo鈥漣ng into the night.