‘War of the Worlds’ to invade Triangle air waves

It’s Halloween night. You jump in your car and crank 88.1 for some pre-party jams as you head over to a friend’s house to debut your all-too-detailed Optimus Prime costume.

Suddenly, your ears are confronted with the sound of death rays and crazy screams. A voice on the scene tells you a Martian attack is consuming the Triangle area.

Rest easy, friend. It’s not an actual newscast.

This Saturday from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. 88.1 WKNC will air a Triangle update of Orson Welles’ radio adaptation of “War of the Worlds.”

The production by N.C. State’s newly formed Two Cabbage Radio Players will employ classic foley and synthesizer sound effects for a live recreation of the 1938 radio play that pranked multitudes into thinking that New York and New Jersey were actually under attack.

Damian Maddalena, N.C. State doctoral student and founder of Two Cabbage, said he came up with the idea about a year ago when he saw a stage adaptation of the story.

“You can see behind the curtain; you shouldn’t be able to see behind the curtain,” he explained, adding that the charm is in imagining it for yourself.

“I said, ‘I want to do this on the radio.’ It’s not quite the same to watch people doing.”

Maddalena said that the group chose to localize the show to give listeners more context as to the locations involved.

“I thought people might find it more interesting if we switched to Raleigh,” he said. “I thought it would be more fun if we described locations that we know locally. The places that are mentioned, Durham and Raleigh, are landmarks that people know. It’s also a little more creepy. I know that place I can’t imagine what it would be like if that was real.”

The element that will allow the listener to picture those local places torn asunder by alien invaders will be the show’s live sound effects.

“There’s no image; people are just listening to it,” said Brian Donohoe, drummer for Raleigh band Starmount and foley artist for the show. “I’m helping paint the back for their image.”

And while a 20th century approach was a temptation, Donohoe says he has chosen to keep the performance old-school.

“I was really into having a live mic on live radio and mashing two cabbages together to simulate skulls being crushed,” he said. “That’s why we named the radio troupe Two Cabbage Players.

“I like the fact that a lot of it is not manipulation electronically. It’s me and the audience live at the same time.”

In addition to crushing vegetables and crinkling leaves, Donohoe will be using a vintage 1978 Micromoog synthesizer to make the sounds of the alien weapons and spaceships.

“Best pawn shop purchase experience I’ve ever made,” he said, explaining that he bought it for $75 in Nashville.

But though the sound effects and performances will obviously be as real as possible, Maddalena said he has no intention of fooling the Triangle into thinking that this attack is the real deal.

“What if people think it’s real? My first reaction was they’re stupid,” he said. “How at this point in time could you not know the story. It seems like there’s no way they could trick people.

“It’s not so much the original prank as the tip of the hat to the original prank. We’re all sort of mischievous folks.”

And as for his choice of timing, Maddalena said it’s nothing more than the first Halloween available to hold it.

“I just seems appropriate because the whole thing was just a Halloween prank to begin with.”


Contact the Diversions Editor at dive@unc.edu.