The regretful play Phantom Quartet is presented at the Oakland Theater Project

Count on the Oakland Theater Project to present new and exciting productions. And Dave Malloy Ghost Quartet co-production with New Traditions of Performance is one of the most unusual theatrical performances I have seen and heard in a long time. And although it’s called a musical, it’s not. Hamilton or Wicked.

Phantom QuartetOakland Theater Project, 1501 Martin Luther King Jr. Way, Auckland, until November 24.

Instead of, Phantom Quartetexpertly directed by William Thomas Hodgson, is a series of 23 songs (split across four sides of a double album) sung tales of four ghosts who swirl and turn over seven centuries with the faintest murmur of communication. They play characters with different names and lives who appear and reappear in chronological order.

Leitmotifs that recur throughout the song cycle include a broken camera, two sisters, a treehouse, an astronomer, a bear, a dead sister’s sternum, and a subway accident. There are references to Poe. Fall of the House of Usher and Scheherazade from Thousand and one nights. But if I had to characterize the atmosphere and aura of this strange and curious performance, I would say that it is the melancholic mood of ghostly regret that permeates it.

Creator Dave Malloy wrote the music and lyrics for Phantom Quartet in a variety of musical styles including gospel, folk, a cappella, honkytonk, doo-wop and jazz (Thelonious Monk). Some songs are soft and lyrical; some others border on atonal with harsh sound effects or are simply difficult to listen to comfortably. Super talented singers and musicians Rinde Eckert, Ami Nashimoto, Veronica Renner, Monica Rose Slater and Michael Perez play instruments as diverse as piano, autoharp, cello, glockenspiel, theremin, slide guitar and accordion. And they are a joy to watch and listen to as they sing and act with complex emotions.

Dave Malloy graces Berkeley’s 2022 year with two highly acclaimed musical productions: the Shotgun Player presentation Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812. and Berkeley representatives Octet. Phantom Quartetfirst released in Brooklyn in 2014, it has been presented about a dozen times since then.

When you first see it, it can be difficult to understand Phantom Quartet as a whole. You could go online in advancewhere Malloy kindly provided a lot of music and materials. Or you could just waltz into the cozy, carpeted theater and enjoy Malloy’s ingenuity, realize that the “story” doesn’t fold into a neat package, and decide not to bother too much. Best you could see Phantom Quartet a few times and see if it all comes together for you. And if not, that’s okay—there’s more than enough music.

Phantom Quartet plays Thursday through Saturday at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday at 2 p.m. through Nov. 24 at The Flax Building, 1501 Martin Luther King Jr. Way, Auckland. Tickets cost $10-$60.Phantom Quartet will play at ODC San Francisco December 5-8. Phantom Quartet Duration: approximately 90 minutes, no intermission.