immersive theatre london – The Cultural Exposé

Somewhere you should go…. The Boy who Climbed Out of his Face

Laura Thornley — Thu, 07 Aug 2014 10:21:02 +0000

One of the pioneers of the alternative, immersive theatre production returns this summer with their first outdoor show. Based at the newly opened venue, The Jetty, in Greenwich, Shunt will be taking its guests on a barefoot magical mystery ride into a vast labyrinth of industrial containers.

For six weeks the Jetty will become a hectic, fantasy world with its inspiration taken from literary classics, The Waterbabies and Heart of Darkness. Shunt’s past productions include the Bermondsey street warehouse takeover show titled Money and The London Bridge vaults where they held a six-year residency. If you are new to their productions, expect the unexpected. The performers combine movement, music, acting and set design, brought together to project the themes of the show. There is usually plenty of interacting (so no hiding at the back allowed) and it’s often this element which takes the shows to a whole new level.

Described as a disorientating event, the show promises that ‘Every 10 minutes 30 people will disappear into a shipping container and are spat out 45 minutes later’: sounds utterly ominous and everything a urban adventurer requires from an immersive theatre performance. The show is barefoot only so I’m guessing a little aquatics paddling might be involved somewhere along the line.

There will also be a pop-up bar serving cocktails and street food to recuperate after the show and muse on what exactly happened! If you know the stories of Heart of Darkness and the Waterbabies you’ll be as intrigued as I am as to where the container pavilion will take you. Whatever the case, not to be missed. (Words: Laura Thornley)

The production runs from 14th August to 28th September. For more info visitwww.shunt.co.uk

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Somewhere you should go… London Stories: A 1-on-1-on-1 Festival

Laura Thornley — Wed, 18 Sep 2013 10:00:49 +0000

This busy city can feel pretty lonely, despite the throngs of people you invariably encounter on a daily basis; we seldom give each other the time of day. So the Battersea Arts Centre has stepped in to right this wrong with a new kind of storytelling. As part of the growing trend for one-on-one theatre, London Stories will be made up of just the performer and two audience members. Sounds intense? It’s sure to be, but it will also be a rare and fascinating window into a stranger’s life, an opportunity so often missed in this hectic city.

The festival takes its cue from the festivals hosted at the BAC in 2011 and 2012. Immersive theatre is everywhere today and it has a vast following. Die-hard theatregoers have questioned its success in terms of narrative, but whether it is coherent or not, it certainly draws the crowds eager to interact in the theatrical world.

London Stories takes this encounter another step further. All the accounts you will hear are true, and experienced by the teller. The BAC put a call out for Londoners with stories some time ago and all the selections are complete. The variety of possible experiences mean that the content and possibility will be wide reaching; audiences can expect anything from funny anecdotes to personal trauma – they have issued a warning regarding sensitive and upsetting content.

But, you shouldn’t let this deter you, this powerful and intimate experience is bound to make a long lasting impression on its audience, as it blurs the theatre experience and our real lives. (Words: Laura Thornley)

On until September 28th. For more info visit: www.bac.org.uk

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Something you should see… The Drowned Man: A Hollywood Fable

Laura Thornley — Thu, 20 Jun 2013 10:00:33 +0000

Some moons ago, I flirted with the idea of working in an art department. I spent a summer huddled in a cramped room at the BAC transforming bottles and dried goods from the Chinese supermarket into weird and wonderful potions, all in aid of the Punchdrunk production of Masque of the Red Death. Sadly, the need to eat got the better of my art department dream, but it was an experience that I remember with pleasure and a company that was obviously on the up. The team behind the name still remain the same, and the buzz they have created since their humble beginnings is growing exponentially.

Their latest production is in collaboration with the National Theatre (no less) and will resurrect the unfinished story The Drowned Man, by German writer Georg Buchner. It’s a tale of a soldier who, tormented by his experiences at war, murders his unfaithful wife in a fit of crazed passion. Whilst the story is relevant, the company’s style is often so interactive and abstract, it rarely ends as a lesson in traditional storytelling. Expect interactive, immersive theatre coming at you from all sides. Audience participation and exploration are all encouraged and essential.

The space they will use this time is a whopping 200,000 sq ft, in a converted film studio close to Paddington station. The performances will attract 600 people a night… which is nothing short of enormous. Will it work? Perhaps not in a traditional theatre sense, but, as always their work is an act of illusion more than sense; an experience that stays with its audience for days, months, and possible years after. (Words: Laura Thornley)

The Drowned Man: A Hollywood Fable runs from June 20th – December 30th. For more info visit: www.nationaltheatre.org.uk/shows/the-drowned-man-a-hollywood-fable

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Somewhere you should go… RETZ presents: The Trial

Laura Thornley — Wed, 06 Mar 2013 11:00:05 +0000

If you are sick of the kind of theatre that sticks with the well -rodden path, constantly employing the same old props to tell their story – like a venue for instance – you might be interested to hear about The Trial; a digital age revamp of Franz Kafka’s seminal novel. Throwing tradition out, immersive theatre company RETZ has developed a production that takes its audience on two separate visits out of the round and into a journey through the winding streets of Hoxton.

If the story of The Trial is a mystery, then imagine this; on his 30th birthday Joseph K is arrested for an unknown crime, by an unknown agency that leads like a nightmare into a twisted judicial process – and ultimately, well… that would be telling. It’s a tale that has been decrypted many times, partly because it evades specific details. So RETZ’s decision to digital-age it fits quite well. The audience are a vital part of the process, encountering one-on-ones with the 47 actors – but if that isn’t enough, anything you say may be used against you, as the audience also become implemented in the performance.

RETZ’s key concept is to use social media to share information about audience members between the actors, enabling them to use that information further into the performance. With this act they hope to draw in key concepts of privacy and the internet, pressing issues that occupy space today.

The performance takes place over a variety of locations including Shoreditch Town Hall and the Rose Lipman building and runs throughout March and April. RETZ have plenty of experience developing their fictional world – having already done something similar with Shakespeare’s Tempest – so this is set to be yet another boundary pusher, and you wouldn’t want to miss that. (Words: Laura Thornley)

RETZ presents: The Trial runs until April 27th. For more info visit: www.barbican.org.uk/eticketing/event-detail.asp?ID=14671

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