SÉANCE // Darkfield and Realscape Productions
‘SÉANCE’ was bone-chilling.
‘SÉANCE’ is a fully-immersive, sensory deprivation experience employing an incredibly designed soundscape to transport your imagination to its darkest corners. It’s the product of a collaborative effort between Australian producers Amy Johnson and Nathan Alexander from Realscape Productions and UK immersive theatre powerhouses Glen Neath and David Rosenberg from DARKFIELD.
‘SÉANCE’ has toured widely around the world, enjoying successful seasons everywhere from Edinburgh to Mexico City, as well as outstanding stints in Sydney, Brisbane and Melbourne. The production makes its home at Home of the Arts (HOTA) on the Gold Coast, just in time for the spooky season.
The experience takes place inside a large white shipping container. It’s a largely unassuming and unthreatening site, but something darker lurks just behind those steel doors. The container was fitted out with luxe decor reminiscent of a Victorian parlour. As audience members placed their hands on the white silk-covered table, a sense of curiosity filled the container; the crowd was ready for anything. The theatre was plunged into utter darkness, both physically and aurally.
What followed can only be described as horrifying magic. The binaural soundscape provoked questioning of what is real and what is merely an illusion. One could almost forget they were wearing headphones as the brilliantly designed sound made it feel like the people (and whatever else was lurking in the darkness) were in that 40-foot shipping container, waiting to attack. Brilliantly acted and devised, the storyline of ‘SÉANCE’ gives the individual imagination so much to play with, providing each audience member with a different experience of the same story depending on personal interpretation and prior experience. It was more than just an eerie experience, it was a deep dive into the power of invitation and suggestion on a group of humans.
The fifteen-minute adventure into a ritual-gone-wrong will have you questioning your own reality.
‘SÉANCE’ is a playground for the imagination. With all senses other than hearing completely obscured, every movement, word, chair scrape or breath in the soundscape was frighteningly heightened.
The audience let out a heavy sigh of relief when the lights began to turn on – a collective agreement that the experience was a very rare macabre phenomenon.
The creative team behind the experience have struck gold with ‘SÉANCE’, providing not just cheap scares, but a thought-provoking experiment into the human psyche. ‘SÉANCE’ is a truly unique and haunting experience, perfect for any horror buff, or anyone looking to test the lengths of their imagination.
‘SÉANCE’ scares and spooks until Sunday, 14 November at Gold Coast’s HOTA. Tickets are available via HOTA’s website.
