We got through the dreary start to January by dreaming up some exciting trips for 2023. Usually, these January dream holidays involve hot destinations but this year we were very tempted to head to Norway to visit Laure Prouvost’s stunning installation ‘Above Front Tears Oui Float’ for the Light Hall at Norway's Nasjonal museet.
Imagine entering a strange world where you walk above the clouds, odd bird and fish-like beings passing by. A place where nothing settles; ceilings melt, surfaces shift and objects hang seemingly weightless. With this exhibition, Prouvost played with her audiences’ perception of gravity and light and colour, asking them to question everything they know. A perfect space to contemplate the human relationship with the natural world and the pandemic.
In the second rainy week of the month, Booking.com’s bright half-blue-half-red house in Manchester caught our eye. Symbolising the famous rivalry between Manchester City and Manchester United on the run-up to the Manchester Derby, it was exclusively available to book for one night only. A bargain at £18.81 too - a playful nod to the year of the first-ever Manchester Derby.
Placed mid-way between the two football stadiums outside HOME (bringing football home, very clever, we get it...), no detail was been spared on the colour theme with the bedroom, games room and living room all decked out in the iconic colours of the two clubs.For Booking.com, this pop-up really was the perfect way to celebrate their home in the world-famous city of football.
We chose to highlight this pop up because of the high levels of publicity it garnered in the local media and it’s wide spread coverage on social media. It was a great reminder of how powerful it can be when a brand chooses to focus on celebrating the location their based in. We really believe in the value of stylising activations in a way that is faithful to the city their based in, in much the same way we believe that playing to a venues strengths in invaluable (see our St Jude’s Pick below…).
We had ourselves a grand old time at Swamp Motel’s latest immersive experience Saint Jude; a site specific, individually experienced activation developed in partnership with AI company Charisma.ai.
Welcomed through the doors as the newest volunteers at Saint Jude’s, we had the chance to communicate one-on-one with people trapped in comas through Saint Jude’s revolutionary technological system, the ‘Echosump’. We won’t give too much away in case you have tickets for this Swamp Motel production but let’s just say that it was an experience like nothing we’d had before. Although we were slightly unnerved by the dark subject matter and the idea of a solo experience to begin with, we came out absolutely buzzing.
The technology involved was clearly supposed to be the highlight of the evening, but for us (as space invading obsessives) we were impressed by the use of the location. From the moment we stepped into the old Government building in Wesminster, we knew Swamp Motel had nailed it. No details were missed; from the slightly cheap looking medical posters on the walls right through to the background ‘hum’ of equipment echoing through the halls. We’re always banging on about how spaces can evoke inspiration and the importance of really leaning into that, so we came away with a lot of plans and ideas for this year’s builds.
Like many people, we start planning for the year ahead in January and were keen to get some immersive event and theatre plans in the diary. We tend to keep these underwraps so we can keep our favourites for future Picks but we couldn’t wait to share this one. The Murder Express part Deuxe: Jewel of the Empire, an immersive theatrical dining experience by Funicular Productions really is an absolute dream of a night for one of our founders, Tash O’Neill.
When audiences alight the Murder Express they’ll find themselves back in 1937, bound for the Von Cleethorpes estate along with world’s most valuable diamond. It takes no murder mystery expert to know that the diamond will soon go missing and mysterious deaths will occur.
The drama is paired with a four course dining menu by Masterchef The Professionals finalist, Louisa Ellis. Incredible food, theatre AND a murder to solve? The perfect evening.
This really is our favourite style of immersive experience. No surprises it's in line with our own areas of expertise too. We really can’t imagine planning anything better, we do love to spin a good yarn.
Attending and planning ahead for some experiential theatre and exhibitions really perked us up through January. There are so many exciting things to look forward to this year and we cannot wait to share them with you. Follow us on instagram to see our Pick each Friday and keep up to date with our latest work for our clients.
Attending and planning ahead for some experiential theatre and exhibitions really perked us up through January. There are so many exciting things to look forward to this year and we cannot wait to share them with you. Follow us on instagram to see our Pick each Friday and keep up to date with our latest work for our clients.
