The Gunpowder Plot, Tower Hill Vaults, London - Review

The Gunpowder Plot is the latest immersive experience from Layered Reality, the award-winning producers of the Jeff Wayne’s The War of The Worlds: The Immersive Experience which I went to (and loved) in 2019.

The experience integrates immersive theatre and virtual reality. Guests can expect to join live actors on an adventure back in time to 1605 as you travel across London and participate in the Gunpowder Plot itself. Multi-sensory special effects, three interludes on virtual reality, and a labyrinthine set combine to deliver a fun, educational and immersive experience.

We had a lot of fun at The Gunpowder Plot. I'll tell you all about what worked and what didn't.

Remember, remember, the 5th of November,
Gunpowder, treason and plot.
I see no reason
Why gunpowder treason
Should ever be forgot

The Gunpowder Plot

I had no idea what the Gunpowder Plot was actually about (note: I didn't go to school in the UK). I knew Guy Fawkes wanted to blow up parliament but I thought he was simply an anarchist. I didn't know it was about Catholic rebellion in the face of James I's brutal repression of the Catholic faith and that it's all linked to the time from Henry VIII.

I learned about all of this on The Gunpowder Plot which was fascinating to me because I already make a habit of traipsing around England and photographing the ruins of dissolved monasteries. I loved the historical aspect of The Gunpowder Plot and am thirsty to learn more about that period in history.

The Immersive Experience

The immersive theatre aspect of the event was superb. I now know first hand what it feels like to breathlessly press your back against a wall to avoid detection from pursuers. The actors were all incredibly talented and each and every one of them drew us into the story, asked us questions and didn't call us out when we lied to them.

Special mention goes to Jess Darnell as the priest, Leda Douglas as Lady Cecil, Stanley Eldridge as Thomas and the wonderful Harriet Sharmini Smithers as Anne. We got to collaborate as a team, make a pretty significant decision and I'm glad to say that I was on the side of the majority.

The Virtual Reality

The only part of the experience that a bit hit and miss was the Virtual Reality. On the whole, it was a bit glitchy and blurry (and I say this as an experienced VR user who knows the usual tricks to stabilise the image). A lot has been made of the fact that Tom Felton is part of the digital cast but the quality of the VR was such that I wouldn't have recognised Tom in his role as Guy Fawkes if I didn't know it was him. The graphics were not as good as in Jeff Wayne’s The War of The Worlds: The Immersive Experience, and I expected more from Layered Reality.

Verdict

We really enjoyed The Gunpowder Plot but were disappointed by the VR interludes. I hope that they will work to improve this aspect of an otherwise excellent experience, because the actors, set and other visual displays were brilliant.

Tickets for The Gunpowder Plot are on sale now at gunpowderimmersive.com.

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The War of the Worlds: The Immersive Experience, London - 10 Things to Expect (No Spoilers!)

Tonight was incredible because it was finally my chance to head over to Jeff Wayne’s The War of the Worlds: The Immersive Experience in Leadenhall Street, London for a night of steampunk excess and a fan extravaganza dedicated to Jeff Wayne’s seminal work.

If you’re a fan of the musical, you’re going to love this, a lot. You may also, at times, appear more terrified than other visitors. If you’re not a fan yet, I predict that you’ll love this immersive audio-visual experience so much that you may well end up buying a t-shirt in the gift shop afterwards.

And if you really haven’t heard of Jeff Wayne’s Musical Version of The War of the Worlds yet, it was a 1978 concept album based on the novel of the same name by H.G. Wells. Set in Victorian London, it tells the story of the Martian invasion of earth and features searing electric guitars and unmistakeable basslines. I’ve been a fan for 40 years.

The War of the Worlds: The Immersive Experience - Review

I have to admit, I don’t quite know how to express how much I enjoyed this event without spoiling it. In a sentence, I will say that it is very, very good and you should go see it whether you’re already a fan or soon to become one. Perhaps if I simply leave you with a list of what to expect on the night?

1. You’ll walk through Victorian London and see and hear Jeff Wayne’s Musical Version of the War of the Worlds in ways you’ve never experienced it before
2. You’ll meet Ogilvy the astronomer who will confidently tell you that the chances of anything coming from Mars are a million to one
3. Shortly after that, you’ll decide that standing in the front might not be the best idea after all. In fact, head straight to the back
   
4. You’ll realise that there is absolutely no reason to have anything on your person including phones and bags. Leave them all at the free coat check so that you can run about without worrying about them (but keep some money for the intermission bar)
5. You’ll have tea and biscuits in George Herbert’s house and learn the meaning of true terror
   
6. You’ll encounter a virtual Martian wasteland and will very much want to run as far away from the horror of your surroundings as possible. And you’ll think oh my god, please don’t let it touch me
   
7. You’ll take a journey through Forever Autumn and meet Thunderchild
8. You’ll take a much needed break at the Red Weed Bar. Definitely try out their signature cocktail.
9. You’ll experience absolute terror, again and you’ll learn that unlike in your nightmares, it seems you really can scream when you need to. Loudly.
   
10. You’ll start all over again in a brave new world before a breath-taking finale over Dead London
    

Details and tickets

Jeff Wayne’s The War of the Worlds: The Immersive Experience opens at London's Old Metal Exchange on 31 May 2019.

Address:
56 Leadenhall Street,
London,
EC3A 2BJ

Tickets:
From £49.50 adults / £39.50 children aged 12-15
Buy

Recommended attire:
Comfortable walking shoes as you'll be running, standing and crawling for 110 minutes. Leave jackets, phones and bags at the free coat check.

Disability and Accessibility information:
The venue will be arranging regular wheelchair accessible events. Please visit this link for all disability and accessibility information.

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Zoonation's The Mad Hatter’s Tea Party at the Roundhouse, London ★★★★★

I had absolutely no idea what to expect when I agreed to join two of my friends at ZooNation's The Mad Hatter's Tea Party and I didn't even know how tenuous the link to Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland would be. I think my friend Sarah was more than slightly worried because I was clueless and she had enthusiastically recommended ZooNation to us.  

The first surprise of the day was when we walked into the Roundhouse in Camden and there were children there, lots of them. Oh, the horror. I jest. I love children and anything they deem worthy gets a thumbs-up in my book. 

We took our seats, excellently located at the side of the stage, and the show began. 

Soon we were overcome with an explosion of colour, dance and hip-hop that used the whole Roundhouse as its stage. Within moments, I had a grin plastered on my face and it did not fade for the next two and a half hours. 

How would I describe ZooNation's The Mad Hatter's Tea Party? Like Alice in Wonderland on a healthy dose of psychiatric drugs or perhaps like a surreal and irreverent insight into mental illness. 

The play is set in a psychiatric facility, or normalisation unit as they call it, where Alice, the Mad Hatter and all of her tea-mates are incarcerated indefinitely. Where other doctors have failed, a bright young doctor thinks he can succeed and at last, it is tea therapy time. 

I adored every minute of The Mad Hatter's Tea Party. The talent of each and every person on stage was impressive from the dancers to the musicians and singers. Tweedledum and Tweedledee were endlessly hilarious, I loved the Red Queen (but the little girl next to me didn't) and I could barely take my eyes off Kayla Lomas-Kirton in her role as Alice. Special mention also has to go to Tommy Franzen in his role as Dr Ernest.

The abilities of the dancers and the expression of pain and psychological conflict through dance and through their facial expressions was simply superb.This is a light, fun and dynamic performance with a very strong message on mental health.

One person stole the show though. Jaih Betote played the White Rabbit and he was incredible. I have never seen dancing like that before in my life. He was absolutely flawless. I can see why people land up going to two or three ZooNation performances in a row, one just doesn't seem enough. 

Indeed, it is quite unfortunate that I saw the penultimate performance in this run of ZooNation's The Mad Hatter's Tea Party at the Roundhouse because I'd like to shout from the rooftops how good it is and how everyone should go see it. 

I give Zoonation's The Mad Hatter's Tea Party a superb five out of five stars and will definitely be following ZooNation in future and can’t wait to see what they do next.

★★★★★

They have announced that the soundtrack for The Mad Hatter’s Tea Party will be available on iTunes soon, for all those dying to sing along again.

Remember, there is no such thing as normal.

Follow ZooNation on Twitter and Facebook.

All images © Alice Pennefather.

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