Completely Spellbinding Immersive Theatre

Beneath the Streets

Hijinx and Punchdrunk Enrichment

13^th-14^th June

Castle Street Arcade

What an absolute joy to experience!

Beneath the Streets was the final part of a two week residency programme with Punchdrunk, hosted by Hijinx Theatre. With only a fortnight to meet each other, explore Punchdrunk’s unique approach to theatre and create an immersive, site-sympathetic show the residency members somehow pulled off one of the most exciting events of 2014.

Hijinx is one of Cardiff’s best loved theatres, touring small scale productions around the UK and Europe. Every one of their professional shows features an inclusive cast of actors with and without learning disabilities. Alongside this they also provide a whole range of inclusive groups and events for adults, including their Odyssey community theatre group. Their most unique feature is perhaps their training Academy for actors with learning disabilities, a professional course teaching vital theatre skills and providing chances to perform.

Members of the Academy worked alongside other theatre professionals as part of the Punchdrunk residency. Punchdrunk are known for their completely immersive productions in which the audience are free to roam around the detailed world created by the company. Beneath the Streets used this free-roaming structure to allow the audience to explore the hidden world beneath the shops of Castle Arcade.

Very quickly the audience were split into two groups, each to participate in a different version of events. My group was taken to a new coffee shop, hoping to win our custom. Whilst sampling their wares things took a sinister turn, the baristas seemed hypnotised and a recorded voice beckoned us down the stairs to the basement.

Once we had descended a whole range of mad cap characters were there to meet us. Somehow we had travelled through a portal to where the lost things go. Each room in the subterranean world contained a new wonder.

The Lost in Translation room held two figures performing a ritual around a pile of discarded letters. Occasionally they would share one of the messages with you, or communicate to you in whispers. There was something so powerful about the hushed quiet and concentration of the performers; I could have watched them for hours.

In complete contrast the room of Lost Memories was covered in UV paint, whilst two shopkeepers, in equally eye catching garb, told us about their wares. The shelves were full of brightly coloured potions, the lost memories of hundreds of people. The pure joy and madness was intoxicating.

 Every new environment held a new wonder to watch or participate in. The whole arcade became a strange and exciting wonderland of quirky characters and involving narratives.

As we were ushered to the finale of the piece I wanted to run back and explore more of this delightful world. I wanted to learn more about the people who had found themselves trapped in the world of lost things. In the time scale it was impossible to experience each and every part of the production, and this is what makes it so special – each member of the audience will have had their own unique experience.

Cardiff doesn’t see much truly immersive theatre and this production has proved there is a hunger for it (the show was sold out every night in advance). Hijinx and Punchdrunk managed to take a location in the city centre and turn it into a magical experience for everyone who walked into the arcade. More of this please!

To find out more about Hijinx please visit their website.

And click here for more on Punchdrunk.