Tag: immersive
PHONE PLAY – Baby Jessica’s Well-Made Play – PHONE
BABY JESSICA’S WELL-MADE PLAY is a five-act phone adventure to the bottom of a well and back again. Loosely inspired by the 1987 true story of Baby Jessica, this highly interactive, intimate performance-for-one ushers audience members into conversations about fear, hope, self-care, imagination, culture, and memory. Over the course of two nights, audience members will discover what pulls them up and out of the dark.
Length: 120 minutes
Tickets: $30
February 28 – March 30
HAUNTS – Delusion – CA
*Christine Barger (aka The Haunt Girl) became an escape room creator & owner in 2021 at Exit Game OC in Anaheim CA. Opinions given by thehauntgirl are uniquely those of Christine & do not reflect the opinions of the escape game company.
ANNOUNCEMENT – LOST HALLOWEEN
Fans Step Up to Create The Lost Halloween,
an Emergency Benefit for NYC’s Immersive Theater Professionals
New York, NY – October 1, 2020 – When theaters shut down in March 2020 due to a worldwide pandemic, all of the performers, creatives, and support staff from NYC’s popular immersive theater community suddenly lost their jobs. The performing arts were one of the first sectors of the economy to shut down and are on track to be one of the last to return. A group of friends who met through attending NYC-based immersive theatre got together and decided: it’s time for immersive fans to give back.
The Lost Halloween is a fundraiser to directly benefit immersive theater professionals, paired with a FREE virtual showcase event to bring the immersive community together. The virtual event, which will feature dozens of NYC’s immersive performers, will be held on October 30, 2020, at 9:00 PM ET. Both the fundraising page and the ticket page are live at losthalloween.com now and everyone is invited to attend! An online art auction will also raise funds throughout the month of October.
100% of the funds raised will be distributed directly to immersive artists and workers who are in need because of the pandemic. Artists and workers from the immersive theater industry can apply for funds through the link on the website.
The Lost Halloween is organized by a small group of NYC theater fans who are spread coast-to-coast from NYC to Oregon, North Carolina, and California. KaeLyn Rich and Zack Waffle, a couple who live in Rochester, NY, came up with the idea to throw a fundraiser for immersive workers. They asked their fellow theater-loving friends to pitch in and solicited early feedback from performers in the immersive scene. A week later, The Lost Halloween was born.
Zack Waffle (he/him) said: “We came up with this idea because, like many NYC theater fans, we were missing live performances. What made us even sadder was thinking about the professionals who lovingly made these immersive experiences. From cast members to stage managers to bar staff, workers formerly employed in NYC’s theatre industry are unsure when their next payday is coming, are no longer receiving unemployment stimulus assistance, and have no idea when theaters will open their doors again.”Fans Step Up to Create The Lost Halloween Page 2
KaeLyn Rich (she/her) added: “Immersive theater lays bare our need and longing for authentic human connection. From intimate experiences built for one person to six-story buildings built for 400 guests; in candle-lit closets, reimagined historic buildings, and surreal fantasy landscapes sealed into old warehouses, immersive shows help us connect to our deeper truths. We decided we have to do something to give back to the creatives, performers, crew, and staff of these shows that meant so much to us.”
Kelly Bartnik (she/her), an immersive performer, choreographer, director, and producer whose work is included in The Lost Halloween said: “The entire premise of The Lost Halloween is indicative of the impact immersive theater can have on its audiences. That a group of people would spend their time, energy, and money to offer support to immersive theater artists who are struggling with a lack of work right now is not only incredibly generous and kind, but showcases the level of connection that seeps outside of the realm of a performance and engages people in an elevated way.”
The free, virtual showcase event will be live-streamed on Zoom on October 30, 2020, at 9 pm ET. Performers will be announced on Instagram and the website in the days leading up to the show. Gifts to the fund are being accepted now. The goal is to give a minimum of $250 per person, with the hope to fund all requests received. If that isn’t possible, preference will be given to BIPOC, people with disabilities, and those with housing, food, or medical needs.
Check out losthalloween.com for more info, to give or request funds, to reserve a free ticket, and for information on the October 30th showcase event.
ABOUT THE SHOWCASE EVENT:
Mysterious hosts. A party in an abandoned house. A place where lost things and lost people can be found. The Lost Halloween.
Join us on Friday, October 30, at 9:00 pm ET, for a live-streamed Zoom showcase of immersive artists to celebrate and raise funds for the cast, crew, and staff of NYC’s immersive theater world.
This is a Halloween dress-up Zoom event with “dress code strictly enforced,” a.k.a. do what you want. Camera-on is optional, costumes are encouraged, bring your own champagne cocktail. The show features immersive performers but is not immersive in nature. That said, you may stumble upon some delightful surprises. Your favorite entertainers will be performing songs, dance, monologues, burlesque, drag, and unique offerings you just have to see to experience. Follow our Instagram @losthalloween for cast line-up announcements, a one-of-a-kind art auction, and other fun leading up to the main event.
More info at losthalloween.com
IMMERSIVE – Internal (Hollywood Fringe) – CA
IMMERSIVE – Tales By Candlelight – California
ESCAPE ROOMS – The Courtyard at The Basement – Ca
HAUNTS – Into the Black 2017 – California
Have you ever wondered how you would react if you were the character walking through the spooky house alone in a horror flick? Now you have the chance feel what that is like. Into the Black at the Los Angeles Fairgrounds in Pomona California is a new Halloween event for 2017. It is a three part adventure in that there is a short movie, VR experience and walk through haunted house that all work together to tell the story. You can watch the movie on YouTube before attending the event. The VR experience is a fun short adventure into the past to meet the characters of the home and find out a little more of the history of the house and it’s former residents. The haunted house is an individual experience inside the house which we have now gotten quite familiar with. Overall, it’s a creative, fun and unique event.
The haunted house is beautifully designed and truly feels like it’s own character. One of my favorite things about the design is the use of space. I enjoyed the large room scenes in combination with the claustrophobic hallways. I also love that there are choices to make within the path. The make-up is amazing, of course. Afterall, Larry Bones (Boneyard Effects) is an incredible make-up creator. The hardworking actors are perfectly placed to build tension and then pounce. The sound design is also wonderfully done. I loved the moment when I was following the sound, but could barely see anything. Everything works together so well to create a fresh style of psychologically thrilling experience.
You can more of my thoughts in the YouTube video below along with my husband and short interview with Larry Bones.
ODDITIES – Jurassic Planet at the LA County Fair – CA
I’ve never been particularly interested in dinosaurs, but I heard about Jurassic Planet and my curiosity got the best of me. I’m glad it did.
For only a small $5 up charge to your fair admisssion you can walk among 40 life sized realistic animatronic dinosaurs. It pretty darn cool! I know they aren’t actually real dinosaurs (except for a few live creatures on display such as an emu, alligator and tortoise), but they seem pretty real if you let your imagination run wild. I found myself wanting to pet them and at one point talking in “baby talk” to a few adorable animatronic baby dinos.
I really enjoyed Jurrasic Planet and wanted to share it here. I also recorded a bit of my experience which you can watch from YouTube below.
ODDITIES – The Speakeasy Society: The Door – California
CHAPTER 3 – THE DOOR
You know a show is gonna be great when it sells out in 3 hours and it was amazing. Please note that this review contains spoilers. Expect all three chapters to go into production again this year, so if you’d like to experience the show without any prior knowledge then I recommend you do not continue reading.
Full Cast (left to right) Matthew Bamberg- Johnson as Phil Daring, Nora King as Dorothy Gale, John Henningsen as Lyman, John McCormick as Oscar Diggs (The Wizzard), Genevieve Gearhart as Phoebe Daring
My husband and I arrived and were escorted to a porch-like area to meet with Lyman along with another couple. We spoke with him about the themes of each chapter so far. Chapter 1 was about hope, Chapter 2 opportunity and Chapter 3 the future. The five of us discussed the difference between destiny and inevitable consequence. Within a few minutes the wizard entered to escort us into the house. He inquired as to whether we had brought our keys, as they were very important to what was to come.
Upon entering the house I couldn’t help but feel curious about those who resided there. It was so lived in, unlike what I have come to expect from a theatrical set. As we entered the living room we were introduced to Dorothy. We had our first decision to make. As a group we decided who she was. Then the wizard did a card reading where we each got involved. In an unexpected turn of events Phil and Phoebe/Ozma entered the room through a magical door. They took Dorothy back with them and we were sent on our way.
Overall the show was interesting and unique. The actors were absolutely amazing. It is a wonderfully fun way to be immersed in the retelling of these classic stories. I felt that even though Chapter 3 was the smallest audience per show, somehow it felt the least intimate. I really love what they are doing with The Kansas Collection though. I can’t wait for Chapter 4.
Live Escape Room & Haunt Reviews 
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