One of the surprise hits of recent years has been the immersive show THE GREAT GATSBY which triumphed in various try out productions to become a seemingly permanent fixture on the London Theatre and one of the first productions to announce post-Covid plans.
The same team will be launching an immersive DOCTOR WHO experience TIME FRACTURE in the West End in February 2021 at an, as yet, unnamed venue.
It’s also unclear how reliant the opening will be on the UK government announcing an end to social distancing in theatres, as we all hope they will in November. However I imagine it will be possible to create a walk-through immersive experience that doesn’t require any one getting too close to anyone else so that may not be an issue.
The Gatsby team are joined by folk with impeccable credentials for this kind of thing including director Tom Maller (Secret Cinema's Casino Royale, 28 Days Later, Blade Runner), writer Daniel Dingsdale (Dark Tourism) BBC consultant James Goss (Dirk Gently, Torchwood) and production designer Rebecca Brower on behalf of Immersive Everywhere.
Although if that’s the case I’m not sure what, if anything, is left for THE GREAT GATSBY creative team to contribute.
Anyway we’re promised that TIME FRACTURE will be set in two time periods and features iconic Doctor Who aliens including Daleks, Cybermen and Time Lords.
Writer Daniel Dingsdale said: "Drawing from the rich legacy of Doctor Who, which spans over half a century, we are creating an adventure that will entertain both fans that have immersed themselves in the show's universe for years, and audience members who will walk in from the street having never seen an episode. It's going to be an absolute blast."
The production will be offering a free preview of DOCTOR WHO: TIME FRACTURE to care workers ahead of opening in February; which is always a shrewd move to head off any criticism that producers aren’t considering the impact any project might have on the NHS in a worse Covid case scenario.
Tickets go on sale on 20 August.
Over the next few days I’ll be officially announcing a project called HAMLET ON THE BEACH but I wanted to tell you about it first.