WHIST
by AΦEdance, site-specific-and-immersive
Inspired by Freud, this surreal, multinarrative dance-meets-VR experience invites you on a unique journey into a family’s dreams and fears.
about the production
Inspired by the work of Sigmund Freud, WHIST invites you on a journey into the unconscious mind, through the dreams, fears and desires of a fictional family. This one-hour experience merges Physical Theatre, interactive Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR) technologies and an art installation, in an environment that blurs the boundaries between consciousness and unconsciousness, reality and fiction, the physical and the virtual. Your instincts will guide you through a narrative of surreal world, exploring the story from one of the 76 different perspectives.
about the artist
AΦE is an Ashford-based dance company founded in 2013 by Aoi Nakamura and Esteban Fourmi. With the vision to bring the art of dance closer to audiences, our mission is to create high-quality productions and experiences that are not bound by a stage. Driven by the power of body and movement in space, our productions are environments that allow the audience to enjoy total immersion. Each element in the production – the set, performers, audience, sound, objects – is part of an ecosystem, carefully constructed to allow audience’s own reflection on the subject explored. We choreographed, directed and performed for award-winning works, such as Sean Rogg’s immersive experience The Waldorf Project, stage productions (Wound, Für Eli), 360 films (The Night Opera, Elbphilharmonie Hamburg video for Google Arts & Culture) and short films (Kai, Bysju promo, Chasing Mirror by Padre ft Jova music video). They were seen live in venues such as Sadler’s Wells (UK), CutOut Festival (Mexico), Spill Festival of Performance (UK), and being featured on i-D magazine, VICE – The Creators Project and Vimeo Staff Pick. Our first major work WHIST, a physical theatre and virtual reality production, premiered in April 2017 to sold out performances, receiving 4- and 5-star reviews, and continues to tour in the UK and internationally.
loading calendars
stage dimensions
width: 10 metres
height: 2 metres
depth: 10 metres
Minimum floor area: 100m2 – for performance only.
Additional preparation space required – to be discussed case-by-case basis. Get-in: 2-3 hours, get-out: 2-3 hours
Good access to performance space – forklift/goods lift for heavy flight cases
Audiences who enjoy immersive experiences, physical theatre, or are simply curious about VR technology.
Recommended age: 16+
powerful, refreshing, exciting; opens up questions about the future of interactive performance experiences.
WHIST is not only redefining what a performance can be, but re-defining potentially the whole economics of performance art.
WHIST is a boundary breaking piece, future facing in its use of the medium of VR to develop a new kind of narrative. A truly beautiful, compelling and important work.
VR filmmaking workshop for dancers (4 hours)
Spatial design in VR filmmaking (4 hours)
Children's VR filmmaking workshop (2 hours)
Fee+VAT, travel, accommodation, per diems, freight. For longer runs: Only one person is needed for get-in get-out, with help from local technicians. If it is cheaper and reasonable for us to leave after the opening and make another return trip for get-out.
