Whilst Lol’s been glamming it up in the south of France, I’ve been holding the fortress back in London. And what an exciting place to be. (I am trying to convince myself of this so just go along with me ok.) It’s exciting, and much better than being on holiday because there are two amazing immersive/interactive/non traditional/whatever you want to call it/ theatre events going on.

And they are these…

THE BLACK DIAMOND (thanks Kat for spotting it)

Following on from last year’s Night Chauffeur,  Stella Artois Black have collaborated once again with world renowned theatre group punchdrunk. This time to create ‘The Black Diamond’.

Set in 1960’s Paris, this immersive theatre experience will drop its audience straight into a film noir movie set. Where upon they become the actors.

Here’s the YouTube trailer for the production.

If you like the look of it, you can book free tickets here.  (The website is great. They’ve even
managed to make filling in the blank data fields fun. You tap away on a old school typewriter. )

If it’s sold out (there are only a few thousand tickets available), don’t panic.  According to the site, the story will develop simultaneously online. This is meant to “offer an additional interactive perspective for the audience, whether they’ve attended the experience or not.” It’ll be interesting to see how this works.

A lot of people feel that punchdrunk have ‘sold out’ as such by partnering with such brands in such a commercial way. But personally, if it means I get free tickets to something punchdrunk have helped co-create, then I’m more than happy to take on board the….Stella Artois Black is a blond premium pils larger that’s matured for longer for a rounded, full-bodied flavour” message.

Here’s the second production that caught my attention. So good, it sends you to sleep…
2) LULLABY  by ‘Duckie’ at The Barbican.

Lullaby is “A moonlit soporific serenade”. Or in other words, a giant sleepover.

Soothing storytelling and choral cradle song will gently send its audience to sleep over seven hours. For the evening,pyjama clad guests can book a single, double or triple (?) bed. They even serve you breakfast when you wake up. Just don’t forget your toothbrush. Morning breath in a triple bed might not be too nice.

In the same vein as punchdrunk and Stella, maybe Nytol missed a trick not collaborating with Duckie on this one?

Or does that immediately ruin it?

Discuss…