From the Sydney Fringe Festival
Former Emanuel School student Davey Seagle has found his niche in immersive theatre with his production company PonyDog Productions.
There’s something about Bottom
The theatre company hosting numerous interactive shows alternating in the same venue in The Rocks at this year’s Sydney Fringe Festival.
For Shakespeare lovers who want to revel in the chaos in which the plays were originally staged, there is There’s Something About Bottom, an interactive journey into the fairy world during the events of Shakespeare’s play. Meanwhile, TattleTales is a different show altogether with either Seagle or co-creator Lachlan Ruffy as the storyteller, with the audience and the tarot cards making the decisions.
For Seagle this passion for bringing fantasy and storytelling into real life started early, with his father, writer Graeme Friedman, entertaining him with stories. He realised growing up the power storytelling had in discussing real-life issues. ‘There’s something about the fantastical that I think allows us to deal with really hard-hitting truths in a way that is safe. You know, it’s this thing of being able to find comfort in a world that is full of cruelty and injustice. It’s easier to sort of process those emotions when the, you know, injustice has been metamorphosed into a dragon.’
Safety in immersive theatre is important to Seagle, like many positive aspects of the productions they have been built into its design from the beginning. “What this is really a question about is consent, especially when it comes to interactivity, people are justifiably terrified of it. Because we’ve been trained, especially by comedians, that if you’re going to be interacted with by someone on stage, they’re going to make fun of you, or they’re going to test you… I really want people to feel safe. I want them to throw themselves in to do the unexpected thing too. I want to empower the audience to have an agency over the stories become my co-writers… and allow them to drive their own narrative.” It is this clear direction from the beginning of the show that makes both TattleTales and There’s Something About Bottom amazing immersive productions even for people who are not fans of social interaction, the cast is so engaging that before long even shy audience members will start to participate.
Audience members left both shows feeling good inside, reflecting not just the stories and the experiences inside the magical Revelry Rooms but also warm memories of their own lives, while one remembered the joy of reading Shakespeare in their youth, the fantastical within their own cultures or of grandparents now lost. PonyDog Productions achieve their goal of bringing the fantastical into real life. In doing so, not only do they make real life a touch more fantastical but they allow the audience to question and contemplate while being active participants in immersive theatre, a feeling that stays with them long after the show has ended.
There’s Something About Bottom
There’s Something About Bottom is a delightful immersive experience set in the fairy world during the narrative of A Midsummer Night’s Dream. From the moment you enter the house everything in the production exists within the magical world they have created, you are assigned a fairy name, and an in-character Acknowledgment of Country is recited by the creator of the show Davey Seagle as the fairy Peasblossom.
“In all my shows, I try to incorporate the acknowledgments into the show. I think it’s important… we’re doing storytelling. And a lot of the time the acknowledgement is done sort of by rote, and I have received indigenous consultation for all the acknowledgments I’ve done. And I think by hearing it in a different way, people actually listen to it. When people know what they’re expecting, and they’ve heard it a million times, it doesn’t have the same emotional impact that it should we are on stolen land, we are on a land with an incredible amount of history. And as you know, it’s one of the oldest living cultures on Earth. And we don’t acknowledge it, we don’t acknowledge it in our everyday lives, as Australians, we don’t incorporate it…. And I think that’s a tragedy, I wanted to do something more, I wanted to really properly acknowledge our custodians.”
By having characters in such a pivotal work of English drama identify the importance of the thousands of years of stories that have existed in Australia, it just like the rest of the play itself turns the stale nature in which many have been taught Shakespeare on its head. “you know, we raise up our canon, our Western canon, which is… all of our classics, the pieces of art that we say are good, and we study, and mostly they are works from 18th to 20th century Europe, with a few dotted before that… so, you know, they’re young…and before then all of this stuff is inspired classics, Ancient Greece, Ancient Rome. That’s where Shakespeare got his inspiration from. Ancient Rome and ancient Greece is an eighth of the age of Indigenous Australia.”
Rather than being presented as the pinnacle of storytelling to be praised academically, Midsummer’s Night’s Dream is shown as real life within the confines of the house and presented in the chaotic nature in which the play was originally intended, with eccentric characters whose real problems pull you in and merits you wanting to help them. “I think we’re actually closer to the original Shakespeare… in some respects than a lot of the modern interpretations. Shakespeare was always meant to be fun… the idea of being well-behaved in theatre is a very new thing.”
As much as the participants could have existed in this fairy world forever, the production itself was perfect in length. There was excitement to get the tasks completed but not as much hurry as an escape room. Largely the problems were interpersonal issues that needed resolving but with the added chaos of magical items. So, if you have a friend who likes fantasy and is good with people, they will likely enjoy this.
The cast was also exceptional at including participants who have less desire for social interaction or role play. I brought a family member who is petrified of speaking in public, who before the end of the program was talking to the characters, making suggestions as to what we should do next, and cracking a joke or two. I really could not recommend this show highly enough, it was a great night out.
5/5 Stars.
TattleTales: Immersive Tarot Storytelling
TattleTales was hilarious from beginning to end. Both enjoyers of classic roleplaying games such as Dungeons and Dragons, and newcomers to fantasy will both enjoy the show. The immersive show’s plot is based on audience suggestions so the story can be whatever they and also the cards decide. Silliness and joy though are bound to ensue.
The mechanics of how the show functioned were easily laid at the beginning of the show. The audience was split into three characters, functioning as creator and host Davey Seagle explained it “as the many voices within the character’s head”. Characters’ choices were decided by the groups, yet their success was often decided by the tarot cards. If at any point the narrative becomes too weird for someone or there is ‘a monster too close to home’ the audience was advised, they could make an X with their arms and the story would revert to a previous decision.
As positively chaotic as the show was the structure of just a few well-thought-out and expressed rules for its storytelling made a significant difference. Audience members disagreed on character decisions and setting. Was it hot or cold? Was it medieval or futuristic? But the ship that is TattleTales never seemed to be lost in a storm. At some points, a hands-up democratic system was used while in others Davie manages to combine the opposing wishes of audience members into a coherent and thoroughly enjoyable story. Rather than hot or cold, it was an icy northern tundra surrounded by volcanic activity and ravaged by magical and fiery wars. Rather than medieval or futuristic it was medieval on the cusp of discovering futuristic magic from long ago. The moments where audience members disagreed with each other were enjoyable, they showed how invested they were in the story, and Davie expertly brought the show back onto the story so that any moments of disagreement, though comedic were not drawn out unnecessarily.
The Revelry Rooms as a heritage building had limitations on set decorations and with the company having to quickly change the rooms to match each show, creative lighting and sound were the answer. “Very early on it’s really important in these works to feel like you are crossing a threshold that you are moving from your normal life into somewhere, that is magical.” Behind him a backdrop of red and purple fabric is thrown together, an artificial candle on a stand in front, while lighting projects colours fitting what is happening in the story, creating a blend of chaos and mystery. A small projector on the desk allows Davie to show the audience the most recent tarot card with added accessibility. The possibility that comes with the tarot deck was a source of humour, at one point Davie asked one section of the audience what their character was feeling, ‘angry at the world’ they responded. Following this the section sitting opposite them, their character’s antagonist pulls out a very fitting card; the world, causing laughter from the audience.
TattleTales is unexpected like the pass-around stories of childhood anything can happen, but with the benefit of great hosts and ideas behind it, adults from the most outgoing and creative to those likely to just sit quietly will enjoy the production. Seagle’s character mentions in the introduction the magic in the possibility that comes with these stories, with each show’s story being unique to that audience and selection of the cards. It is partially for this reason some fans of the show have seen it more than once. But while every night is different, chaos alone is not enough to make people want to come again in this way. PonyDog Productions’ amazing cast and production for its varying shows, concern for their audience and commitment to storytelling are the driving factors to its success.
5/5 stars
