An ominous white shipping container has been set up in the middle of Melbourne’s CBD with the word ‘séance’ emblazoned on it.
People are invited inside the large metal box and asked to sit in two rows of old cinema seats which face each other. Everyone is handed a pair of headphones.
As all of the participants take their seats, preparing themselves for what looks to be a theatre performance, the room suddenly plunges into darkness.
An ominous white shipping container has been set up in the middle of Melbourne’s CBD with the word ‘séance’ emblazoned on it (pictured)
People are invited inside the large container where they sit in two rows of old cinema seats which face each other (pictured)
As all of the participants take their seats and get comfortable, preparing themselves for what looks to be a theatre performance, the room suddenly plunges into darkness (pictured)
That’s when an ominous voice echoes through the headphones, asking everyone to put their hands on the table.
Traditionally, a séance means collaborating in a meeting or sitting but most of us know it as the conjuring of spirits, an idea that came about in the Victorian era.
UK theatre company Darkfield created the installation as a way of challenging people to use their ears, rather than their eyes, to experience art.
‘The darkness lets your mind take you places,’ producer Andrea Salazar told Broadsheet. ‘In a theatre, you can’t really get out of the fact that you’re there. We wanted to control the space.’
‘The darkness lets your mind take you places,’ producer Andrea Salazar told Broadsheet
UK theatre company Darkfield created the séance room as a way of challenging people to use their ears, rather than their eyes, to experience art
The show debuted at this year’s Edinburgh Fringe Festival to mass delight, with the crew deciding to set up on Australian turf just in time for Halloween
The show debuted at this year’s Edinburgh Fringe Festival to mass delight, with the crew deciding to set up on Australian turf just in time for Halloween.
However, some sessions, which only last 15 minutes, had to be stopped midway through to let terrified patrons out of the container.
The company warns: ‘Intense and exhilarating, you’ll find yourself wondering who, or what, is in the room, or maybe inside your head…’
The container will be in Melbourne until November 12. Tickets cost $20 each.