A Machine To See With

It’s vital not to put your phone on silent during this incredible piece of immersive theatre from Blast Theory, because when it rings you will have to act. Fast.

A Machine To See With asks you to imagine the city as a giant back lot. The streets are populated by thousands of extras and buildings are nothing more than plywood constructions shielding microphones and secret cameras. A heist movie is being shot and you are the star. You follow a series of commands that lead you round the city to meet your partner. You make a plan, check your escape routes and head for the bank to wait for the signal.

The remarkable thing about this piece is the speed at which you trust the voice on the end of the phone and how completely it manages to change your view of the entire city. This piece is about more than just enacting a story. You are alive to every detail that your eyes and ears can pick up and everyone around you suddenly becomes slightly suspicious. Even your partner cannot be trusted because who knows what instructions they are being fed by the anonymous voice on the other end of the phone.

It’s rare that you get a chance to step outside yourself and inhabit a different world and this piece affords you the opportunity to do just that.

– Chris Hill