It’s been a while since I last wore about a show isn’t it…shall we change that?
March 18th 2020 was the last time I saw a show. I have started writing this post on July 13th. Nearly four months. That is the longest I have gone without seeing a show since I turned 18…(Yes I know I am VERY lucky for that and believe me – I am very grateful). The last show I saw prior to theatres closing was Bridge Command. I completed the show and have not set foot in the Colab Factory nor done an immersive show, let alone any show, since. It hurts to even think about and I even went through a phase in lockdown where my dreams were literally just me watching a show on stage. I know I am not alone in this and many others like me are missing theatre, let alone all the cast and creative people who are left in limbo in these uncertain times.
So what better news could there have been to lift my theatre spirits than Parabolic Theatre announcing a new show ‘England Expects’! It is a direct prequel to their previously hugely successful show ‘For King and Country’ (and we all know what I think of that show!)….and the best part? You can do it all from the comfort of your own home!
When the show was announced, I was thrilled. A new immersive theatre show I could do at home, a prequel to an immersive theatre show I love fiercely, and I may even get to see a familiar face or two…I got my rota for work a week or so after they’d released tickets…..and they had sold out. The entire run. I was stood in Asda crying onto my phone that I couldn’t book onto a show. Having said that, if the fact that they sold out their entire run doesn’t tell you something, I don’t know what will…
Nevertheless, I gathered some friends who like immersive theatre and they gathered some friends and we reached a group big enough to book a private show together. And what a show it was.
I did wonder what it would be like doing a show over zoom, let alone an immersive one, and how it would work. The way it has been put together is so clever and fantastically done so that even though no one is together in the same room, it feels like for a few hours you’re all in a little bubble together, going on a mission to try and help beat the gerry’s, and do your part for the war effort!
Now my internet connection is shockingly bad. Once it took me an hour to watch a 20-minute modern family episode, so I did have low hopes for actually being able to carry out the show. However, fate must have been in my favour that night as I managed to stay on zoom for the entirety of the show and I only got booted off zoom for bad internet connection once!
Very much in true Parabolic Theatre/For King and Country style, the show and the cast are very quick at picking up at who wants to get involved as much as possible, and those who would rather take a step back (or have such bad internet their voice drops out frequently, they wonder if people can still see and hear them and they seem to be spending more time trying to make sure their laptop stays connected to the internet so they don’t get booted out of the call and miss anything…).
There is plenty of things for everyone to do, so even online audience members take complete control with the show and how it will pan out. Without spoilers, the show has plenty for people to do, with different job titles that audience members can take on throughout the show – very similar to the show this is a prequel of! There is communications, engineering, navigation, captain…and even if one audience member is allocated the role, as the show plays out and the chaos is heightened, it becomes more of a case that anyone can jump in and help and do things. I did try and do some tasks to help but more often than not my internet was so slow, the page would have loaded by the time someone has already got the job done! It may sound like I’m complaining…granted it was frustrating but also absolutely hilarious, and despite my internet limiting what I could do, the show and cast are fantastic at making sure no one feels left out. With the action going on, people don’t necessarily have to say or do anything but can still enjoy the plot and watching everything carry out – despite the audience leading the show, there is still a cast who take on characters and do some brilliant acting to move the show along. Again, I did wonder how the show would play out and how the cast could act with everything being done on zoom, but Parabolic Theatre have thought outside the box and provided a highly entertaining experience where the internet does not act as a barrier to this. No spoilers for everyone, but a trip to France was particularly fun, and the ending, in particular, had me in tears (no one is surprised about that I’m sure)…
Similarly, if audience members want to get involved without carrying out tasks, there is opportunities for people to throw any ideas or suggestions of what to do next thrown into the call, and there is a section where there is a discussion carried out which is less naval planning but rather revolves around the choosing of agents – think the home office section in For King and Country. So no matter what you fancy doing or not doing, whether you prefer the military plans or not, watching the actors or taking control yourself…there really is something for everyone!
The show has everything. Strategic missions that audience members need to decide what needs doing, high tension for the action and military operations, there is some emotional parts of the show and the pacing never drops; in fact the show is so jam-packed with scenes and missions that need doing, you don’t have time to get bored or lose interest!
Something that made me hugely happy is that for the people who have done For King and Country (both parts), there are some fantastic easter eggs dotted into the show. Parabolic Theatre are known for having easter eggs related to a lot of their content in all of their shows – some quite obvious and some a lot more subtle (my friend often has to give me hints of where to look, especially if we aren’t at a show together)…but as England Expects is a direct prequel to For King and Country, there are a few easter eggs – both obvious and subtle – but also mentions of some people and places that may ring a bell. Closer to the end when all the plot pieces began to tie together, there was a bit of a penny drop moment as I heard a very familiar name that was the answer to what we had spent a part of the evening trying to figure out.
I appreciate this sounds very vague….and I hope that everything I am saying makes some sort of sense. But I refuse to give away more details than I need to, this is a game/show best gone into knowing as little as nothing and enjoying the experience firsthand. If, like me and most of the people I played with, you are a For King and Country fan, you will feel all the feelings and love all the little details, easter eggs, and love just how the prequel is directly connected to For King and Country.
This is not only an amazingly unusual and fun experience, but it is one you can do again and again (Me? Seeing a show more than once? Unheard of…). This show could even be something which could be a saving grace with no clear date as to when theatres will re-open. There are 2 boats audience members can go on, one mini-game section (that I am aware of), and to my knowledge, at least 3 endings. So really, you just HAVE to do it again and again to see the different endings and the different things you can do every time! England Expects is a perfect way for people to get their theatre fix without even needing to leave their beds, whether you are familiar with and like immersive theatre or not, it is an experience everyone can enjoy.
Despite my original scepticism of doing a show over zoom, Parabolic Theatre have done themselves proud once again, as they always do. They are never a company to disappoint with theatre or let anyone down and this was no exception. I must have been to 50+ shows of theirs now and I am yet to leave a show unhappy or disappointed. (Unhappy it’s over, maybe. But never due to the content). The escapism theatre brings still came across to me with this experience and for a few hours, I could forget everything scary that is happening in the world and just be back in a time period and world I loved, seeing people I love and miss so much – both cast and audience…it just felt like me and my friends were all suspended in a little bubble playing a game and watching a show together.
So. It is 1940 and the royal navy needs your help to try and get one step closer to winning the war…are you going to step up and do your duty for your king and country?
Book for England Expects here. (They’re currently sold out for the whole run but keep an eye out for more a chance to book).
One Show at a Time 