I am spectacularly late writing this post. I don’t really want to write it – not because I didn’t enjoy the show, entirely the opposite, but because I don’t want to admit the show is over, never to return. Not only that, it has taken me a while to collect my many, many thoughts about this really quite remarkable piece of theatre, and I took my sweet sweet time coming to the end, to try and prolong the magic as much as I possibly can.
*As a heads up before you get too invested reading – I could easily have written an entire dissertation on this show, I have so many thoughts. I’ve tried to condense them into one post, but it has been tricky, so maybe get comfy – this is going to be a long one. As it stands – this is my longest post to date.*
So, Parabolic Theatre is back again with another entrancing show, but in a way I definitely have never seen before. It brought the elements of immersive theatre we all love in person – that exploration and leading the show – to life online in a new, creative and unique way. And it was an absolutely fantastic experience, one I doubt I will be forgetting any time soon, and one that absolutely captured my heart and attention. This is none other than The House of Cenci.
I will, as I always do, aim to keep this post as spoiler-free as I can. The only issue with that regarding this post is there is a lot of content to The House of Cenci, 4 acts worth, so the post may read quite vaguely in some parts to keep spoilers out. I know Parabolic Theatre have said this show has no plans to come back any time soon, but I will still keep it spoiler-free, because you never know!
The House of Cenci is brought to you by Zoe Flint, Amy Strike, Chloe Mashiter and Owen Kingston. This is an online immersive theatre show, unlike any other I have played this past year. Part ‘choose you own adventure’ text game, part zoom live performances, this show has combined both these elements to create an immersive experience with something for everyone, telling an emotional story that despite starting off being set in the 1500s, has not lost it’s relevance or meaning.
Something I, and so many others love about immersive theatre is being able to choose how the show plays out. Being able to explore – the space, the characters personalities and stories, and making the show experience whatever you wish for it to be is all part of the fun of going to an immersive theatre show! Every show Parabolic Theatre has done this past year has mostly followed that structure – the shows have still been audience-led, and therefore audience members can choose how the show pan out…but The House of Cenci is the first show I have played from Parabolic Theatre this year that have taken that structure and massively heightened it. To the extent where The House of Cenci has 3 possible endings and whichever ending you get is entirely up to you; you’re asked to make a choice – let me tell you – it’s not easy – and all three choices lead to different playing experiences for the final act and therefore a different final conclusion.
I know myself and several others had a lot of curiosity, so we played all three endings, but I know in myself which ending is ‘my’ ending (i.e. my definitive choice), and it was really interesting to see how the endings differed, yet all were tied up in a really nice and satisfying way. It doesn’t make it any easier on me admitting it’s all over, granted…but it did give me a peace of mind in the nice, final conclusion respect, at least!
Prior to the zoom live performances, audience members have to play through an online game, through which you learn about the stories, character, world – all at your own pace. The text, written by Amy Strike, reads very much like a novel. There are beautiful elaborate descriptions bringing this house and it’s many rooms to life, with details galore, which really opened my imagination and brought this whole world to life. It is through this same online game, and through the text you learn about the house and the characters, but you also are able to do exactly what you would do if this were an in-person show: you can explore where you want, when you want, at your own pace, and take from this exploration, what you will. And the things or people you find along the way? Who only knows how they may come into play and how they may come of use or play a part later in the show!
The amazing thing about being able to play the game at your own pace, to be able to explore, and with the zoom performances – choose how your interaction with the characters goes – is it means your experience is entirely unique to you. Very much the same as if you were playing an in-person show, or reading a book – everyone will have a different experience; everyone will read the text differently, have differing opinions on characters, have a different idea of how they want their show to pan out. This is something which must be very hard to capture – this unique audience experience for everyone would have been limited in previous online shows, because everyone is experiencing the same show at the same time, which apart from the zoom performance elements, was not the case with The House of Cenci. By the end of act four, I didn’t want to end the show and say a final goodbye to the characters and house I’ve come to explore and become familiar with and even find some comfort in!
The story itself, to try and be as spoiler-free as possible, is one that really draws you in. The story itself is true, and Parabolic’s interpretation is based on this. It’s dark, heartbreaking and emotional, to say the least.
Speaking of the show being dark and heartbreaking, I just want to digress for a moment and say a huge thank you to Parabolic Theatre for posting trigger warnings for the show on their website. I really appreciated this before playing and think it is definitely something we should normalise more in theatre, so it was really nice and refreshing seeing Parabolic leading an example with this. Should you wish to read through the trigger warnings before playing, the link to the Parabolic Theatre website is at the bottom of this post. Alternatively, reading the real Beatrice Cenci history before playing can help, but that will of course lead to spoilers.
Anyway, digression over. As I said before – despite this being initially set in 1599, it’s something still so relevant and important today. As you play the game more and meet characters through zooms and progress, you find out more and the story unfolds before you. The more I learnt, and the closer to the truth I got, the darker the story seemed to get, and the more interested I became. The more I progressed, I found myself completely lost in the story, and really hoping for the best for the characters I’d met. Parabolic Theatre have taken this story and brought it to life and told it in a creative and unique way that I think has more than done it’s justice.
Now I’ve said the story, house and characters were beautifully brought to life through these incredibly vivid descriptions, which is true. But there’s more. The story is not just handed to you on a plate, oh no. You have to work to unlock the truth and find out what happened. The same goes for the zoom live performances; these were things you had to find yourselves! In case it wasn’t obvious, this is not a game or a show you could only dedicate half an hour to, and be done with it. The story, the game, everything lures you in and more than captures your attention and I personally think you’d have a better experience if you really dedicated and took the time to go through it slowly, without rushing yourself or putting yourself on a timer.
As you play through the game, explore rooms and find bits and pieces along the way – you also find a puzzle or two (okay far far FAR more than 2 actually…). Through playing these puzzles, this is how you find even more content or helpful items or such to help you progress in the game. These puzzles were fantastic. And that’s coming from me – someone who is notoriously known for overthinking a puzzle 60 times over, or just being awful at them. They were clever, they were unique, they made me think outside the box and they were fun! I had so much joy trying to wrap my head around what I was reading and what I need to do next.
Something I really appreciated throughout the game and the puzzles, is whilst there is a lot of text, exploring, clicking, jumping between three time periods (okay that’s the only spoiler I promise), it never got boring or repetitive. Sometimes frustrating, because I knew there were things I needed to find, or more I needed to do, and I didn’t know how – but frustrating in the most fun and enjoyable way! Furthermore, even though the text adventure was all online, it was still a sensory experience. There’s images to aid your experience – such as a gorgeous tapestry of the family tree in the great hall (this was so helpful for act one when I was still figuring out who everyone was). Not only this, certain puzzles or rooms or times would lead to more. Such as whispering voices, or an odd music note, or flashes to be decoded. It is all eerie, haunting, exciting, beautifully put together to create an incredible at-home theatrical immersive theatre experience…and it’s magical.
The puzzles, and in fact the entire game itself – everything you click, everything you do that leads to a certain reaction or unlocking of another room – all the clever technical coding stuff that makes the game work, was put together by Chloe Mashiter. How they have made this all happen, I could not tell you for love nor money because I am far from having the technical mind to understand it. But I can appreciate it must have been complicated, a long process, and difficult. But the effect is fantastic, as it’s made a game that is tremendously fun, and had me poring over my screen for hours, just falling down the rabbit hole of wanting to explore every nook and cranny and find everything I can, and read and explore every tiny detail.
If like me, you struggle with puzzles and find yourself really struggling and you’re ready to throw in the towel: fret not. There was a discord group made (I still haven’t the faintest idea what a discord is, I just about know how to use it which was very helpful), for all players and audience members to chat about what they’ve found, about theories they have about the show, story, characters etc…and also a platform to help each other out when we need it! I found this so useful because sometimes it just takes someone saying ‘try this room in this time period’ to get you back on track, plus it was a fantastic way to meet other people and make new friends!
But, perhaps discord isn’t for everyone. At the very start of act one, you’re given an email address for someone called Peterson, that you can use should you need any help. Peterson is actually a character I have met before, in a previous Parabolic show Land of Nod. I find him a very in depth character and fascinating in every sense of the word. I thought initially the suggestion of being able to email Peterson meant about the game bugging if you’re stuck on how to progress, or on a particular puzzle. But as the show progresses and you find more and more content, you can even email Peterson about that, and get some quite interesting interaction from that. I can’t say much more, because the whole fun of this, in particular, was the mystery and the intrigue, but this was just an added detail and bit of fun on Parabolic’s behalf that I really appreciated them including.
Speaking of added details – Peterson is not the only easter egg/nod to a previous show in The House of Cenci, nor the only character you could interact with. On more than one occasion I was frantically and excitedly messaging friends, virtually screaming to them about things or people I’d found that linked to past shows. I remember literally having to put my laptop down when I found the queen’s chess piece because I got so excited and had to compose myself before I could carry on. This is a massive easter egg from Parabolic and also a massive spoiler, so I won’t explain the significance, but if you’ve played literally any Parabolic theatre show: then this easter egg would have been present. It is one of Parabolic’s more subtle clues throughout all their shows, but I do think it is one of my favourites!
As for being able to interact with more characters besides Peterson out of the game, that brings us to my next point. A short while into the game being live, I saw a ‘friend suggestion’ on Facebook of none other than Beatrice Cenci herself – the very Beatrice who this whole show is centred around. Then a short while following that, I saw a suggestion of someone to follow on Twitter – Bernardo Petroni – Beatrice’s brother. Whilst the game does provide all the necessary content you need and you wouldn’t miss out by not having seen these, the two social media profiles posted some really interesting content that were linked to the game itself, and I know a few audience members who had some really interesting conversations with these characters out of the game. Again, it is these added details that Parabolic have done that I for one really appreciated them including, because it just added to that feeling of these characters being real, and bringing this whole world and story to life.
I’ve written a lot about the game itself. I now want to draw attention to the zoom live performances. As I said, you have to find these zooms yourself throughout the game, which makes it all the more exciting when you do find them, after all this searching. There’s also this sense of anticipation, nervousness and excitement; these characters you’ve only read about on a screen, suddenly you’re going to be face to face with them, and however that interaction goes is solely and entirely down to you. When you book in for the zoom performances (You have to book for the zooms of course, but you do have to find the zooms in game to ensure you can join them – I hope that makes sense?!), you have an hour slot. Who you speak to and what you do in this hour is entirely up to you.
Let me tell you – I was STRESSED. An hour to speak to up to 4 people?! I didn’t know who to see first, what I wanted to say, how much time to dedicate to each person! But that made it all the more exciting! You’re on a timer, so get the most out of every person you can. Whether you want to learn more about their character, their role in the house, their relationships with other characters, or even – as if it’s an immersive theatre show in person – going between characters exchanging messages and acting as a go-between. This show is very much like previous shows from Parabolic; you get out of it what you put into it. So as I said – you are in control of what you get out of each zoom and character, but if you’re less inclined to speak up and join in, there was the freedom to just sit back and watch too.
With there being only an hour to speak to everyone, and audience members being able to decide who they go to and when, this means people are constantly hopping in and out of zooms. What I really appreciated is that the performers all found a way to put their content across in a way that was never repetitive, but also so new people in the room didn’t feel lost as to what was going on. This must have been a tricky thing to accomplish, especially as all the zooms are just constantly running for the whole hour, so every performer is acting entirely alone with and based on audience members for the hour, but it just worked both cleverly and perfectly.
As for the performances themselves, wow. With the live performance aspects being directed by Zoe Flint, they were done in a way that’s really quite effective. Every performer was just so impactful and powerful. Almost every week I was rendered to tears and I was having to hold myself together. I love how these characters who I’d read about and ‘met’ through the game, were completely different on the zoom performances to anything I’d previously expected. I found that I thought all of the characters were morally grey – black and white went straight out the window. I felt myself empathising with characters I never thought I would, I found myself wanting to help everyone in every way I can, even though I knew it wasn’t possible.
The performances and the content given was hard-hitting and heartfelt – it didn’t feel like I was watching people play a character, it just felt like I was meeting these people in real life, and that made it all the more emotional in itself. Despite the hopping between characters, I still felt a connection with them and when the zooms closed off, I was sad to say goodbye. Plus, every zoom I ended up being in as our time drew to a close, ended on such a significant and poignant note; I never felt disappointed after a show – quite the opposite. I felt I needed more time to try and set things right, find out more, just everything. Yet again, despite the performances being over zoom, this was not a barrier for the fantastic characterisation and the emotions coming through. Every performer more than ensured their performances felt as authentic and powerful as ever.
And that, I think, has brought me to the end. Even now, i’m thinking of hundreds of more things I want to add in and say about the show, but I think this post is more than long enough. I’m sure I have more than made my point that this show was incredible. Unique, exciting, haunting, heartbreaking and of course – entertaining. Parabolic Theatre have more than truly outdone themselves with this and I will really miss spending hours thinking about this house and it’s inhabitants. Should the show ever make a return, I cannot encourage you enough to dive in headfirst – I promise you, you will not regret it.
*Since writing this, you can now buy the codes for all acts following act one, without needing the zoom performances to progress, meaning you can play the full game from act one to act four.
To buy the codes to play, click here: https://ko-fi.com/s/4f1a079d1b
The House of Cenci Discord: https://discord.gg/TQ9bQQ8w
Parabolic Theatre’s website: https://www.parabolictheatre.com/
One Show at a Time 