Arena Theatre Company proudly present their epic new interactive experience, Journey.
Blurring the lines between theatre, gaming and immersive escape room experiences, Journey is the thrilling new large-scale installation event heading to regional Victoria this September.
Presented by Arena Theatre Company, one of Australia’s longest-running producers of theatre for young people, Journey stands as their most ambitious and exciting project to date.
Stay up to date with what’s happening in and around the region here.
Filling 2400 cubic metres at Bendigo’s renowned Discovery Science and Technology Centre, Journey uses cutting edge Augmented Reality technology to combine high end 3D animation with stunningly detailed physical sets, offering a truly immersive narrative adventure. Extraordinary all on their own, the sets literally spring into life when viewed through the latest LIDAR powered Ipad Pros. With accessibility at its core, Journey is a multi-sensory experience everyone can enjoy.
It’s real-life computer game, meets escape room, meets theatre show.
Guided by a magical talking map, participants will travel through a portal down into the depths of the Earth under Bendigo. There they can explore incredible unseen worlds filled with amazing, animated creatures and characters. They’ll discover ice caves and multi-dimensional worm holes, meet rock sprites and mysterious shape changing creatures.
Working in groups of four they’ll solve puzzles and reveal secrets to win rewards and advance through the experience, navigating their way back to the surface.
“The initial spark for Journey came from a model I saw at the Bendigo Tourism Centre.”, explains Arena Artistic Director Christian Leavesley.
“It was a model of the city of Bendigo with a honeycomb of 70 000km of tunnels running beneath it. I thought, wouldn’t it be amazing if these tunnels moved between incredible worlds that all existed beneath the city, that nobody knew were there. In terms of the story for Journey, I looked to classics such as Jules Verne’s Journey to the Centre of the Earth, and modern movie classics such as The Goonies and Hayao Miyazaki’s Laputa – Castle in the Sky. I love stories where young people are thrust into an unexpected adventure and then use all of their creativity to rise to the many challenges.
“To my knowledge, Journey is a first of its kind using Augmented Reality. We’re creating a first person adventure in which the participants enter fully-realised fantasy worlds, that we have overlayed with all kinds of creatures and characters. Interacting with the participants and taking them on an amazing adventure.”
A self-guided, choose your own adventure with inclusivity at the heart of the experience, Journey has been created with the vital input of Accessibility consultants throughout the entire design process; from concept right through to the build and tech.
Running from September to December this landmark event will welcome over 20 000 people to Bendigo; inviting families and friends from all over the country to create, explore, and collaborate, while spotlighting Regional Victoria as a vital arts hub.
Years in the making, Journey is a unique celebration, designed to bring people of all ages together again and create lasting memories. Don’t miss it.
Journey runs from September 2 to December 2 2022 in Bendigo. You can find out more here.
