Séance

A First-Of-Its-Kind Experience For Australia, Takes Its Audience Into Halloween… And Beyond

A séance /ˈseɪ.ɑːns/ is an attempt to communicate with spirits. The word "séance" comes from the French word for "seat", "session" or "sitting", from the Old French seoir, "to sit". In French, the word's meaning is quite general: one may, for example, speak of "une séance de cinéma" ("a movie session").

Combining the spookiness of a séance and the horror of Halloween, Séance by sound wizards Glen Neath and David Rosenberg of Darkfield, is coming to Melbourne's iconic Fed Square, in collaboration with local outfit Realscape Productions.  This follows a sell-out season at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival earlier this year that attracted rave reviews. 

Taking place in absolute darkness in a shipping container, Séance explores the psychology of a group of people who are normally bombarded with imagery (all of us)!  Guests are handed noise cancelling headphones as they enter the dimly lit box.  Making the connection between the origin of the word, séance (see definition above), the scene is set in the container with old cinema chairs around the periphery and a central table where guests place their hands.  Then the creaky door closes and the lights go OFF!

The subsequent complex stereo soundscape asks the audience to believe not only in what seems to be happening, but what may be conjured up. Is it real or is it imagined?

A fully immersive experience, using cutting edge sound technology, this intense installation will be in place in time for Halloween celebrations and beyond, and is destined to frighten and delight in equal measure.  Blurring perception and reality, Séance will challenge the mind and stimulate the senses.

Halloween is historically a time of celebration shrouded with superstition, with revellers traditionally wearing costumes to ward off roaming ghosts.  Séance is the chilling opposite; guests will be summoning ghosts in a totally dark, metal box – who knows who or what may show up!

The shipping container that houses Séance will be in Fed Square from Thursday 26 October for preview until Sunday 12 November, with its 15-minute experiences running throughout the day and into the night. 

Séance is not recommended for children under the age of 14, those who are claustrophobic or frighten easily.

Tickets are $20 per session and are available from Eventbrite (https://www.eventbrite.com.au/o/seance-melbourne-oct-26-nov-12-15456541686) or can be purchased onsite. 

The first-of-its-kind production ever seen in Australia, Séance is sure to create a memorable experience for those brave enough to go.  Are you?