VR experience and installation to compliment On Bear Ridge play at the Royal Court
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Nicholas Ephram Ryan Daniels
The first promo shots for the new National Theatre Wales and Royal Court Theatre joint production of On Bear Ridge have been released ahead of the show's highly-anticipated premiere. The producers have also announced that the star-studded play starring Rhys Ifans will be accompanied by a so-called "site-specific installation" complete with a virtual reality experience. Check out the new promotional shots of Ed Thomas's On Bear Ridge and find out more about the special VR experience below.
Site-specific installation and VR film to bring new lease of life to On Bear Ridge
National Theatre Wales together with the Royal Court Theatre have jointly announced the creation of a site-specific installation in the upper Swansea Valley, which is expected to bring the world of On Bear Ridge to life. Audiences at the Sherman Theatre in Cardiff and at the Royal Court Theatre in London will have the opportunity to experience this installation through a virtual reality film created in collaboration with Cuckoo Nest, which will be available at both venues in Wales and the capital. The VR experience will effectively make the environment of On Bear Ridge accessible to urban city dwellers.
What to expect of the On Bear Ridge site-specific installation
The installation itself will be constructed in Penwyllt, located in the upper Swansea Valley near the childhood home of the show's playwright, Ed Thomas. It will temporarily remain immersed within the landscape as fragments of what was once there - a collection of memories, lost objects, and long-forgotten sounds, slowly disappearing beneath the depths of the rocky earth. The installation will offer visitors the chance to behold a world that has faded to black, allowing them to eavesdrop on digital whispering voices from against a door and discover the unfinished stories and half-truths of a way of life that is long gone.
The site can be visited in person in Wales or via the specially-made VR film.
On Bear Ridge plot synopsis
"At one moment we had many customers, the next moment the store was completely empty"
In a forgotten village blurred by redefined borders and barely noticeable on the map, Bear Ridge Store still exists. 100 years after it first opened its doors, the store has now gone silent and no one can be found buying their bits and bobs or petrol. But the store's owners John Daniel and Noni are not going anywhere. They cheekily drink what's left of the whiskey as they reminisce about the golden days when everyone worked as a team and the old language shined bright. Soon, a dark figure from outside begins approaching them...
On Bear Ridge creative team
The upcoming Welsh-English play On Bear Ridge is directed by Vicky Featherstone and Ed Thomas. It features sound design by Mike Beer, lighting design by Elliott Griggs, design by Cai Dyfan, compositions by John Hardy Music, and assistant direction by Edie Morris with emerging director Izzy Rabey.
On Bear Ridge opens at the Sherman Theatre in Cardiff on 20 September where it will run until 5 October before transferring to London's Royal Court Theatre, where it will play a strictly-limited run from 24 October to 23 November 2019.
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