OBJECTIVES / STRATEGY
The last event before the UK entered lockdown, Wonderland were tasked with creating an immersive experience where fans could step into the music video of her latest track “How to be lonely”.
Going beyond just a re-creation of scenes from the video, Wonderland created a journey of interpretation through theatrical techniques; including sound, light and tactile materials taking guests on an emotional tour to evoke the feelings of the song which explore the abstract stages of a breakup.
Guests virtually stepped through a series of zones, symbolic of Rita’s emotional journey from loneliness, longing and unbalance to reawakening, strength and empowerment. To contextualise each area, song lyrics were scribed across the different environments, changing in tone and energy throughout.
Although the original event couldn't be attended by fans and media due to safety restrictions, it has now been brought to life digitally at https://www.how-to-be-lonely-digital.co.uk// where fans can leave a personal messages to Rita and also experience the chance to win a live Zoom chat with Rita herself.
SOLUTION
On arrival, guests were given a small veiled mask to wear for the first half of the experience before moving into a pitch black room with 3 flickering spot light. Journeying through each space one at a time they felt separation, isolation and complete aloneness. With only the bass stems of the track playing, the eerie, dreamlike environment of solitude was enhanced. Guests found themselves in complete contrast within a stark white room with cracked walls, florescent light and bulging oversized eggs bursting from the surrounds.
The ‘Memories Corridor’, provided a symbolic move from darkness to ‘light at the end of the tunnel’ towards a positive space within an almost residential environment. A perfect yet dark framed ‘freeze frame’ from the video was multiplied down the corridor with the picture deteriorating as they reached the ‘light’.
After a prop handover from the veiled mask to florescent visors, guests emerged through a series of steam vents as if entering a spaceship, to explore the vibrantly lit and lasered ‘UFO’ - a UGC dream come true!
To enhance this eccentric scene, the track was remastered backwords with stems of synthesisers and Rita’s vocals. For the first time guests could mix the track themselves with individual mixers, playing around with each of the stems and hearing it in full through various mixes. ‘Beats by Dr Dre’ provided the opportunity of a real authentic studio feel with their studio headphones on each mixing desk.
To culminate the experience guests entered the final screening room to enjoy the full track and video for the first time and invited to write some words of love, positivity and strength to themselves or to Rita, building a collective ‘post it wall’ artwork.