10 February 2022
Newsdesk
Immersive Everywhere – led by Olivier Award-winning producers Louis Hartshorn and Brian Hook – are pleased to announce new casting for London’s longest running immersive theatrical production THE GREAT GATSBY. Adapted and directed by Alexander Wright, THE GREAT GATSBY is playing at Gatsby’s Mansion within Immersive|LDN in Mayfair until 30 October 2022.
Welcome back to the roaring twenties! Jay Gatsby invites you to one of his infamous parties. The champagne flows and as the drama unfolds the man himself will be the perfect host. As invites go, this is the hottest ticket in town. A hedonistic world of red hot rhythms, bootleg liquor and pure jazz age self-indulgence awaits. Dress to the nines and immerse yourself in this heart racing adaption of F Scott Fitzgerald’s seminal tale.
Elliot Liburd – whose immersive credits include The Third Day: Autumn for Punchdrunk and Sky TV, and Sherlock Holmes: an online adventure for Les Enfants Terribles – will join the company for the first time to play ‘Jay Gatsby’. Safeena Ladha – a 2020 graduate who recently made her West End debut as Stick Lady Love in StickMan Live at the Leicester Square Theatre- will play ‘Daisy’
Elliot Liburd said, "I'm really excited to explore the character of Gatsby, he is all at once mysterious and readable, vulnerable and authoritative. All of F Scott’s characters are so rich, I can't wait to see how my version of Gatsby fits into the ensemble. Immersive theatre feels like a natural evolution of the industry especially after a pandemic. I think people are looking for connection and what better way than a party that is also a show!”
Safeena Ladha said, “I am delighted to be playing Daisy. What a character! I think she might be seen by some as just “the golden girl or the love interest” sort of character but I think she is more complex and real than just that ideal. She is, yes, a fictional character but I get to bring my interpretation of her to life; a real woman with real feelings. And what a world for the actors and the audience to be in! We all get to be inside Gatsby’s party, experiencing it together, and we all get to contribute to how things play out – it’s real! I’m excited to see what the audience bring out of our characters each night.”
Hugh Stubbins will continue in the role of ‘Nick Carraway’, Steve McCourt will continue in the role of ‘George Wilson’ and Jessica Hern will continue in the role of ‘Jordan Baker’. Alex Wingfield will take the role of ‘Tom Buchanan’, Aimee Barrett will take the role of ‘Myrtle Wilson’, and Greg Fossard will take the role of ‘Rosy Rosenthal’. New company members Sophia Lewis and Euan Wilson will play ‘Lucille’ and ‘Joey’.
THE GREAT GATSBY– forced to close in March 2020 by the pandemic - was one of the first shows to re-open that year under socially distanced conditions and with changes to the show to incorporate extra safety measures in October, before its forced closure in November due to the subsequent lockdown. It reopened in September 2021 back to its original pre-pandemic format, and with the venue at full capacity, and continuing to follow all current government guidelines and Covid safety measures.
Tickets for THE GREAT GATSBY are on sale now via www.immersivegatsby.com.
IMMERSIVE LDN has been granted the use of Society of London Theatre & UK Theatre's See It Safely mark. The mark certifies that the venue is complying with the latest Government and industry COVID-19 guidelines, to ensure the safety of all staff and audiences.
Olivier Award winning producers Louis Hartshorn and Brian Hook, who are currently co-producing the immersive production of DOCTOR WHO: TIME FRACTURE, CHOIR OF MAN and the forthcoming PEAKY BLINDERS: THE RISE - launched a new company in 2019, IMMERSIVE EVERYWHERE, entirely dedicated to developing and staging theatre-led immersive experiences, and IMMERSIVE | LDN is the newest of their network of venues, which will house cafes, bars and rehearsal and workshop spaces to help the development of new work.
IMMERSIVE | LDN is a 32,000sq ft historic building in the heart of Mayfair, which was home to the Queen Victoria’s Rifles Association until 2017. It includes three floors of immersive theatre and event spaces designated for performance, live gaming, events, escape rooms and private parties. For information about programming and venue hire visit www.immersiveldn.com
First conceived in 2015 when director Alexander Wright and producer Brian Hook were running The Fleeting Arms - a pop arts and community pub in an abandoned building in York, the show then ran in York in 2016 with a parallel production in Sheffield, and was produced by the Guild of Misrule . The Great Gatsby first came to London as part of VAULT Festival in 2017 and sold out before the show opened. Since then the show has run in Wales in co-production with Theatr Clwyd, at Halifax’s Square Chapel, and at Castle Howard in North Yorkshire. All the while the show has played night after night at Gatsby’s Drugstore in London SE1, inviting audiences into the hedonistic world of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s extraordinary tale, and in 2018 it became the UK’s longest running immersive production.
Amie Burns Walker and Oliver Tilney are Associate Directors. Choreography is by Holly Beasley-Garrigan, with MJ Lee as Associate Choreographer, design by Casey Jay Andrews, costume design by Heledd Rees, sound design by Phil Grainger and lighting design by Rachel Sampley. The original score was composed and produced by Glen Brown and Tendai Humphrey Sitima, with arrangement and additional composition by David Sims. The original production was created by Holly Beasley-Garrigan, Amie Burns Walker, Hannah Davies, Phil Grainger, Michael Lambourne, Thomas Maller and Oliver Tilney.
