Review

‘Viola’s Room’: Punchdrunk Theatre Draws Us into Daisy Johnson’s Dark Fairytale

A work of immersive theatre that takes you into the maze behind its protagonist’s walls

The gate to the maze, in ‘Viola’s Room.’ Punchdrunk Theatre, 2024. Photograph Julian Abrams.

Have we all had that dream?

It’s the one where you find a hidden room in your house. A door you’ve never noticed. A space between the walls that leads to a mansion, a palace, a secret maze, an entire world.

This is the world that Viola’s Room hopes to take its audiences into, but the success of this plan might depend on you.

My confession: I have no frame of reference for Punchdrunk — the immersive theatre group that most famously produced The Burnt City show through 2022 and 2023. I had heard great things about Burnt City but couldn’t quite bring myself to attend.

Why? Because I am sceptical of immersive performances in general. I have always had an impression that they are something closer to theme park than theatre. And I’ve never been a fan of having awkward interactions with actors who are meant to embody a role and not thrust one on me.

But perhaps that is the point — perhaps there is space for works of art in the in-between spaces. And so, I try to keep an open mind.