Are You Ready For Project Mayhem?

Project Mayhem ★★★★☆

By Lydia Manch Last edited 79 months ago

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Are You Ready For Project Mayhem? Project Mayhem 4
Project Mayhem: things get violent, sweaty and often shirtless

Theatre troupe Secret Studio Lab are back, with some of their signature moves — experiential riffing off a cult classic, secret east London locations, big, violent set-pieces — and some new ones. There are more freeform elements to this show than their last few: rather than being shepherded through the experience you're set free at certain points to wander through different rooms and tableaux — a different path through Project Mayhem for every audience member.

We don't want to bust the secrecy of this one — the frisson of uncertainty around the location and topic add to the experience — but previous shows have adapted Tarantino's From Dusk Till Dawn and Fincher's Se7en.

This one's more ambitious; intensely physical and with complex plotting. Their biggest successes are with the former: fight scenes are tightly choreographed, brutal and compelling. The plotting's where it flounders sometimes — if, like one of our group, you haven't seen the film it's riffing on, you might struggle to invest in or follow the twists. But while the evening's haphazard at times, it's still an enjoyable, high-energy hit of dystopian underworld.

Project Mayhem, Secret Studio Lab, secret east London location. £29.99 Until 20 August.

Last Updated 04 August 2017