Description
VIOLETTE
Theatre & Virtual Reality
Suggested age : 14 years +
Hear about it: The Weekend Morning Show with Nadia Kidwai
SYNOPSIS
Violette welcomes you into her space. She lets you enter the privacy of her room, and then of her imagination. Only you. Step into her place as into the home of a friend; put on your VR headset; see a universe of snow and forest materialize in front of your eyes; and become the sole witness to Violette’s untold story, both magical and tragic. Finally, take your headset off and return to “real life”. You may never look at this world – the one you share with Violette and the rest of us – quite the same way again.
Joe Jack & John continues to explore and innovate; this time by developing a novel dramatic form that incorporates the use of digital art to offer a new kind of intimate experience, for an audience of one. At the intersection of virtual reality and theatre, VIOLETTE presents a universe where fiction and reality are interwoven to give life to unprecedented human connections. In this piece exploring themes of isolation and consent, each participant is given the chance to enter one woman’s unique inner world and access her unusual perspective on a reality often experienced by neurodivergent women.
Audience: A single spectator
Location: Inside a self-contained unit
Length: 25 min.
Language: Available in English or French
Format: A personal encounter which respects social distancing
VIOLETTE: A safe, immersive experience
THE EXPERIENCE
On arrival, you will proceed to the reception desk. You will be given a sticker that you will place on yourself. At the specified time, you will be given instructions about where to meet Violette. Violette will greet you and lead you to a booth where the virtual reality experience will take place. After introducing herself and her story, she will guide you in putting on the VR headset (which will have been disinfected beforehand). The virtual reality segment runs for 17 minutes. After that, you will remove the headset and find yourself alone in the booth. You will then leave the booth and the theatre by following the designated path.
SANITARY MEASURES
- The virtual reality headset and the headphones used during the experience are sterilized after each participant using a Cleanbox, an independently lab tested device that employs UVC light to eliminate coronavirus bacteria.
- All the objects and surfaces that the audience will come in contact with during the experience are disinfected after each use with quaternary ammonium, steam or disinfectant wipes.
CONTENT
TRIGGER WARNING
While this production does address the theme of sexual violence and other abuse that may be experienced in particular by women with disabilities, there are no graphic scenes of these acts in the performance.
ACCESSIBILITY
Performances of VIOLETTE are accessible to persons with reduced mobility and wheelchair users. Staff on site will guide you to the adapted washrooms, as necessary.
This experience is not available in Langue des signes québécoise (LSQ), American Sign Language (ASL), or through described audio. However, a version with spatialized subtitles is available on request in English and French.
Please contact us if you wish to receive the text beforehand or if you have any other questions: info@cerclemoliere.com or 204-233-8053.
AGE RESTRICTIONS
For health and safety reasons, the use of virtual reality headsets is strictly reserved for people ages 14 and older. This restriction has been established by the manufacturers of Oculus Rift S and Samsung Gear VR.
Several restrictions also apply to patrons with specific health conditions. Please take a few minutes to carefully read the following health warning.
HEALTH WARNING
You are advised against wearing a virtual reality headset if you are suffering from sleep deprivation or anxiety, under the influence of drugs or alcohol, or experiencing migraines, earaches, or dizziness. These conditions may increase your sensitivity to adverse effects.
People who are subject to motion sickness are also more likely to experience discomfort while using a virtual reality headset.
If you are pregnant or elderly or live with psychiatric illness, binocular vision anomalies, heart disease, seizures or other serious conditions, or if you use a pacemaker and/or a hearing aid, we recommend that you consult a doctor before using a virtual reality headset.Do not use a virtual reality headset if you have symptoms of strabismus, amblyopia or anisometropia. These symptoms may be aggravated by the use of a virtual reality headset.
Similar to the effects felt upon disembarking from a cruise ship, the effects of exposure to virtual reality may persist and even be amplified a few hours after use. Side-effects may include the symptoms described above, extreme drowsiness and reduced ability to function. These symptoms may increase the risk of injury when undertaking normal activities in the real world.
By choosing to participate in this virtual reality experience, you confirm that you have read this warning.
–
Joe Jack et John
JOE JACK & JOHN is a theatre company producing multidisciplinary and performative works combining video, dance, spoken word in both French and English. Its artistic approach integrates artists from a wide variety of backgrounds, like professional actors with an intellectual disability or from diverse cultural landscapes. The specificity of its casts reflects an aesthetic research and it aims at the creation of unique human encounters.
The company devises through collaborative writing and each play is centered around a contemporary social issue. JOE JACK & JOHN brings forward voices that are rarely heard, stimulates reflections around current issues and aims at improving the dialogue within our society through art.
Set Designer and Director : Catherine Bourgeois
Author : Amélie Dumoulin
Performers : Stephanie Boghen, Tamara Brown & Anne Tremblay
Costume Designer : Amy Keith
Sound Designer : Éric Forget
Set Design Assistants : Noémie Avidar & Alizée Millot
Direction of Photography/VFX Supervisor : Sébastien Gros
Compositor/animator : Genevieve Coulombe
Developer : Peter Wilkinson
Editor : Martin Morissette
Integration / VR Experience Consultant : UNLTD inc.
Translator : Leanna Brodie
Technical Director and Stage Manager : Audrey Belzile
Assistant Stage Manager and Rehearsal Coach : Aude Lachapelle
Production Manager : Pénélope Bourque
Set building : Sophie Bergeron & Gauvin Fabrique
Virtual Reality Consultant : Olivia McGilchrist
Graphic Designer : Gris Gris Design
Subtitles Consultant : Services linguistiques CB