Immersive Great Gatsby to move into former army building in Mayfair

A dedicated immersive theatre venue is being created in a former army reserve centre in Mayfair, which will become home to the immersive production of The Great Gatsby.

It is the newest addition to a planned network of spaces from commercial producers Louis Hartshorn and Brian Hook, who earlier this month launched a company dedicated to the development and staging of immersive theatre, Immersive Everywhere.

West End producer branches out into immersive theatre with bid ‘to rival Punchdrunk and Secret Cinema’

Set across three floors and covering 32,000 sq ft, the building on Davies Street was home to the Queen Victoria’s Rifles Association until 2017.

It will now comprise a series of performance spaces, rehearsal and workshop facilities, cafes and bars, and will open with The Great Gatsby, which moves there in October from its current home in London Bridge.

The new venue, called Immersive Ldn, will open its doors on September 13, hosting a pop-up 1920s-themed bar until October 18 when performances of The Great Gatsby begin.

The Great Gatsby is produced by Immersive Everywhere, Gavin Kalin Productions and Glynis Henderson Productions, with Theatr Clwyd and We Culture Connects.

Hartshorn and Hook said in a joint statement: “We’re very excited to be adding to the rich world of immersive experiences in London and providing a unique platform for new forms of entertainment. By building a hub for immersive events in London’s most prestigious location we are creating opportunities for a network of the best immersive artists and producers in the world to collaborate.

“We are thrilled to be opening one of our performance spaces with such a magnificent production. The Great Gatsby is a trailblazing example of what can be achieved by tearing up the rulebook. It has been seen by around 150,000 people in its first three years and we are so excited to welcome it to its new home.”

Immersive Everywhere officially launched earlier this month, with plans to have three venues as part of its network by the end of the year. The first, a five-storey building in the City of London, will host its co-production of The Wolf of Wall Street from next month, and the Mayfair theatre will be the second.

The Great Gatsby is adapted and directed by Alexander Wright, who said: “Our production of The Great Gatsby started life in the back of an empty pub in York back in 2015. Now, over three years and 1000 performances later we couldn’t be prouder that the UK’s longest running immersive show finds a new home in London’s West End.”