Summing up the nature of ‘woman’, the Malleus Maleficarum declares that ‘she’ is “a foe to friendship, an unescapable punishment, a necessary evil, a natural temptation, a desirable calamity, a domestic danger, a delectable detriment, an evil of nature, painted with fair colours, who desires inherently to overthrow all the kingdoms of the world.” 

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Playhouse Creatures, written by April de Angelis, is a play about five restoration actresses in London in the 17th century. Our adaption follows the story of Nell Gwynn, and its fragmented narration lays a picture of survival in an oppressive system, of the bonds of women' friendship, ambition, empathy and not a small amount of witchcraft. 

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A project developed in the throes of a pandemic, we found a curiosity to translate immersive performance to a digital format. Through the conscious techniques during filming and post-production, we experimented with how to establish a sense of intimacy, engagement and presence, which is so characteristic for an immersive audience, to a screen. We arranged an in person screening as well as an online, streamed screening to accommodate physical, geographical, and financial accessibility. 

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