Bring The Come Bargain Trilogy To Life In 2025

Welcome to the year of the Uncanny Things Trilogy.

While (like every marketing mailing list) I’m wishing you a Happy New Year, right now my head is filled with the fact that, in barely more than two months, The Uncanny Things Trilogy will have opened at the COLAB Tower (and bizarrely, I see that last month even that hadn’t been announced to you all! Things are moving fast).

Which means that, for the next two months, I get to have uncanny things as my part-time job. I’m slightly struggling to comprehend that, from Virtually Opera’s first experiments in interactive opera in 2019, we’re now here. So thanks to all of you for your belief in us (and your financial support).

What’s happening now?

We’re Building The Team

Just before Christmas, we closed a call-out for performers. 

Yesterday, I spent a very happy afternoon doing a first pass through the applicants. There’s people I know, people I’ve never met before; people with skillsets I’d expect, people who surprised me.

All of which makes for one of my favourite (and one of the hardest) parts of being the Artistic Director. In conversation with my Virtually Opera colleagues, it’s time to choose the performers we’ll see for an interview, and then the ones who will bring our uncanny world to life.

Whose Vigilante will we pick? One filled with anger or one filled with meditation? Will the Wyrd-Gazer be a reserved scholar or an extrovert theoretician? What’s the right team for these shows?

These are the questions we’re asking now. And I’m very excited to share the answers with you all soon.

We’re (Nearly) On Sale

Our box office is being set up. After a Yuletide photoshoot, the marketing images are nearly ready.

Once it’s all ready, those of you supporting us at Scholar level or higher will get an email for priority booking. Then we’ll go on sale to the general public, and we’ll find out if this is the sort of thing people want.

So keep your eyes peeled - and as ever, make sure our emails aren’t going into your spam folders.

We’re Getting Help (In Case You Want To Do Even More)

We’re also (for obvious reasons) contacting various journalists, industry leaders in opera and immersive, influencers, and producers to tell them about the show.

It’s always a slightly awkward moment, contacting a stranger out the blue to say “does this Thing I Really Care About look interesting to you?” But it’s a very necessary one to ensure the project’s success (now) and longevity (in future years).

One thing I’ve learnt over the years is that this is no time to be proud. So to put it plainly: if you happen to know any journalists/industry leaders/podcasters/producers etc. who you think would be interested, we’d benefit hugely from you mentioning us to them, or passing on their contact details.

In news that’s no surprise to anyone, that sort of personal connection makes a huge difference. With my Marketing Professional hat on, it’s painfully true that the best way to get help is already knowing the person!

Wyrd Rising!

So, here’s to an excellent 2025 to all of you - and to, very soon, bringing you into an uncanny world…

Leo Doulton

Artistic Director, Virtually Opera