Somnai Review

Ever tried virtual reality (VR)? Are you wanting to experience something totally unique and just a little bit cooky? Well open your mind and head on over to Somnai in Barbican and take in this entirely different version on VR.

Dotdotdot are the creators of the sleep and dream virtual reality experience SOMNAI. They take you on a journey of exploring the unconscious realm of dreaming through VR and havecombined it with immersive theatre.

Before I headed over, I had previously looked on their website to get an understanding on what to expect for this event and I’ll tell you now, I still walked in there completely oblivious to what I was getting myself into. You kind of just end up going with the flow. You are moved from room to room listening to stories told by the actors and watch things slowly come to life behind the goggles. Be mindful of your ‘surroundings’ you will bump into each other from time to time, but you get caught up in little fits of giggles along the way.

We got to soar above the clouds, climb rocky terrain, swim with sea turtles, but be warned, not everything is all butterflies and fairies. I managed to get caught up in a nightmare. With my heart racing I was running down halls that were set up like something from a 70’s horror movie set following a girl with a rabbit mask and some guy from our group. We were hesitating outside rooms we didn’t want to end up in, let alone being in there with strangers, after hesitating we slowly crept in all theway while trying to shush my brain that was telling me maybe I really was being set up for the next horror movie-turned real lifenightmare! It was something I won’t forget in a while that’s for sure. To finish it off we all ended up on our ‘death beds’ and then brought back to life again. Our group then emerged and bonded over our experiences whilst sipping cocktails. There is an app you can download to see your cocktails come to life, unfortunately it didn’t work for me.

Get in quick for the last week of the event before it closes on the 26th of July. However, it won’t be up to everyone’s taste as some parts you will be left thinking ‘what the?’ but then again if you’re in for some out of the box entertainment, than this is it!

Website: www.dotdotdot.london

Twitter: @dotdotdot_uk

Instagram: @dotdot.london

Written by Bec Brodie