Van Hove and his partner and designer Jan Versweyveld are renowned for their interactive sets, as demonstrated in their performance ‘Roman Tragedies’, where audience members could wander the stage and purchase snacks and drinks from onstage vendors.
“The set and the music are like an extra character for me,” said Van Hove in an interview with the Financial Times. “It’s not like we rehearse something and then you make it more beautiful by bringing a set and sound. No, it has to be a total togetherness of all these elements.”
Another London based art platform, The Vaults are no strangers to immersive dining experiences, having hosted themed interactive dinner shows like ‘Alice’s Adventures Underground’ and ‘Dinner with the Twits’. The latest production, “Beauty and the Feast,” is brought to life by events studio Darling & Edge and quirky supper club the Grubclub, who have crafted a three-course theatrical feast complete with eccentric performers and gluttonous culinary delights. The banquet includes dishes like whole spiced pumpkins, blue cheese cheesecake and a forest of meringue mushrooms.
As explored in our Food + Drink: Trends and Futures 2017 trend report, multisensory dining experiences are on the rise, with 71% of millennials saying they love to attend food-focused events and UK spending on eating out at a five- year high. When it comes to experiential, the bar is continually being raised, particularly as they become more ephemeral and exclusive. In order to cut through the noise, brands will need to think spectacular.