I have been captivated by theater and the performing arts for as long as I can remember. Uniquely from other art forms, performance exists exclusively in its moment of conception. Performance carries urgency; it requires active audience participation. For these reasons, the performing arts can respond to current events in our communities and engage in topical conversations in ways that paintings and photographs cannot.
In recent years, though, a new genre has emerged that straddles the line between theater and fine art. These installations, dubbed “immersive art experiences,” combine the immediacy of performance with elements of sculpture, narrative, and audio-visual art forms. They’ve already popped up in just about every major U.S. city!
I’ve made it my quest to visit these immersive exhibits wherever I can find them. These are NINE of my absolute favorites across the United States.
Arcadia Earth- Manhattan, New York
Perhaps the best example of timely art with a political statement, Arcadia Earth is constructed entirely from recycled materials—mainly, man-made debris that was discarded in the ocean. This exhibit, located just outside Washington Park in New York City, takes viewers on a journey through imaginative forests and underwater realms, inviting us to consider the damaging impacts that humans have on the natural world. The combination of augmented reality technology, shocking statistics, and thousands of plastic grocery bags incites a powerful call to action. The experience concludes in a room plastered with campaign posters by environmental activists; attendees are encouraged to sign their names on the wall as a means of joining the fight against climate change. Get tickets to this thought-provoking adventure here.
House of Eternal Return- Santa Fe, New Mexico
The first of MEOW WOLF’s three permanent installations tells the story of an experimental scientist who mistakenly deports himself and his family into the multiverse. They leave behind their home and several unstable portals which can be freely traveled by attendees. Meow Wolf’s attention to detail is unmatched, and the (mostly) realistic house is chock full of narrative allusions, such as pages upon pages of the scientist’s copious notes documenting portal phenomena. Step through the bookcase or inside the refrigerator, however, and you’re instantly transported to the destination of your choice, from snowy wastelands to decrepit beach towns. All 70 rooms in the House of Eternal Return were created by local artists, but kiosks throughout the exhibit unravel an underlying storyline: the dark origin of the multiverse. I visited this exhibit alone and spent five hours exploring the 20,000 square feet—do yourself a favor and snag an early slot here.
Natura Obscura- Englewood, Colorado
Set in a magical forest shrouded in secrecy, this exhibit sure lived up to its name. Animal spirits peered out of frosted mirrors; trees and flowers twinkled in gentle shades of white and pink. Tickets to these wintry woods included the use of UV flashlights, which revealed secret messages throughout the installation. This experience also had a corresponding mobile app which allowed attendees to scan glowing symbols in the forest, revealing the mystical origins of its spirits. Sadly, Natura Obscura closed in December 2019, but its creators, Prismajic, are onto bigger and better installations!
Sleep No More- Manhattan, New York
My colleague, Olivia, and I attended this film noir retelling of Shakespeare’s Macbeth during our spring break in 2017. We were welcomed into the lobby of the Mckittrick Hotel in Chelsea, New York with cocktails and expressionless white masks, with instructions to remain masked for the entirety of the experience. We made a quick decision to split up and entered the performance space separately. I highly recommend this approach for future attendees.
Through haunting choreography timed to ethereal soundscapes, the characters enacted their respective storylines throughout the hotel. They crossed paths with one another in raunchy culminations of love and violence, occasionally shepherding the masked attendees together for climactic events such as Macbeth’s feast. I was often distracted from one performer by the dramatic intrusion of another, and at times, I stepped away to explore the empty rooms, which were each filled with carefully crafted props. This 360˚ attention to detail is precisely why I love Sleep No More—between the concurrent narratives and the interactive set, Olivia and I saw two entirely different performances! It was a decadent, riveting theatrical experience that fortunately, survived COVID-19. Sleep No More returns to the Mckittrick Hotel in February 2022. Try to grab the earliest time slot so you catch the whole story 😉 Book tickets here.
Omega Mart- Las Vegas, Nevada
Like Meow Wolf’s first permanent installation, this psychedelic grocery store starts off innocently enough…until you start to look closely at the products lining its shelves. Cream of Mushroom Sop, Infinity Watermelons, Tattoo Chickens, and MILLLLLLLK are just a few of the not-quite-lifelike items available for sale inside Omega Mart. If you dare, step inside the soda cooler or crawl through the tent display—with portals to the multiverse abound, you can even find a route via the lockers in the employee break room! I adore that the Meow Wolf experience is never a linear one; each room has three dynamic exits and countless unexpected pathways leading you back through each one. I continued to stumble upon the headquarters of the mysterious Dram Corp, where each of the dozen computers were loaded with unique case files and video recordings. Similar devices throughout the exhibit implicate Dram Corp in agendas to obscure truths about missing children and leaks of dangerous contaminants.
At twice the size of its predecessor, Omega Mart offers a grander, flashier presentation. It relies more heavily on projection mapping technology and other multi-media art forms than HOER. It also incorporates more elements of performance, such as the grocery store employees who converse “helpfully” with attendees and seem to turn off when certain portals are activated. These changes are especially fitting given that the new exhibit is in downtown Las Vegas, in an art collective a few blocks away from the Strip. People flock to Vegas for the spectacle, and with impressive artist collaborations like Alex & Allyson Grey, Omega Mart does not disappoint. Give yourself plenty of time to interact with each arresting design—book early tickets here.
Otherworld- Columbus, Ohio
The concept of alternate realm tourism is not exclusive to Meow Wolf’s vision. This experience invites attendees into a restricted laboratory, where the gateway to other worlds lies open and unattended. Venture beyond and you’ll discover bioluminescent plants, alien creatures, and vast dreamscapes of light and sound. Otherworld offers attendees several mazes and puzzles to solve throughout the exhibit, and even occasionally serves as a performance venue for experimental musicians. This extraterrestrial mission is located about twenty minutes outside of Columbus, Ohio. Grab tickets here.
ARTECHOUSE NYC- Manhattan, New York
ARTECHOUSE is a digital art production that has brought permanent installations to Washington D.C. and Miami Beach as well as the famous Chelsea Market in New York City. These installations play host to rotating exhibits for up to six months at a time, each one a pioneering fusion of art, science, and technology. When I visited ARTECHOUSE in Spring 2020 (just two days before the national travel advisory was issued), I saw Intangible Forms by Japanese artist Shohei Fujimoto. The main attraction was a stunning laser display that stretched from floor to ceiling in a three-story warehouse space. Brilliant red beams danced effortlessly in time to the unearthly music, creating perfect grids and fluid images. Multi-media projects in other rooms used similar patterns and projections of light to mimic the lasers’ operatic movement. Though Intangible Forms is no longer, ARTECHOUSE NYC continues to lead the quest for innovative audio-visual art forms with a brand-new exhibit called Geometric Properties. Check out availability here.
Shiki Dreams- Denver, Colorado
From the creators of Natura Obscura comes another whimsical wander through the woods. Shiki Dreams exists in the same universe as its precursor but follows the story of a gentle Yeti named Shiki. His home is a winter wonderland teeming with enchanted trees, lore-filled relics, and snowy owls in flight. This experience, too, is enhanced with an augmented reality mobile app which encourages attendees to engage with their environment and unravel the secrets hidden among the trees. Named as one of the top 5 immersive art experiences in America, Prismajic’s current endeavor will run until the end of October. Don’t miss this charming adventure- get your tickets here.
Convergence Station- Denver, Colorado
Easily my most anticipated experience of the year! Meow Wolf impresses yet again with an immersive psychedelia guised as an interdimensional train station. Visually stunning and intelligently mapped, Convergence Station seamlessly blends compelling narrative with diverse installations by local artists to guide attendees on a multi-sensorial tour of the realms. This experience takes elements of reality and runs with it, propelled by plotlines of lost memory and alien technology. Exhibit employees serve as diegetic characters (each with a unique backstory) that can answer attendees’ questions about the world. Elaborate props in each room spell out the history of the multiverse. My favorite? A thick, metal-bound storybook that offers clues on how to contact the Gods of the cosmos.
Building upon the sculptural labyrinth of House of Eternal Return and leaning less on spectacle than Omega Mart, Meow Wolf’s third permanent installation is the largest in size and infinitely more creative. Even the building inspires curiosity, being nestled between the footprints of I-25 and I-70 in Denver, Colorado. It also houses a small music venue that boasts groundbreaking, interactive projection tech. The venue, “The Perplexiplex,” has already hosted international artists with the likes of GRiZ and Clozee—all within just one month of its public opening! Convergence Station is my favorite immersive art experience yet, so much so that I now consider it a Denver destination. If you find yourself in the area, you simply must arrange for tickets to this mind-bending voyage here.
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