ZOOOM | Patch Theatre
ZOOOM by Patch Theatre is a tapestry of magic, wonderment and curiousity.
As I descended the stairs to the Sue Brenner Theatre, I was asked to leave my pieces of ‘dark’ to the Dark Collectors who, in exchange, gave me a piece of ‘light’ (a round plastic light source, emitting blue rays) which I was asked to look after. As I took my seat near the back of the theatre, I had the enchanting opportunity to eavesdrop on the conversations the children seated in the rows in front of me were having with their parents. There was a sprinkle of curiosity as to what we would have to do with our ‘light’. I must admit that I too shared that childlike curiosity.
Inspired by the iconic children’s picture book Harold and the Purple Crayon by Crockett Johnson, the story of ZOOOM centres around a child in her bedroom who is unable to sleep and lets her curiosity guide her through the dark, which she discovers is a magical place filled with lots of creatures, locations and activities made of light. Her journey is navigated by a small golden light which she chases as if a dog were chasing a ball, eventually becoming entangled with the light as it metamorphoses into a glowing rope and draws with as it becomes a golden, glowing magical marker, creating a neon wonderland inhabited by otherworldly creatures brought to life (some stretching all across the theatre).
Near the end of the performance, the titular character shows the audience how to change our light colour by breathing on it, creating a kaleidoscope of coloured beams erupting all over the theatre. Then we embark on a game of mirroring as we copy the girl as she throws her light in different directions, creating different shapes on the projectors with our light. This soon turns into a children’s dance party half-way through, whose gorgeous energy even the adults couldn’t resist as we did our favourite dance moves. The show ends when the girl returns home and goes to sleep.
The dialogue is minimal and almost non-existent, yet through the innovative exploration of technology, the children are hooked from start to finish. The marrying of technology, the use of the light and the immaculate soundscape, gave off the illusion that we, the audience, are witnessing magical unfold directly in front of our eyes.
Bravo, Patch Theatre. I cannot wait to see what this team does next.
