What if Secret Cinema did a Christmas grotto? That’s kind of the vibe to this kids’ immersive festive experience, which takes place in ‘The Old Bauble Factory’ - not in fact an actual disused bauble factory, but a rebranding of a section of the old Vaults complex under Waterloo.
Overseen by creative director Elgiva Field and produced by the Secret Cinema team, ‘Wishmas’ is a journey into the titular kingdom, in which a series of ‘wishkeepers’ – elves, basically – oversee a wish industrial complex, wherein robins harvest overheard wishes, which are then processed and shipped out to Santa for granting, via flying train.
We join in this journey: watching the robins bringing the wishes in, then hopping on a ‘flying train’ to deliver the wishes… only to encounter mild peril on the way.
To be clear, ‘Wishmas’ is aimed at primary school and pre-school kids, a remit it fulfils to a tee. But die-hard Secret Cinema fans shouldn’t go down expecting a massive immersive environment to wander around. It is exceptionally unintimidating as immersive theatre goes, a linear journey through a series of beautifully dressed – and fantastic smelling – rooms, with engaging kids’ entertainer-style performances from the various wishmakers, with a little bit of interactive gubbins tossed in. Thought and care has gone into it and there’s also a fun bauble-making ‘workshop’ at the end, wherein you stuff miscellaneous sparkly things into your own big plastic bauble.
My kids found it thoroughly delightful, with their only gripe that they felt Santa’s climactic appearance was less fun than it could have been (it definitely misses the mark a little – he gets bogged down discussing the show’s internal lore).
My biggest gripe is the price. It’s dynamic, meaning the cost of admission varies with demand. If you have preschool kids and can get down to the show during the week, there are relative bargains to be grabbed. But at the weekend and in the immediate run-up to Christmas you’re looking at £59 a ticket, minimum, which is a huge amount for an hour-long kids’ show that doesn’t have much to offer adults (a small mulled wine excepted). It certainly feels out of whack with the price of most London kids’ theatre. Perhaps this is what they need to charge to cover their costs, but for what is essentially a sweet little children’s show, the sheer expense takes some of the sparkle off ‘Wishmas’.