![\"Adam](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/0_XiylKroa_400x400.jpg\")
<\/p>\nI’ve still not fully recovered<\/p>\n
Adam is a senior What’s On and LGBTQ+ reporter for the Manchester Evening News, covering new restaurant and bar openings, food reviews, gig reviews, and issues that matter to the LGBTQ+ community. Adam joined the M.E.N in 2019 as a Facebook Community Reporter and also runs the LGBTQ+ Bulletin newsletter. <\/p>\n
![\"You](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/1_AMR_MEN_100925_DF_03jpeg.jpg\")
You can now board a flight, take part in a s\u00e9ance and enjoy a choose-your-own adventure arcade game right inside a shipping container in Manchester<\/p>\n
It\u2019s the middle of the week, and I\u2019m boarding a flight. There\u2019s a baby crying behind me, and a nearby passenger is already complaining about the plane\u2019s fridge being broken (there\u2019s no ice).<\/p>\n
To make matters worse, I don\u2019t know where I\u2019m going and my boarding pass specifically tells me that the airline is not responsible, under any circumstances, for my final destination. It\u2019s all, quite frankly, a lot to deal with for a Wednesday night.<\/p>\n
But I haven\u2019t found myself on some spur-of-the-moment twisted version of Race Across The World. No, it\u2019s actually a bit weirder than that.<\/p>\n
I\u2019m in a 24ft shipping container outside Aviva Studios<\/a>. The flight isn\u2019t real, the passengers aren\u2019t real, and, being honest, I\u2019m not sure if any of it is real at this point.<\/p>\n Just an hour earlier, I had my hands laid out on a table in a Victorian parlour room – all in pitch darkness, mind – as I partook in a s\u00e9ance where all kinds of demonic beings were conjured up.<\/p>\n Stay connected with our City Life newsletter here<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n The two experiences are part of a trio of shows which have arrived in Manchester from the acclaimed immersive producers DARKFIELD. They\u2019ve taken their shows to the Edinburgh Fringe Fest and even Latitude Festival, and have now chose three prime locations in this city for the next leg of their tour.<\/p>\n The idea is fairly simple and I am going to try and avoid explaining things too much as I really do feel like the best thing about the experience is going in blindly and not knowing fully what to expect. But a bit of housekeeping is always valued, right?<\/p>\n All three shows are set in pitch darkness. Phones, watches and any other electrical devices which might beam a notification must be turned off. You\u2019re then given a set of headphones which will guide you on your auditory journey, whilst the environment will also adapt, interact and maybe even move around you.<\/p>\n SEANCE, is located at HOME Manchester<\/a>, whilst FLIGHT is at Aviva Studios. That\u2019s one to seriously consider skipping if you\u2019re a nervous flier. And none of them are perhaps good if you\u2019re claustrophobic. I\u2019m just being honest.<\/p>\n Across the three experiences, there are also a range of sensory delights to prepare for including some light flashes, gunshot sounds and sprays of water – It is interactive, after all, and will make you hear, feel and imagine things that might not even be there in the first place.<\/p>\n Because the shows are held in total darkness, my mind went to town with the whole experience and played tricks on me. There were points I swear my ears popped whilst \u2018on board\u2019, and I genuinely felt that everyone else in the room had left me alone during the S\u00e9ance.<\/p>\n There\u2019s also a third experience called ARCADE, which is situated outside the Lowry<\/a> in Salford Quays. This actually proved to be my favourite of the three as there are some really cool interactive elements to the story. Props to artistic directors David Rosenberg and Glen Neath for their creativity on these shows.<\/p>\n Once inside, you are positioned, with headphones in tact, in front of an arcade machine where your choices will decide the outcome of the story. And it can get quite full-on based on how you choose to press your button. It\u2019s basically like Tron meets choose-your-own-adventure Goosebumps book and that is a high compliment.<\/p>\n You also get a token during the ARCADE experience which you can choose to \u2018spend\u2019 how you wish during the story. No spoilers, but my choice royally screwed me over. And the characters kept reminding me of it until the end – they won’t forget any decision you make, and there are consequences for every action you take.<\/p>\n The experiences are aimed at people aged 14 and above, and tickets start from \u00a313 each. You can get a 10% discount if you book to see more than one of the experiences, so it will work out a little cheaper if you want to do the trio like I did.<\/p>\n None of the experiences last longer than 30 minutes each, but, especially with SEANCE and FLIGHT, I don\u2019t think I could have hacked much longer as my senses and mind were already going to town and needed to pause and reflect.<\/p>\n It makes for a really imaginative night out and it\u2019s certainly something different which doesn\u2019t involve alcohol. Although, stopping off for a drink afterwards to compress and digest exactly what just happened will probably end up being required. It was for me.<\/p>\n The three experiences are running in Manchester now until Sunday, September 21 with time slots running from 1pm to 8.30pm. Tickets to FLIGHT at Aviva Studios are here<\/a>, tickets for ARCADE at The Lowry can be bought here<\/a>, and SEANCE tickets at HOME are here.<\/a><\/p>\n![\"SEANCE](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/0_AMR_MEN_100925_DF_04.jpg\")
SEANCE is eerie and not for the faint-hearted(Image: Sean Pollock)<\/p>\n![\"FLIGHT](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/0_AMR_MEN_100925_DF_05.jpg\")
FLIGHT sees you inside a life-like plane, but the experience is far from ordinary(Image: Mihaela Bodlovic)<\/p>\n![\"Nothing](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/0_AMR_MEN_100925_DF_02jpeg.jpg\")
Nothing to see here, just a s\u00e9ance taking place inside a shipping container<\/p>\n![\"You](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/0_AMR_MEN_100925_DF_03.jpg\")
You get to choose how the story goes in ARCADE(Image: Mihaela Bodlovic)<\/p>\n![\"Seance,](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/0_AMR_MEN_100925_DF_02.jpg\")
Seance, one of the three experiences, is being shown outside HOME(Image: Mihaela Bodlovic)<\/p>\n