MESSAGE BANK Comes to Sydney Festival Next Month

Operated Coin presents Message Bank, at Paramatta Square as part of Sydney Festival from 13 - 21 January 2023. Delving into the world of digital theatre, this free event is the Paramatta-based creative studio's latest immersive audio experience, created in partnership with City of Paramatta, Create NSW and Australia Council for the Arts.

Message Bank combines location-based media and binaural audio with a story of intrigue, paranoia, and mischief to deliver an ambitious and innovative audio experience for Paramatta square.

For 45 minutes, audiences will be immersed into the story of Charlie, a recruit responsible for listening in on the secret lives of others. Reunions, breakups, conspiracy theories sprinkled with truth and deals done out of sight, all require the ear of Charlie to decide who amongst them is innocent and who could disrupt the peace. Audiences take on the role of Charlie as they navigate Parramatta Square to unlock stories of those around them as well as the identity of Charlie themself.

Operated Coin is a creative studio working between theatre and technology to create projects that seek out big ideas and new adventures. The team comprises of writers, coders, performers, designers, directors and tinkerers working with mixed methods of creation such as the use of location-based services to augmented reality to new writing and script development.

Under the innovative direction of Nick Atkins, Message Bank uses location-based media, headphones and two confession booths to electrify a public space through storytelling. Atkins reflects,

"We want to create Message Bank to tell a new Australian story and to do so in a way which extends the range of locally produced experiences. Most people experience location-based media through commercial applications like Pokémon Go, but for us, we see it as a tool to facilitate live theatre and performance events in for new people and places."

Nick Atkins is a writer, director and producer focused on creating new stories for emerging forms. Nick has held senior artistic and advocacy roles such as director of new work for Q Theatre, chair of Theatre Network NSW, member of Create NSW's Artform Advisory Board (Theatre), co-artistic director of Crack Theatre Festival (TiNA) and board member of PACT. He has completed cultural fellowships for the City of Parramatta, Create NSW and has been an artist in residence with Urban Theatre Projects, Performance Space, Blacktown Arts Centre, Bundanon, UNSW, Centre D'Art Marnay Sur-Seine (France) and NES Artist Residency (Iceland).

"We believe, in our current post-lockdown period, location-based media has the potential to answer questions we have around surveillance, trust and voyeurism as well as respond to an appetite for local stories, landscapes and experience in our audiences," Atkins said.

Australia - Sydney Awards - Live Stats

Best Musical - Top 3

1. MJ THE MUSICAL (Sydney Lyric Theatre)

8% of votes

2. A CHORUS LINE (Curtain Bounce)

7.1% of votes

3. THE HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME (Gosford Musical Society)

6.7% of votes

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