Future cinema's Shawshank Redemption: an interactive experience

Last Saturday I spent the evening in prison. Even paid for the privilege. I probably wouldn't do it again and definitely won't be paying £50 for the experience!

It was all part of Future Cinema's (or Secret Cinema - they seem to be the same but operating under two different names - not sure, bloody confusing) interactive cinematic experience. The idea is you get to experience the movie and not just watch it. In this case the movie was Shawshank Redemption, hence the prison themed evening.

I was a little apprehensive, not knowing what to expect, but this video will give you an idea of what happened.

We were instructed to meet at Bethnal Green library (functioning as a courthouse) where we were ushered into a room, greeted by a sleazy lawyer (Slick Rick I think it was) and sent upstairs for a speedy sentencing (I got eight years for battery). At this point there was a lot of waiting as I guess there are only so many people they can fit on the prison bus. We eventually get told to line up by a verbally abusive prison guard (come to think of it just about everybody we encountered was verbally abusive) and are led, single file with hand on the person in front's shoulder, to the bus. This is vaguely reminiscent of primary school - constantly told to stay in single file and to shut up and stop giggling.

When we arrive at Oakhampton penitentiary, we are are sworn at some more and told to form lines grouped by body size, strip to our long johns/tights and vests and grab a bag of prison fatigues. I lose the rest of my group here and wonder if I will have to endure the rest of the evening on my own. We are then led, barefoot and in our undergarments, through freezing corridors and then through the prison showers (where a naked man was lying on the floor, presumably halfway through a good beating) to our cells.

After being allowed to put on our standard issue prison clothes, which was way too big for me, we were let out of our cells and led out to the prison canteen. Here things get a bit confused for me, as it seemed we were allowed to just wander around pointlessly for a while. At least I found my husband and his friend again, who seemed just as confused as I was. After a few "set pieces" - a rendition of Let Your Hammer Ring, a staged fight in the yard, which I missed, and an inmate uprising, we were again led single file, hands on our heads (there's that school thing again) to the hall where the screening of the movie took place.

The movie was great. The experience? I can't say it was enjoyable (is being incarcerated ever enjoyable?) but it was definitely unique and the actors were incredible and did an excellent job. Perhaps if the theme was different I would've enjoyed it more. Would recommend this if you had a tendency towards masochism. Otherwise just rent the DVD.