Review: JONACON, Phantom Peak
Photo credit: Alistair Veryard
A new season has begun in the town of Phantom Peak. JonaCon is here, a celebration in the form of a convention, celebrating all things Jona. Who is Jonas? He’s the head of the JONACO company, which controls the town. This season introduces us to new characters, new trails and new stories. Yes, time is moving on, leaving the townsfolk with memories of what has come before and don’t forget, Jonas is always watching….
This open world, immersive experience first opened in 2022 and has been expanding its base of storylines and characters ever since. Combining elements of steampunk, video game, escape room, immersive theatre, sci-fi and historical fiction has allowed co-founders Nick Moran and Glen Hughes to create both a truly original world and a one of a kind experience. Phantom Peak works in seasons, which changes the theme of the town, stories and characters, which are overall part of an ongoing story. Visitors uncover these storylines by going on quests (called ’trails’ and there are ten per season) and meeting the townsfolk, making each visitor’s experience unique to them.
The design is beyond belief. From the second the front gate opens, you are fully immersed in the world of Phantom Peak. From walking through the old mining tunnel to enter the town, to the details within the town itself, every building radiates character. It's so easy to lose track of the fact that the indoor area (old town) takes place inside a warehouse; everywhere you look there are posters sharing town news and spreading JONACO propaganda. The outdoor area (new town) adds a refreshing contrast, complete with atmospheric water features and a variety of new aesthetics, which blend well with the more established old town aesthetics.
The main highlight is the fact that your experience of Phantom Peak is entirely exclusive to you. You fill in a short questionnaire to find trails that fit your needs and interests best, then you complete the tasks set by wandering around the town and interacting with the characters that are part of the trail you’re completing. In our case, we did ‘Operation Placeholder’, which had us creating fake ID’s, talking secretly to townsfolk to figure out where the green Diamant was, finding the right channels on the videomatic, and persuading Mayor Pocket to let us have access to his safe.
We also completed the ‘winner takes it all’ trail. There are so many activities to do that in one visit, which lasted about four hours, we were only able to complete two and a half of the ten trails. The time went so fast and we had so much fun, a great tribute to how well thought out and considered the trails are: engaging without being exhausting and full of twists and turns that keep you on your toes.
It is worth mentioning the truly stellar casting. Every character feels fully lived in by the actors, every aspect of personal identity has been considered from voice tone and physicality to choice of vocabulary. It is a true talent to be able to adapt your performance to the unpredictability of individual members of the public, not to mention performing for over four hours without breaking character. One particular stand out for us was the newly arrived Rattigan the reporter, played by Will Batty, who, even though he didn’t appear on any of the trails that we did, interacted with us every time he saw us, engaging in character based banter whilst we were waiting to gain access to the activity we were aiming to complete. He really made our evening special.
Engaging every sense in every sense. Fully embodied, full of magic and wonder.
***** Five stars
Reviewed by: Megan O’Neill
For more information and tickets for JonaCon, please click here.
