Wonderland Theatre ©2003-2009
Wonderland Productions proudly presents
Sylvia's Quest


Sylvia's Quest is the story of Sylvia Sylvana, a young Bulgarian archaeologist who works as a cleaner in your city, who must find her way home tonight. Sylvia shares her multiple worlds with you, her new friend, as she guides you through her labyrinth of secret streets and time portals - inviting you to dance with her ghosts, to taste black bread and sherbets, and to time travel back to Ancient Thrace...

This innovative promenade show uses cutting-edge radio technology, which enables you to listen, through headphones, to the sounds, voices and worlds which only Sylvia can usually see and hear, as you follow her through the streets of her labyrinth. This exciting technology has never been used in Irish theatre before, and it is why Sylvia's Quest premiered at the Dublin European City of Science Festival.


Listen to director Alice and performer Elitsa discuss the ideas behind the show with audience members in their post-show talk.

Performed 2012 - 2013 as part of Dublin European City of Science; Phizzfest: the Phibsborough Community Arts Festival; Newbridge 200 Festival at the Riverbank Arts Centre; the Cathedral Quarter Arts Festival, Belfast; and the Mermaid Arts Centre and The Mill Theatre.

Also performed as a work in progress as part of the Made In Temple Bar festival, July 2011. It was aimed at both an immigrant and Irish audience, and it was particularly encouraging to welcome over 60% of our audience from New Irish backgrounds at the work-in-progress showings.


"Wonderland's latest offering continues in their tradition of ambitious and imaginative work.... Sylvia's doubly redolent name, with its woodland and magical associations, is also linked to the name of her home place, and her memories are imbued with a vivid sense of its history.... Dimova, a diminutive actor, delivers a graceful performance requiring a variety of skills, vocal and physical. She interacts with members of the audience - always a potential minefield for either party - with both charm and confidence."

- Irish Theatre Magazine

"She materialises from out of nowhere, a tiny, tripping figure in a yellow Mackintosh, and her voice slowly emerges from a cacophony of others. This is Sylvia, played by the elfin yet commanding Elitsa Dimova....With a distinctly tangled identity, Sylvia makes an unreliable guide for Wonderland Productions' new performance, which is part play, part audio tour....There's much to consider in the accumulation of its material, the dauntless command of Dimova, and the deep immersion into Sylvia's headspace."
- The Irish Times

Read more reviews here



Also supported by Dublin City Council

Dublin City of Science

as part of:
DCC logo

Press Release: click to download.

Show Programme: click to download. 		Supported by The Arts Council
Arts Council logo

Elitsa Dimova as Pagance

"I loved it.... Its use of technology and contribution to immersive theatre are commendable - but most of all Sylvia's Quest is a lot of fun." - Dublin Culture

sylvia slideshow

"Incredibly immersive and impressive...
I felt like a part of the show and wondered as even the people in the streets became a part of things for me."

Elitsa Dimova as Sylvia

"Beautiful, Sylvia's story brought tears to my eyes - this is how my life as a Slovakian worker has often felt in Dublin, invisible." - audience feedback.




Credits
From Wonderland Productions Ltd.
Conceived, written and directed by: Alice Coghlan
Starring: Elitsa Dimova as Sylvia, and also featuring Anne Marie O'Donovan and Damien Devaney
Sound: Tommy Foster
Costume: Maria Tapper
Devised by Alice Coghlan and Mirjana Rendulič in collaboration with Anne Marie O'Donovan, Elitsa Dimova, Emily Elphinstone and Claire Jenkins.
Featuring the voices of Anne Marie O'Donovan, Elitsa Dimova, and Damian Devany.
Photography: Stephen Delaney