Like walking into your own past

And it's not just a question of good sightlines, comfortable chairs, ample legroom, plenty of parking and easy access to public transportation.

A number of artists are now creating "site-responsive" performances at non-conventional venues such as public buildings.

One example is "Don't Look Back", created by British director Tristan Sharps of the Brighton-based company "dreamthinkspeak". Inspired by the Orpheus-Eurydice myth, "Don't Look Back" is presented in the form of "promenade theatre" - in which the audience walks through a series of rooms in a building to witness different scenes.

Sharps, one of the pioneers of site-responsive performances from the early 1990s, told Adelaide's The Advertiser newspaper, "It's not about doing [Shakespeare's] 'Richard III' in a castle. For me, what's really important is making the space integral to the piece, rather than just a backdrop."

"Don't Look Back" played to audience groups of three at a time. At the Torrens Building, formerly the land-title government office in Adelaide, this reviewer found himself in the evening's first group.

Sharps explained, "When you're not in a big gang, your responses can be quite different."

In a small and totally dark room, a desk lamp was switched on to reveal an old man sleeping. He woke up, asked for our names, and not finding them in his register, wrote them down. We were given a small chit with our registration number and told to hang on to it: "There are many sleepers in this building," came the ominous warning.

For the next 40 minutes, we walked at our own pace - led part of the way by different ushers in Victorian costumes - through a labyrinth of rooms, underground corridors, hallways, stairwells and an elevator, to experience first-hand various compelling images of love, death, parting, longing and mourning.

These came in the form of live dramas, live musical performances, film clips projected on walls, atmospheric sound and lighting design, and installation art works.

For an avid playgoer like this reviewer, such a finely choreographed, ingeniously designed, and emotionally engaging performance as "Don't Look Back" was a truly unforgettable experience. By the end, the overrall effect was that of a personal journey through our own pasts - one that we could not simply sleep through.

For more information

on the company, visit www.DreamThinkSpeak.co.uk.