The pace and energy sustained throughout part 1 was infectious. I participated in the washing of Jason but felt in no way forced to and in fact did feel quite honoured when handed the bowl of water. During the post wedding rave when Medea administered the kiss of death to her entourage and brother, the majority of the audience were dancing freely but I felt in no way out of place standing at the back so I could watch the scene unfold.

At the end of Zero Hour Market I was hot and tired and a little anxious that I would have difficulty lasting 4 more hours of being static on my feet for the same, so the change of atmosphere, tone and space in part 2 was instantly intriguing and engaging. Drylands was the beginning of the total immersive experience for me. From grinning like an idiot when shaking Jason’s hand to feeling sheepish that I hadn’t written a question to ask him I felt increasingly like a small child stuck between two malevolent giants – no more so than when put to bed with a teddy and hot chocolate (one of the best things I’ve ever experienced as an audience member) and soothingly stroked back to a slumber when disturbed by Jason and Medea arguing above my head.

By the time dawn was drawing near I had begun to enter a strange frame of mind brought on by sleep deprivation (obviously) combined with hypnotic text and performances and a merging of times, languages and rituals. The resurrection of Medea’s brother was a genuinely frightening thing to behold. Watching the fear on Medea’s children’s (audience members) faces as they stepped forward to receive the kiss of death was bewitching.

The strange mixture of Brazilian and English language and culture was a reflection of the ways that worlds collide mutating traditional rituals and customs. There is a Mexican tribe whose traditional burping ceremony is now induced by Coca-Cola that sprang to my mind as I watched Medea using Daz and Fairy in her shamanic spells. Jason clinging to the totemistic power of the fleece whilst cementing his power through TV, Photoshop and badges served as reminder of how we invest faith in figures to rule us who in turn invest faith in – God knows what!

I liked it. I would have preferred to have been immersed for the total duration with the breaks between sections remaining in the world if not the actual space but I think I would be in a minority. Seeing actors out of costume and character a couple of times during the breaks was also a little disappointing and there was a section where I lost the thread of the narrative. But these are minor quibbles in an ambitious and effective project performed by actors with a rarely equalled commitment, energy and subtlety.

Perhaps the original reviewer on this post should have stayed for their money’s worth.