The Wolf of Wall Street, the outrageous memoir of the former stockbroker and convicted fraudster Jordan Belfort, is to become an immersive theatre show set across four floors at a secret location in London.
Belfort, who sold fraudulently inflated stocks to finance a lavish lifestyle, was played by Leonardo DiCaprio in Martin Scorsese's high-octane, Oscar-nominated film adaptation. The immersive show allows theatregoers to become either a crooked Wall Street trader at the prestigious firm Stratton Oakmont or sign up with the FBI to investigate the firm's illegal activities.
Audiences are invited to dress in "90s American office attire" for the production and can explore a set that features a restaurant, several bars and even "supercars". The show is directed by Alexander Wright, whose immersive jazz-age version of F Scott FitzGerald's The Great Gatsby, at the Gate Theatre in Dublin, served audiences speciality cocktails, got them dancing with the cast and included one-on-one encounters.
The Wolf of Wall Street's producers Louis Hartshorn and Brian Hook said there was no better way to tell this story than through immersive theatre. The show would explore "the extremes of capitalism and hedonistic behaviour and how obsession with money can bring humanity to its knees… Our guests can expect the outrageous, the spectacular and the downright ridiculous."
Scorsese's film features gargantuan levels of alcohol and drugs, a ticker-tape parade across a trading floor, a dwarf-throwing contest and a rollerskating chimpanzee. Its scenes of depravity attracted a stream of complaints, including the suggestion that it glamorised criminal hedonism. "I hope people understand we're not condoning this behaviour. We're indicting it," DiCaprio told Variety at the time.
Promotional material for the new show states that there is “misogyny and depravity at the core of the story” but that the team behind the production “is committed to creating a respectful and happy environment for its audience and staff”.
In 2018, safeguarding measures were tightened at the London production of The Great Gatsby after two incidents of alleged sexual assault on actors were reported within a fortnight. – Guardian
Wolf of Wall Street will preview in a central London location from September 5th
