For ten weeks from 3rd November, the Shoreditch sci-fi cocktail theatre experience is running a seasonal special with Avora: Frozen Realm, a winter version in which guests are recruited as scientists and sent through a gateway to a bioluminescent planet that has iced over. Tickets from £44.50 are on sale now, with three winter cocktails included, the last made with sloe gin and apricot brandy and lit from inside the glass.
Avora is a bioluminescent planet, and this Christmas it has frozen over, under snow, frost and ice that glow teal and violet from within. Roscorp, the corporation running the expedition there, says the freeze is seasonal. Its lead scientist, Dr Shelly, believes every word of the official report. Its head of security, Mason Kriel, is less convinced. The Avorians, the planet’s native civilisation, seem entirely untroubled by the cold. Recruits go through the gateway to find out what the report leaves out, and whether the Avorians know more than they are saying.
For anyone who has been to Avora before, the story has been rebuilt with a new storyline, a new set and three new winter cocktails. Recruits join a Roscorp expedition to study Luminol, a substance found throughout Avora’s ecosystem with the potential to transform medicine and energy on Earth. Roscorp keeps its access through a fragile cultural exchange with the Avorians, and the mission soon reveals more than anyone was briefed for.
Guests arrive as Roscorp’s newest recruits. They check in, lock away their belongings and change into Roscorp jumpsuits. Dr Shelly’s briefing explains the cold away, Mason runs the security search, and each recruit is handed a flask of synthesised Luminol, the first of three cocktails, to carry through the gateway. On the other side is a frozen world. CODA, Roscorp’s AI, runs the investigation from there on guests’ own phones where they can unlock evidence to help their mission.
The drinks follow Luminol, the substance Roscorp has come to study, through its three states. In the frozen forest, where the Avorians meet the recruits, the group has to find a tree log, and the second cocktail is served on it: diluted Luminol, drawn from Avora’s streams. The last one glows from a light inside the glass: Luminol in its purest form, from the Tree of Spirits, made with sloe gin and apricot brandy. Avora’s bar team of skilled mixologists make every drink, mocktail versions of all three are available, and a live cast stays in character throughout.
The Avorians speak warmly of the Harvest, a sacred celebration that is almost here. Doctorate recruits get an early taste of it with a fourth cocktail, the Winter Harvest. Roscorp would rather talk about the weather.
Sam Shearman, founder of Inventive Productions, said: “When we opened Avora in 2022, the question guests faced was whether to exploit a new world or protect it. The new story flips that: you arrive certain you’re the visitor, and slowly realise you might not be. For winter, we wanted the freeze to be the first clue. Roscorp has a perfectly reasonable explanation for it, and Dr Shelly believes every word. Mason doesn’t, and guests will uncover the truth along the way.”
Avora: Frozen Realm runs Tuesday to Sunday through Christmas and on New Year’s Eve, with afternoon sessions on Saturdays and Sundays. Large groups can privately hire for Christmas parties: once the mission concludes, the group keeps the venue for the rest of its booked time. Gift vouchers are available for anyone giving it as a Christmas present. Avora holds a 4.6 rating from 1,400 reviews on Google.
