Elgiva Field is the Creative Director of brand new London Christmas experience Wishmas – coming to Waterloo this festive season.
Elgiva is Associate Director at Punchdrunk, the acclaimed and innovative multi-genre production company. Since 2009 she has worked as Director and Associate Artist with Theatre-Rites, a field leader in the creation of experimental theatre and events for children; and is also Artistic Director of her own performance company, Oblique House, and Co-Founder and Director of creative studio We Are Here.
Wishmas is playing in London from 14 November 2023 to 7 January 2024.
Book tickets to Wishmas in London
More Christmas Shows in the West End
Interview with Elgiva Field
Can you describe the World of Wishmas?
Our wonderful world of Wishmas will be a playful place full of mystery and magic that is fuelled by all that is festive. Christmas is an all-round sensory experience which is why it lends itself to immersive wonder.
What plans do you have to transform the amazing space under Waterloo station?
We are filling the space with fun and festive experiential installations that bring the world of Wishmas to life. Audiences will flow from one space to the next, each room a playful contrast to the previous one, all inventively inspired by the Christmas canon. Discover where your wishes go and why robins are so important to Christmas!
What will it look like and what experience do you plan for audiences to have when they arrive?
It all begins with the festive spirit, wherever that burns bright, an Old Bauble Factory emerges, a signal that Wishmas is near. Hidden in its depths is a portal that leads to the enchanted realm of Wishmas. Looking after wishes is a complex operation and it starts with a Sorting Office. You arrive at this secret dispatch – where robins arrive with the world’s wishes, stored safely in their red bauble breasts – and the Wishkeeper attendant readies those baubles for safe transportation to Wishmas. You’ll board a specially chartered conveyance that will whisk you and the wishes on your journey to Wishmas.
Who are the characters people will meet at Wishmas?
Wishkeepers are the custodians of all the wishes that make their way to Wishmas. They are very similar to their elf cousins but they work 365 days a year handling your wishes with care. They dedicate their efforts to making sure “no wish is forgotten”. Audiences will meet some of the Wishkeeper team whirring away in their various departments to keep Christmas on track. And, never one to disappoint, there will be a Father Christmas encounter.
As a Londoner born and bred in South London, how do you feel about adding this very different seasonal attraction to the City?
London is so cosmopolitan and rich and diverse in its communities and traditions. It is filled with world treasures and lots of secret gems to discover and marvel at. I hope Wishmas will feel like one of those moments of discovery that you get in the city where you open a door from one world and enter into another entirely new one.
Which age range do you think will enjoy this experience the most?
The whole family. Everyone who believes it’s important to make a wish – there’s no age restriction to wishing.
Christmas is a magical time. What’s your favourite thing about the season?
Just one thing?! For me it is about food, family, and taking time to enjoy all our little traditions and discovering new ones together that adds to a sense of occasion. And, of course, the possibility of snow.
What is your Christmas Wish?
That’s between me and the Wishkeepers.
