Review: Inside Odds On, Interactive Film and Exhibition at The O2 Centre NW3

“Off to another theatre today, Mary?” Well, kind of… I’m actually in a Camden shopping centre, opposite a branch of Aldi, for the launch of Dante or Die‘s pop up installation and exhibition Inside Odds On. 

Back in lockdown, Dante or Die, a theatre company that specialise in extraordinary site specific work, used the computer screen as their dramatic site to examine the dangers of online gambling. They created an interactive film, Odds On, that demonstrates through an immersive story the ease with which gambling can become addiction. The tale spotlights the fact that older women – perhaps unexpectedly – are particularly prone to gambling, often attempting to escape the relentlessness of domestic responsibility and childcare. Felicity, a woman retiring from a good job and with a loving family, finds affirmation and thrills in an online game, before the process insidiously and manipulatively causes unimaginable damage to her life. It’s an emotionally challenging watch, but compellingly entertaining and enormously enlightening.

Today the film is available free in this pop up venue, where people can book or just drop in to sit at a screen and view it. But it’s not simply watching: you create a profile with an avatar and interact using buttons to play ‘Pearls of Fortune’, just as the main character does, actively journeying alongside her. With a set of headphones blocking out the rest of the world, you are totally immersed in the simulated gambling experience, isolated at your station: it’s hugely impactful. 

The installation that is Inside Odds On brings this film together with an informative exhibition to explain the research behind it and demonstrate through personal stories the positive impact the project has had on people struggling with gambling. We learn, for example, that Valentine’s Day is the most lucrative time for gambling sites, exploiting needs for connection or escape from social pressures. 

There’s an additional, non-interactive version of the film, suited to those who might be triggered by active gameplay engagement, and also a remarkable video by John Walsh Brannoch and Lee Greenaway, created in response to viewings of Odds On by people with lived experience of gambling addiction. Finding the Words reveals their stories, articulating how they have too easily been drawn in to a manipulative and ultimately harmful process. It spells out the fun, the ease, the satisfaction of gambling, the social interaction that fills gaps – but also the cynical mechanisms that fake friendship or encourage spending and risk. From playing slots at the pier to a bet on the greyhounds, entry points are simple and ubiquitous, but the results devastating. Addiction is compared to a rollercoaster ride; initially thrilling but becoming sickening. 

So why is the production in a shopping centre of all places? Well, this is an everyday space, where everyday people can easily stroll in and encounter an issue which is itself omnipresent and impacts indiscriminately. This is also a fully accessible installation, with no charge to attend. Conscious of a society where there can be a ‘casino in your pocket’, the placing of the show here imitates the art: just as in the screenplay of Odds On, the topic of gambling harm literally comes off the screen and seamlessly into real life. 

Today an expert panel of academics and representatives from support organisations gave valuable insight into this concerning problem and they have helped compile a support pack for anyone who might be affected by the issues raised. You can read more in our recent interview with Daphna Attias, Co-Artistic Director of Dante or Die, but this excellent installation is really an opportunity to understand a troubling, dangerous and growing social issue best played out live.

Commissioned by: The Lowry, Salford & Lighthouse, Poole
Written & Directed by: Daphna Attias & Terry O’Donovan
Animation created by: John Walsh Brannoch & Lee Greenaway
Produced by: Dante or Die

Inside Odds On is suitable for ages 14+ and runs at The O2 Centre, NW3 until Saturday 22 March.