Often found at theaters and museums, Kwon Mee-yoo has covered a wide range of cultural fields from K-pop and dramas to theater and fine art for over a decade. Now as K-Culture Desk editor, she tries to connect Korean culture with global readers through fresh perspectives.
INTERVIEW Inside ‘Sleep No More’ Seoul: How Livi Vaughan turned former cinema into immersive theater
A scene from the Korean production of "Sleep No More," an immersive theater production staged at the McKithan Hotel in central Seoul / Courtesy of Ms. Jackson
By Kwon Mee-yoo
Entering the McKithan Hotel in Chungmuro, Seoul, feels like slipping into a fever dream. Behind its doors, reality fragments into a series of vignettes: A man scrubs blood from his hands in a porcelain basin; a glamorous ball hides secrets and betrayals; a woman in a red dress manipulates a haunting ritual; a maid offers a suspicious milky drink; and a nurse beckons a lone guest to her eerie hut.
This is “Sleep No More,” British theater company Punchdrunk’s immersive experience that reimagines Shakespeare’s “Macbeth” through Alfred Hitchcock and film noir, which has finally arrived in Korea after years of anticipation. The show rewrites the rules of traditional theater, trading fixed seats and prosceniums for masked audiences who chart their own paths.
“Immersive theater is not just a show, it’s a world, and we plunge the audience into the epicenter of that world,” said Felix Barrett, artistic director of Punchdrunk and creator of “Sleep No More.” “Once they’re in there, it’s a living, breathing environment where a narrative occurs around them and the audiences are free to adventure through it in any way they want.”
Bringing that world to life is designer Livi Vaughan, one half of Minns and Vaughan Design. Alongside Beatrice Minns, she’s the creative force behind the compellingly detailed, cinematic environments that define Punchdrunk’s productions — including the new Seoul home of “Sleep No More,” where every room tells a story and every object unlocks a secret.
A scene from the Korean production of "Sleep No More," an immersive theater staged at the McKithan Hotel in central Seoul / Courtesy of Ms. Jackson
History lives on
“Sleep No More” designer Livi Vaughan / Courtesy of Ms. Jackson
The Seoul production of “Sleep No More,” presented by entertainment company Ms. Jackson, stands apart from earlier iterations, beginning with the building itself. Unlike the discreet, tucked-away venues that have housed the New York and Shanghai shows, Seoul’s version unfolds in a rather prominent landmark with a checkered silver-and-white facade and glass frontage.
Once home to the storied Daehan Cinema, which opened in 1958 as Korea’s largest single-screen theater and was later rebuilt into an 11-screen multiplex, the building now begins a new life as the fictional McKithan Hotel.
“We usually don’t want imposing buildings. We want something that’s more hidden and secret. But this time there’s no getting around it, and it was about embracing the facade and really showing it off,” Vaughan told The Korea Times on Aug. 21.
Vaughan recalled that when she first visited the building with Ms. Jackson CEO Park Ju-young, it still felt like a cinema. “It was interesting, because while being very respectful of its history, we want you to be in another place, another world, once you come into the building.”
That transformation begins the moment guests step through the door, wind through the maze and arrive at the Manderley Bar — a liminal space between present-day Seoul and the world of “Sleep No More.” Vaughan’s meticulous design is already at work, inviting the audience to slow down, shed the rush of city life and fully surrender to the show’s mysterious atmosphere.
A section of "Sleep No More" Seoul retains architectural traces of the former Daehan Cinema, including rakes from the historic movie theater. Courtesy of Ms. Jackson
“What’s also brilliant about this production is our source texts are ‘Macbeth,’ but [the show is] also inspired by Alfred Hitchcock, film noir and those incredible cinematic pieces,” she said. “So actually, putting those within an existing cinema came together quite beautifully. It’s kind of surreptitious, I suppose, but that’s been really brilliant.”
Transforming a purpose-built cinema into a multilevel immersive environment posed new challenges.
“[The building] is so epic and the height is something we’ve never had before, so that was really exciting, but also really challenging,” she explained. “The way the space was laid out as a cinema is quite repetitive — a central corridor and then the cinema rooms. So one of my biggest challenges was how to deviate from that, stop it repeating and keep the audience from knowing what to expect.”
Still, some traces of the old cinema remain.
“As you can see here in the Manderley Bar, we’ve kept the rake and used the space in that way. But aside from that, there are only a couple of rooms where we’ve kept the rake. We’ve had to demolish a lot and play with the space,” she said. “Overwhelming and incredible — I would say those are the two words to sum [this place] up.”
A scene from the Korean production of "Sleep No More," an immersive theater staged at the McKithan Hotel in central Seoul / Courtesy of Ms. Jackson
Design as storytelling
What first-time guests might not realize as they wander the labyrinthine halls of the McKithan Hotel is how much the rooms themselves are built to tell stories, even in the absence of any performer at all. While Korean audiences during previews tended to gravitate toward the performers, often clustering around major characters from the “Macbeth”-inspired storyline, Vaughan emphasized that the set and props offer just as much narrative.
“Design-wise, we get to create these whole spaces where you can explore and understand the character through the objects in the room. It doesn’t matter if there’s a performer there or not. I love the idea that you can go into a room and understand whose space it is. Is it public or private? When were they last there? Is it a space that’s very busy or has it been left alone for a long time? All of that storytelling through objects really excites me,” she said.
“No objects are there just for the sake of it. Everything has a consideration and a reason and I think it’s a lovely way of having an overview of the world of the show while being within it. There are moments when you’re so in a scene, but actually you can take a step back and understand the world that you’re in through those moments.”
One of Vaughan’s favorite examples is the Macduff house, where the set design quietly exposes the characteristics of the Macduffs through often-overlooked details.
“I think the rooms show the anxious personality of Lady Macduff and her fear for her baby,” she said.
Part of the set for "Sleep No More," an immersive theater staged at the McKithan Hotel in central Seoul / Courtesy of Ms. Jackson
In the Macduff house, the details are subtle but telling: In the bedroom, the couple’s beds are separated, reflecting both their religious beliefs and emotional distance. A shrine hangs above her bed, while his side remains bare. In the living room, some mirrors are turned to face the wall, inspired by a superstition Vaughan found during her research.
“There’s something about seeing your reflection brings bad luck if you’re pregnant,” she said, noting that such details are intertwined with the show’s lighting, sound, costume, choreography and acting.
While much of the Seoul production remains faithful to the original, “Sleep No More” also features some exclusive site-specific elements. One such addition is the Heath — an expansive, Scotland-inspired landscape.
“We couldn’t figure out what to do with that space at first and then had this moment of inspiration,” Vaughan said. “We realized that at the center of this building, the extremities become these hinterlands. This building, with all its floors, gave us the opportunity to stretch that idea. And I’m very pleased with the result.”
A scene from the Korean production of "Sleep No More," an immersive theater staged at the McKithan Hotel in central Seoul / Courtesy of Ms. Jackson
Fortune favors the bold
For audiences new to “Sleep No More,” the sheer scale of the McKithan Hotel can feel overwhelming — especially the urge to follow key characters or rush after the nearest crowd. However, Vaughan suggests the opposite.
“When you first encounter this work, there’s a feeling that you’re worried you’re going to miss something and need to follow the main characters,” she said. “But my advice would always be: Follow your heart. Go where is interesting to you.”
With dozens of rooms across seven floors, 23 cast members moving in and out of view and 18 narratives unfolding simultaneously, there are endless opportunities to stumble upon hidden moments or intimate one-on-one encounters — scenes that only reveal themselves to those willing to step away from the crowd.
“Personally, if there’s a busy scene, I turn around and go the other way. The performances are beautiful, but the spaces are just as exciting to explore,” she said.
“I love it when friends meet up in the Manderley Bar afterward and say, ‘Did you see this?’ and the other says, ‘No, but I saw this.’ It’s the same show, but completely different for every audience member.”
In a world that is increasingly digital and mediated by screens, Vaughan believes the tactile, sensory world of “Sleep No More” offers something essential.
“It’s about human interaction. In this digital age, it’s so important to look each other in the eyes, feel, touch and experience,” she said.