We constructed our old pop-up escape room in an empty lot in a huge row of abandoned shops, all awaiting their fate: to be bulldozed and turned into a Chapel Street yuppie dwelling space. We were resigned to the inexorable march of gentrification – but an unexpected hiccup in the property development turned into an opportunity for a weird art project.

"You ran into problems launching your building project, you say? We can keep the space for another few months, you say? Ha! Ha ha!" We laughed and twirled around incredibly fast, reaching speeds frightening for a mere human. "An art installation it will be! Let it be done!" A multicoloured bolt of lightning shot down from the sky, and thus Choir of the Impossible was born.

Choir of the Impossible was an immersive interactive experience created and produced with a multitude of emerging local artists and game designers. We invited people to explore a series of strange worlds and have their senses tickled – trekking through a musical forest, rummaging through a junkyard of discordant artifacts, sitting down by the TV to delve into the last book on earth, immersing themselves in a fake virtual reality, and more.

The installation ran as a pop-up from Oct 27 – 30 during Melbourne International Games Week. (We had to pack up and get out the day after. The property agent looked mildly confused and/or incredibly impressed by the remains of the exhibition when we handed over the keys.) Tickets were pay-what-you-feel, and all profits were donated to Fitzroy Legal Services, supporting asylum seekers and refugees in the community.

Works that were exhibited include:

The Last Book on Earth by Georgia Symons
Broken Sounds by Amani Naseem, Harrison Smith, and Lee Shang Lun
Forest by Alan Robinson
This Is Not A VR Game by Chad Toprak
Distance by Izzy Gramp
Ambient Music by Gemma Mahadeo
Ruptured Equilibrium by Maddy Anderson
Ben by Georgia Payne

Production and Creative Team:
Lee Shang Lun, Trent Davies, Robin Vilain, Barnaby RW, Alison Huang, Celeste Chan, Alexandra Lee, Alan Hazelden, Emilee Goulding, Adrian Randy Satrianugraha, Daniel Roberts, Arielle Jane Lee, Harrison Smith, Xindi Liu, Creatrix Tiara, Lysander Sky, Bri Crick, Alex Linden, Alan Robinson, Trent Davies, Daniel McKenzie, Mohamed (Mo) Chamas, Zee Omar, Sebastian Edwards, Max Myers