Over the course of many months, Pip’s Island, an immersive show for both kids and adults alike, has been slowly taking hold of its own permanent venue in Midtown just outside Port Authority. In fact, I’ve walked past many times, wondering what surprises lie behind its papered windows as the renovations were happening. Well, we’re about to find out when the show re-opens in previews in March in its new, very large, permanent space spanning two floors.

No Proscenium interviewed Rania Ajami, Chief Creative Officer and co-founder of Pip’s Island, over the magic of the Internet to find out what attendees should expect when Pip, Finn, and Pebble return after two years.

No Proscenium: Could you tell us a little about yourself and your background in the immersive arts?

Rania Ajami (RA): My background is actually in film. In 2004, I directed a feature documentary called Shadows of a Leader about Muammar Gaddafi’s elite female bodyguards, and then I wrote and directed Asylum Seekers, a fantasy comedy which came out in 2008. I’d also done numerous short films. In all of these films, I tried to create more than just stories to be played out and filmed: I wanted to make entire worlds to be inhabited, experienced, and remembered.

After becoming a mother and when the iPad was launched, I started exploring content creation for iPad apps. I co-founded my first company, Jumping Pages, and produced interactive animated stories for children. From the very beginning, before getting involved with live experiences, I was drawn into immersive storytelling through technology. When I was at university, I did a lot of immersive and site-specific theater. We would put on shows in different environments. So, as I look back, combining theatre, film, and storytelling in unusual ways has always been a great interest of mine, and now I get to do it at Pip’s Island.

NP: What, in a nutshell, is Pip’s Island about?

RA: Pip’s Island is a fantasy adventure where kids join Pip, Pebble, Finn and other colorful characters on a mission to save the magical Island from the dark forces of villain Joules Volter.

NP: How did the project come about? What inspired you to make this experience?

RA: The project came about thanks to disappointment. As a parent in New York, I felt really underwhelmed by what was available to kids. With my brother and co-founder, Rami Ajami and Pip’s Island Creative Director Walter Krudop, we felt that there was much more wonder, sophistication and beauty that we could bring to children’s experiences.

As a storyteller and creator, watching my own kids play out imaginary adventures made me think: what if we could create a physical world where kids could actually do that by mixing different mediums, stories, and experience?

NP: Can you tell us a little about your new permanent venue for the show?

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RA: We wanted a truly unique space that could work brilliantly for an immersive experience, a space that would be large and moldable and playful. Our new permanent venue near Times Square is just that. There is a retail space on the first floor with Pip’s Island merchandise, and on the second floor is the main event space and a multi-purpose room where we’ll host special events and birthday parties. The space itself was huge and when we came in it was a newly-constructed cold shell. It took a lot of time and effort to make it the maze it is today, where the story will be played out by the children and actors working together. We’re very excited to open its doors to audiences on March 11.

NP: How are you designing an experience for both kids and adults to enjoy? What kinds of things are you taking into account?

RA: Kids are the protagonists in this story: the actors and kids interact throughout in order to make the experience both very personal for each child and something to feel engulfing and exciting, something that extends beyond our walls. And it is also for the adults accompanying the kids: from the very nature of the sets, which are designed as high art installations, to the comedy in our script, there’s enough to keep adults engaged. Our skilled actors play both to kids and older audiences, so there’s something for everyone. We wanted to create something that appeals to all ages and is wondrous to the entire family.

NP: How is the audience incorporated into the work? How are you designing around audience agency, consent, and safety?

RA: First of all, the environment is very safe, designed with children’s comfort in mind, and children are never separated from their guardians. No one has to actively participate if they don’t want to. Children can still enjoy the show by watching how the story unravels and how other kids are interacting with the performers.

For those children who participate — we anticipate that it will be most of them! — they participate in every scene and help the story along. They contribute by solving puzzles, helping the characters along, and making the story their own.

Our venue is ADA compliant, and Pip’s Island is a welcoming place for all children. We have developed a sophisticated camera network, so that everything is recorded for safety reasons. If a child gets scared or overwhelmed during the show, we have trained our cast and crew to help them and their guardians out of the experience.

NP: What do you hope participants take away from the experience?

RA: I hope they leave with an uplifting and transcendent sense of wonder. For over an hour, families enter an enchanting and imaginative world and leave with a feeling of empowerment. There’s a real bond that forms between children and parents as they progress through this “hero’s journey” together.

Pip’s Island opens April 12. Previews begin March 11. Tickets are $49.

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