This past week, The Republic opened here in Orlando. Orlando Fun and Food was at the grand opening to check out what we think is one of the most unique experiences that this amazing city has to offer!
Let me start off by saying this is not like anything Orlando has had to offer thus far. To my astounding surprise and delight, this is not an escape room nor intended for the faint of heart or children. Curse words are said, violence is involved, but it all ties seamlessly into The Republic experience.
It does say on their website that no one under the age of 18 can participate in this attraction, for obvious reasons such as extreme violence, swearing, sexual content, and of course, getting literally chased by a minotaur.
Upon entering the ‘waiting room’ you are given a sticker that symbolizes your role in the society you are about to venture into. Then you must hunt around the room to find your letter with your symbol on it. Once you read it’s contents, you return it to the man who gave you your symbol. Then the fun begins. Characters come out and you are sorted into groups and are led to your ‘starting position’. A very unique feature to this amazing attraction is that no matter how many times you go, it will be completely different because of your role, and decisions that you and your fellows players decide.
Throughout the roughly 90 minute adventure through this world of a Plateu Hierarchy structure, you will have the opportunity to allie with those you trust, and deceive the ones you don’t.
There are Three groups of people, The Office, The Labrynith, and The Republic. Depending on your sticker corresponds to which group you are in, or at least start off in. I do not want to go into to much detail of the actual experience because everyone will have their own encounters and story depending on what they choose to do throughout the experience. One thing I will mention, however, is that the actors that you will allie with, decieve, and possibly kill, are all incredibly talented and really make this attraction come to life, or death.
The actors in this experience will touch you, swear in your face, blindfold you, chase you, and possibly whip you, again depending on your role and your decisions. There are 30 different roles casted in each performance so your experience is never the same. The experience is done brillantly and it is done with such passion from the actors one that will not want to be missed. It is not a horror based attraction, but has some scenes, if you are casted to see it, that are very intense to observe.
Another unique feature to The Republic is that, depending on your role and decisions, will be either filled with find this and bring it back to me time pertinent, or lifting/carrying people to other rooms within this world, or even a little bit of both.
As the story unfolds, and you choose your allies, you are constantly thinking, did I make the right choice? What’s gunna happen if I do this..? But that is what makes this experience so unique, is the variety of decisions only you Can make.
The idea behind The Republic was created by Sarah Elger who in college really enjoyed World of Warcraft and wanted to make a world of her own based upon Greek mythology and Plateu’s Societal Hierarchy, and have it come to life as a real life, intense attraction. Thus became of The Republic which has been in the making for 3 years now.
Here is a video of Sarah discussing The Republic to everyone outside of the facility.
Nathanael White, the man who designed and built the weapons and props, took some time after the performance to discuss with me the behind the scenes action that went into building this world and also how he was involved with casting the incredible cast. Mr. White works a desk job during the day but after 5, he helped build the world of The Republic. He loves doing something so different and unique and being able to not only create and design , but actually hands on build.
I also spoke with Eric Garcia and David O’ Connell, Makeup FX artists, sculptors, and ‘Face Off’ contestants, who were the creators of the mythological creatures facial masks seen in the world. The most challenging one they had to create was Medusa they said. At first, they were brainstorming possible looks for the creatures to look more like creatures than humans, them were told later on that they need to look more human than traditional mythology, which really gives this whole experience a more real feel.
Overall, The Republic is a new type of attraction that will change every time you experience it. For those brave enough to enter, this attraction is absolutely mind blowing from the moment you enter and sign your waiver, to when you mingle afterwards exchanging what just went on in your journey through The Republic.
To be a part of this experience, you must order online at www.therepublicgame.com and choose which Thursday, Friday, or Saturday you would like to participate in. They do one or two performances each of those nights, depending on the date you pick, and admission is $35.00.
We hope you join The Republic, or The Office, the choice is yours.
Jason Mayhew
My name is Jason Mayhew, and I am the owner of OFF On The Go. When not traveling with the website, I own my own marketing and PR company, J Mayhew Marketing. I have the best job where I get to travel the world and showcase the most amazing and unique experiences!
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