A black rocket icon on a pink hexagonal background.

emergency dollhouse

Marketing • Events • Activations

The Challenge

As part of Hobart’s DARK FRINGE festival during Dark Mofo 2023, Emergency Dollhouse was an ambitious immersive theatre experience spanning four levels of a Georgian building in the CBD across a 17-night season. Despite its scale and originality, the production needed to cut through an already saturated festival landscape and drive immediate ticket sales, competing against the bold, high-profile visibility of Dark Mofo.

P R O J E C T S

Icon of a loudspeaker or megaphone on a pink hexagonal background.

what we did

The Bumblebee delivered a guerrilla marketing campaign designed to intrigue and unsettle, printing thousands of plain brown “business cards” featuring only Emergency Dollhouse and a QR code, with no additional context. Masked performers were deployed across Dark Mofo hotspots including the Winter Feast, silently and eerily approaching festivalgoers to hand over the cards, creating a moment that blurred the line between performance and promotion and compelled audiences to scan and discover more.

Orange hexagon with three black star-like symbols inside

The Buzz

The campaign generated immediate curiosity and demand, with lines stretching down Davey Street as audiences rushed to uncover the experience. Over a single weekend, the QR code was scanned 1,387 times, driving strong ticket sales and enabling the production to turn a profit. By leaning fully into mystery, the campaign proved that saying less can be the most powerful way to cut through the noise.

An underground space with brick walls and concrete support posts, illuminated by colorful lighting. There are five illuminated crosses with pink lighting, casting shadows on the floor. Red cushioned seats are placed near the crosses.
Night scene at Winter Feast with a large illuminated sign, people walking, and decorative blue lighting on structures, illuminated by red and blue lights.
Night scene at an event called Winter Feast with a large neon sign displaying the event's name, people wearing face masks, some in nurse costumes, and illuminated tents with red and blue lighting.
Two people wearing masks and costumes resembling medical professionals with red crosses on their hats, in a room with pink and purple lighting, and red cushions along the walls.
A young woman smiling, wearing a face mask, and taking a selfie with two people dressed in medical uniforms with red cross symbols on their head coverings at night.
A window display with a black and red color theme, featuring red lights, a black signboard listing drink options such as mulled wine, gin, vodka, rum, and sparkling wine, and various signs indicating an emergency bar and ticketing policies, with refl
Two people wearing masks and nurse costumes stand in a doorway decorated with pink pillows, with purple lighting.
Two individuals dressed in healthcare attire with large nurse hats featuring red cross symbols, wearing face masks and standing under pink lighting in a corridor.
A person dressed in a peach or pink outfit and wearing a white face mask, standing behind a glass window with a pink tint. The person is pressing their hands against the glass and looking through it.
Black door with vertical glass panel featuring white letters spelling "EMERGENCY DOOR" and a partially visible red sign behind the glass. The door is slightly weathered with chipped paint and surrounded by a concrete entrance with a handrail.
People standing in line outside a building with pink lighting, near an emergency house sign, on a city street at night.
An advertisement poster for an event called 'Dark Fringe' at 53 Collins Street, Hobart, with a date until June 25th, 2023. The poster features a person with a mask, wearing a red dress, sitting on a chair in front of a dark, theatrical background. Th
Close-up photo of a person wearing a pink tutu skirt with red and pink heart-shaped metallic balloons.
A person lying in bed with a smile, wearing a striped beanie and a jacket while taking a selfie in a room with a red curtain and a black floor lamp.
Nighttime scene of a busy city street with people walking. There is a large illuminated sign that reads 'EER FEAST' in red neon lights. The street is wet, reflecting the colorful lights, and there are various people wearing jackets and face masks.