The South African studio teamed up with Los Angeles-based Ferryman Collective on the immersive production, which beat projects backed by major entertainment companies.
Los Angeles, USA (07 September 2026) – Talk about a plot twist!
A Cape Town-based immersive studio has helped take a virtual reality theatre production from the world of VRChat all the way to the Emmy Awards.
Uncanny Alley: A New Day, a collaboration between Los Angeles-based Ferryman Collective and South Africa’s Virtual Worlds Company, has won the Emmy for Outstanding Emerging Media Program at the 78th Emmy Awards.
And this wasn’t exactly a case of the little guy competing against other little guys.
The artist-led production was up against projects backed by major entertainment names, including Blumhouse and Amazon/Bethesda. So for an independent team working in live VR theatre to walk away with the award is a pretty special achievement.
At the South African end of the collaboration is Virtual Worlds Company, a Cape Town-based immersive studio led by artist and worldbuilder Rick Treweek, also known as MetaRick.
The company creates virtual worlds that audiences can actually step inside, from original stories and live shows to workshops, communities and social VR spaces.
The latest production, A New Day, takes things a step further.
Instead of sitting quietly in front of a stage and watching the action unfold, the audience becomes part of the story.
Related Stories
Mzansi Youth Choir and Kip Moore Wow Centurion with Breathtaking Collaboration
Eight Cape Town Animation Studios Get Big Backing to Dream Bigger!Set in a cinematic cyberpunk world, the experience throws audiences into a prison after they protest against an impending update to their virtual world.
Two actors play 15 different characters in real time, while audience members can talk directly to the performers, explore their surroundings and influence how the story unfolds.
Which means there is one rather important variable the production team can never completely control: the audience.
Every performance follows the same broad story, but the route between the beginning and the end can change depending on who is in the room. And as Ferryman Collective Artistic Director Deirdre V Lyons puts it:
“It is co-creation, but with a strong theatrical foundation underneath it, the script protects the story. The audience makes it alive.”
The win is recognition not just for the technology, but for what happens when artists are given the freedom to experiment with a completely different way of telling stories.
The audience can decide where to look, what to explore, when to speak and how deeply to get involved. The actors then have to respond in the moment and find a way to bring those unexpected interactions back into the story.
Ferryman Collective performer Brendan Bradley says they work to give the audience what they want.
“Every audience gives the show something we could never script. Our job is to catch it, honor it, and weave it back into the story.”
The actors and audiences can join from different parts of the world, stepping into the virtual space from bedrooms, offices and living rooms before suddenly finding themselves sharing a story with strangers, friends and performers from around the globe.
A Cape Town studio and its South African worldbuilding talent have played a key role in helping push this new form of storytelling onto the global stage.
View this post on Instagram
by 
