A provocative new interactive installation asking what happens when your voice is no longer your own?
New arts company Sage & Jester has announced a bold programme of events to run in conjunction with their groundbreaking immersive show, STOREHOUSE. Designed to spark critical conversations around misinformation, identity and digital truth, the season will feature partnerships with SXSW and Intelligence Squared and collaborations with renowned artists and creators, highlighting Sage & Jester’s growing role in shaping cultural conversations.
VOCALIZE (22nd May – 1st June) is a provocative new interactive installation, that will premiere at Hay Festival inviting audiences to confront one of the most urgent questions of our time: what happens when your voice is no longer your own? Visitors will step into a soundproof booth and enter the fictional world of the Vocalize Talent Agency, where they take part in an interactive voiceover training session led by Sir Stephen Fry’s AI clone. Guided by his vocal double, participants will record their own professional voice reel—until the experience takes an unexpected turn.
The exhibition lands just months after Fry’s real voice was cloned without consent for a documentary, prompting fresh debate over ownership and identity in the digital age. It has been created by award-winning collective Indigo Storm; Francesca Panetta, Shehani Fernando, and Halsey Burgund.
VOCALIZE invites audiences to engage directly with AI-driven voice cloning. Through its interactive format, the installation aims to spark critical thinking about how AI could impact everything from entertainment to misinformation.
Sir Stephen Fry comments, VOCALIZE is a brilliant fusion of art and entertainment, revealing both the wonders and pitfalls of AI. As this technology shapes our future, it urges us to pause, reflect, and question: where are we heading and who gets to decide?
The creators of VOCALIZE comment, We wanted audiences to feel what manipulation truly means. When the viewer becomes the protagonist, the boundary between truth and fabrication starts to dissolve—and that shift becomes deeply personal. As artists, we're drawn to exploring AI not only to unlock its creative potential, but also to confront the risks and ethical dilemmas it presents.
VOCALIZE is generously supported by Sage & Jester as well as The Space, Arts Council England, Wales Millennium Centre, University of the Arts London, CPH Lab and Numbers Protocol.
Listings
VOCALIZE: Thursday 22nd May – Sunday 1st June
Hay Festival, Hay-on-Wye, Wales
Hay Festival ticket holders will be able to book online HERE
Stephen Fry, VOCALIZE, credit to David Levene