The No Proscenium Podcast (Noah Nelson/No Proscenium)

Actor Alex Demers (The Johnny Cycle: The Living, The Blue Blade) joins us to talk about the craft of acting in immersive and his own journey into the immersive field.

Plus: a big update on the 2020 Summit, as in DATES, LOCATION, and NAME and some notes on a new musical in LA -- CAGES.

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You may not know Justin Denton's name, but you certainly have heard of his work. He's the director of the much buzzed about LEGION FX activation at last year's San Diego Comic Con (which had an encore at FoST Fest in NYC) and part of the core team at Here Be Dragons, the production studio that has helped put VR on the map.

Get ready, because Noah and Justin are about to have one of THOSE conversations.

This is my favorite episode in a long while.

Plus: we sing the praises of our SXSW crew, and detail the NEXT STEP in our March NO PRO GOES PRO campaign. (GIVE US YOUR MONEY!)

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Dragon Productions Theatre Company's Max Koknar, Ariel Aronica, and Jacob Vorperian join us to talk about All We Have To Fear: Party at the End of the World, their new theatre/game hybrid that uses Gather to recreate the experience of an immersive theatre space like the former Speakeasy in San Francisco, along with some tweaks to the system created by the Dragon to add a game layer to the proceedings. 

We dive in on the eve of the show's opening. For the curious amongst you: there's a handful of free tickets using the code NOPROFREE that are usable through the end of the month, and a $10 discount NOPRO once those free tickets are gone.

 

PLUS: early impressions of the Oculus Quest 2. (Check out our unboxing and first impression videos.)

(And yes, this is episode 269, I think I say 268 at the top because I was using the wrong document for the intro!)

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NoPro Executive Editor Kathryn Yu speaks to creators at the Tribeca Film Festival, exploring three different pieces currently showcasing at the Virtual Arcade through May 4.

She sits down with Kevin Cornish of Moth + Flame to talk about 2nd Civil War, where participants have the power to change the narrative of the VR film using a voice interface; they also go through an immersive theatre one-on-one with a performer before and after the VR experience. (Note: this interview took place in a busy cafe area.)

She also talks to Brandon Padveen, Associate Producer at MWM Immersive, about War Remains on the rooftop of Spring Studios; he discusses working with Dan Carlin of Hardcore History to create this “immersive memory” and designing the free-roaming VR experience, which includes a large set, realistic props, wind effects, rumbling floors, and more. (Read her War Remains review.)

Then she chats with immersive creator and director of the Columbia University Digital Storytelling Lab Lance Weiler to talk about his latest project, Where There’s Smoke. The work is an immersive experience for four people exploring Lance’s relationship with his father (a former volunteer firefighter and hobbyist fire photographer), his father’s battle with cancer, and two mysterious fires that happened during Lance’s childhood. He describes the project as a non-linear documentary, an immersive theatre piece without performers, and an escape room without any escape. (Read her Where There’s Smoke review.)

 

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Jay Rinsky, the founder, CEO, and creative director of the NYC based Little Cinema is back on the show to talk about the arrival of Little Cinema Digital. This new venture from the production company has seen the theatre professionals pivot into creating a video platform of their own.

They've been using it to host premiere parties for television shows, complete with online versions of the elaborate, immersive afterparties Little Cinema is known for. This weekend the public will get a taste with Who Killed Alejandro Valdez? - a free fan event that celebrates the launch of the second season of TNT's The Alienist with a murder mystery party that shows off Little Cinema's fantastic new platform.

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This week: just a quick touch-base about the media created for the Spring Fling, our Discord, and all the various community projects that are ongoing including the work of Stand With Asians, LEIA, and Artizen's Black Realities Grant.

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Artists Scott Hove and Baker's Son join host Noah Nelson, along with Think Tank gallery Creative Director Jacob Patterson and Arya Davachi--director of Rough Sleeper--which will be using the gallery's Break Bread installation as the backdrop for his show.

The conversation waxes philosophical about the nature of collaboration and the intersection between art installations and immersive theatre. 

Rough Sleeper will play out on just two dates--March 3rd and 4th--at the gallery. The Break Bread installation will be open through March 13th.

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Friends of the show Lauren Ludwig and Monica Miklas stop by to talk about lessons learned from the recent remount of Hamlet-Mobile, which was pretty much host Noah Nelson's favorite thing in 2015 that wasn't a Star Wars movie.

All that plus: we've got some free tickets in the Bay Area to David Byrne's Neurosociety thanks to our friends at Epic Immersive, Noah embarrsess himself no less than TWICE during the news and notes, and you can update your NYE plans in LA.

 

It's No Proscenium! Brought to you by our friends at drafty-app.com and Patreon backers JUST. LIKE. YOU.

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Noah travels to the offices of the Think Well Group--experience designers extraordinaire--to talk about the shared worlds of immersive theatre and theme park design with a group of people who are passionate about both.

Vice President of Creative Development Dave Cobb (@DaveCobb) is joined by members of the creative brain trust--Kate McConnell (@AntiKate), Jeremy Thompson (@jkthompson72), and Dana Shaw (@thefakedana)--for a family style discussion that is probably way chiller than what happens at your Thanksgiving table. So come sit with us at the cool kid's table!

Also: Noah waxes POETIC about The Industry's HOPSCOTCH, which Jeremy was kind enough to drag him to when all hope looked to be lost. 

 

More Twitter handles than you can handle:

 

@thinkwellgroup

@theindustryopera

@thebewcomedy

@ablehorwitz

 

All of which are there for a reason--just listen to the show already!

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John Bucher of Sideshow Media Group joins us to talk about his upcoming book Storytelling For Virtual Reality, and in the process gets Noah to go way, way off script. (Warning: content advisory.)

Plus the creator of the augmented reality/immersive theatre piece Transmission, which will be making its debut at the Edinburgh Fringe stops by.

 

Brought to you by our Patreon backers, including sustaining backer Ross Sigworth.

 

 

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Our side-track podcast covering the 2017 DuckTales reboot returns with Zay and Noah.

This time out:  The Living Mummies of Toth-RA The Impossible Summit of Mount Neverest & The Spear of Selene

Content Advisory: starting at around 53 minutes we discuss the evidence of mental abuse and sexual coercion perpetrated by comic book writer Warren Ellis. It had bubbled up on social media the day that we’re recording. It makes sense in context, and I’d even argue that to not bring it up would have been more inappropriate given the context. However, I know that it’s not a topic you’d expect in a conversation about what is, ostensibly, a kids' TV show. The discussion lasts until around 1hour and 12 minutes.

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Marissa Nielsen-Pincus, Associate Artistic Director of Third Rail Projects, joins us to talk about the a of immersive performance. Marissa has had a major role in crafting and keeping up Third Rail's most famous shows, and we get into the spirit of the craft and her approach.

All that plus the usual News & Notes, brought to you by Patreon backers just like *you*.

 

Note: the News & Notes section is a bit long this time out. Interview starts at 19:39.

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A special, host only,  edition of the podcast that addresses both the postponement of the HERE Summit & Festival and our craft's ongoing response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Show notes: COVID-19 & Freelance Artists (h/t to Michael Jung for sharing on FB.)

Sorry for the rambling nature, it's been a WEEK, y'all. 

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This week, a vacationing Noah takes some audience questions about the nature of immersive and the International scene. Then he delivers a rant about value and cost in live immersive entertainment.

Plus the usual News & Notes!

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Last week we were fortunate enough to have two of our staff at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival, exploring all the XR goodies at the New Frontier. 

XR correspondent Will Cherry and our host Noah Nelson trade notes on a very exciting class of 2020. The verdict: VR storytelling is maturing rapidly alongside the tech, thanks to pieces like The Book of Distance, Scarecrow, Atomu, and All Kinds of Limbo.

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Jesse Damiani, longtime friend of the show, drops by to talk about his continuing adventures in the world of XR. (That's virtual, augmented, and mixed reality for those playing the home game.)

Recently he curated the art show Spatial Reality, which brought together multiple artists from across the reality spectrum for what was one of the biggest -- if not the biggest -- gatherings of XR art to date.

We sit down with Jesse, drink my favorite beer, talk about that show and wax philosophical as we are won't to do. Come, join us.

This episode is brought to you by listeners like you and The Johnny Carson Center for Emerging Media Arts, who are seeking faculty candidates.

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We visit Facebook's LA campus to talk with the team behind Vader Immortal, the launch title for the Oculus Quest that finds you captured by the Dark Lord of the Sith and set on a task only you can accomplish. Director Ben Snow,  narrative designer Mohen Leo ILMxLAB and Oculus' Colum Slevin (Head of Media, AR/VR Experiences at Facebook) join us to talk about the brand new adventure which debuts this month.

Plus: host Noah Nelson's hands-on impressions of Vader Immortal and the Oculus Quest.

Read our review of Vader Immortal on the NoPro site.

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Julia Henning, founder of The Halogen Company, is a familiar presence on the LA immersive scene. As an actor, she's performed with Just Fix It Productions (Haus of Creep), The Speakeasy Society (Johnny III), and in Darren Lynn Bousman's Lust Experience and Theatre Macabre.

As Creative Director of Halogen, she's taken the company into both traditional and immersive endeavors, with One Exit, and the planned Sea of Odds.

Show Notes: Inside Immersive: Haus of Creep (video)

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This week we're honored to have Pete Billington, writer & director of Wolves in the Walls, the VR adaptation of Neil Gaiman & Dave McKean's beloved story as our guest. Pete is one of the co-founders of Fable, which not only created Wolves, but are now pioneering in the realm of virtual beings.

We'll get into how immersive theatre helped him break a creative stalemate, and the exciting experiments in the creative use of artificial intelligence to create virtual characters that can evolve over time.

Show Notes

• Wolves in the Walls for the Oculus Quest
• Fable
• Meet Lucy
• LEIA Office Hours: Bylaws & More
• The NoPro 2020 Audience Awards NominationsWriters
• Roundtable: Immersive, Online and Distantly (December 2020)
• NoPro Patreon

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"When in doubt, LARP it out."

That, thanks to Andrew Hoepfner is one of our unofficial mottos here at NoPro. So it is with great exuberance that we introduce today's guest: Jason Carl of By Night Studios. 

By Night Studios are the folks who publish the Mind's Eye Theatre series of LARP games-- live action versions of the classic RPGs Vampire: The Masquerade and Werewolf: The Apocalypse. These are among the NoPro crew's formative immersive experiences, and the lines have been going strong and maturing for years now.

In this episode we do more than talk about what the games are and how they cross over with all things immersive, but about the lessons in consent and safety that have been developed through years of experience in the LARP world: lessons immersive creators and participants would do well to heed.

All that plus: GHOST LIGHT notes from Zay Amsbury in NYC, and something SPECIAL from the gaps of the Hollywood Fringe. #theboanthropic

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The second half of our end of the year/beginning of the year roundtable with Anthony, Kathryn, Kevin, beer, and Noah.

Plus: the latest programming announcement from the HERE Summit & Festival, taking place March 27-29 in Pasadena, CA.

Beer Notes:

Enegren Belgian Dark Strong Ale 5th Anniversary edition. (Moorpark, CA)

Bruery Terreux's Tart of Darkness (2016, Placentia, CA -- we get this one wrong!)

Brewery Ommegang Valar Morghulis Dubble Ale (Cooperstown, NY)

WARNING: there is cursing because there is drinking.

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Director Lola Kelly joins us to talk about her new work with The Unmarked Door -- 'Crimson Cabaret' -- which invites guests into a den of spies at the height of the cold war. With original songs by The Unmarked Door founder Rolfe Kent, and puzzles woven into the show by MOON/SHINE Experiential, the cabaret is an unexpected holiday treat for Los Angeles.

Join us for a talk about the show and the art of acting and directing for immersive.

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Lauren Ludwig (Hamlet-Mobile, Lost Moon Radio) is the director and adaptor of And The Drum, a movement based immersive in LA's Koreatown that is one part dinner party and two parts exploration of the poetry of Martha Marion. The piece, performed at Marion's own home, is one of the more stunning pieces of work to be staged on LA's immersive scene in the past year.

Ludwig speaks with host Noah Nelson (@noahjnelson) about her process for And The Drum in this fast paced, insightful discussion.

All that and the usual news and notes.

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On this very special episode, No Proscenium accepts an invitation into the home of a 'The Willows.'

Special thanks to Melinda DeKay, Misha Reeves, and Daniel Montgomery of Just Fix It Productions for helping us unravel the threads.

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Two. Hundred. Episodes.

Two hundred.

So how do we celebrate? By getting the gang together -- that being the senior editors -- Kathryn Yu, Anthony Robinson, Jessica Lachenal, and Kevin Gossett together to just chat.

Here's to 200 more. 

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A little over a year ago novelist Matt Ruff (Lovecraft Country) and journalist Blake Collier reached out to us. They were doing a podcast to promote Matt's new novel, 88 Names, which is set in a world where virtual reality is a lot further along than our own. They wanted to talk about the creative side of it all with us.

It was a grand time.

Now, after a most unexpected year and two seasons of the podcast, Blake and Matt have wrapped up their show and we asked them to come on our show and talk about their journey through the immersive world -- not just the art & entertainment side, but forays into medicine and philosophy as well.

Show Notes

• The 88 Names Podcast
• 88 Names (novel)
• Serial Killer Speed Dating Bonus Episode
• The Rundown
• Crafting Immersive Part 1: Make It Physical
• The NoPro Patreon
• The NoPro Discord

 

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Writer/Director David Ruzicka (Creep: Lore, The Willows) and creative producer Eric Vosmeier join host Noah Nelson to talk about their dark fantasy confection, I want to live in your mouth,  that has transmogrified North Hollywood's Zombie Joe's Underground Theater into the stuff of childhood fever dreams.

It's a conversation where we dig in deep into the various flavors of horror in immersive, and lessons learned over years of producing.

You can also read our own Kevin Gossett's review of the show.

Head's up: there's some cursing at the start (my bad) but most of the episode is clean. 

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Yvonne Chang and Jae Lee of NYC's Wildrence join guest host Kathryn Yu to talk about their unique storytelling space and consulting studio on Manhattan's Lower East Side.

Plus: quick notes from Noah about the beautifully constructed site-specific work Nightwalk in the Chinese Garden currently in Southern California.

 

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Choreographer Koryn Ann Wicks stops by the studio to talk about her work exploring immersive in dance. Her I Love You So Much, SQUEEZE ME TO DEATH is getting a remount at the Bootleg Theater this October in LA, and her and her team recently took home the grand prize of the LA Immersive Invitational for their work CASTING.

We dive in on the language of dance and immersive in this one.

Show NotesOur review of I Love You So Much, SQUEEZE ME TO DEATHI Love You So Much, SQUEEZE ME TO DEATH fundraiser Daqri shutting downVenice VR: These Sleepless NightsKoryn's Instagram#bedrUmplaII(2) — [[bedroom play 2]]

 

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The Nest -- which blended elements of escape rooms and podcast dramas -- was one of our favorite shows of 2017. The show's two LA-based creators Jeff Leinenveber and Jarrett Lantz, aka Scout Expedition Co., are bringing the piece back in an extended format this year.

This week they launched a Kickstarter campaign that will help with that effort, and they're on the show to tell us about what they have up their sleeve.

Show Notes:

LA Times Festival of Books: Noah's talk. The Scout Expedition talk. The Unsent Podcast. Dr. Alex Avila's Love University show.

The LEIA Immersive Intensive - April 27th in LA

 

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This time out host Noah Nelson talks with Paul Stein, creator of The Car Plays and Moving Art's Lem Thornton about the origins of that show. Is it any surprise that there's a "necessity is the mother of invention" moral to the story?

And STICK AROUND after the interview because our intrepid host FORGOT something cool in the News & Notes. Unless you are listening to this after Saturday Jan 30th. In which case: you're too late.

 

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Brent Bushnell co-founder and CEO of Two Bit Circus--a motely crew of Entertainment Engineers--joins host Noah Nelson. Bushnell isn't just involved with immersive entertainment professionally, he's also the LA area's number one fan of the work. Listen is as he and Noah dig deep into what's exciting in the world of immersibve and interactive experiences today.

 

Plus the usual news, and more.

Two Bit Circus (@twobitcircus)

No Proscenium (@noproscenium)

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If you're in the amusement industry, Kevin Williams is a name you probably know. Once upon a time he headed up the "DisneyQuest" project in Orlando for the Mouse House, and beyond that he's a consultant on numerous projects, the editorial voice of The Stinger Report and founder of The DNA: Digital Out-of-Home Interactive Entertainment Association.

This year he's starting an all new conference focused on the Future of Immersive Leisure. We talked about that, his history in the amusement industry, and a whole lot more.

Plus: David & Lisa of Room Escape Artist stop by to talk about the state of Escape Rooms, and I go into a little more about LEIA: the League of Experiential & Immersive Artists, which is coming together in the Southland.

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Once upon a time Sean Stewart was a science fiction novelist. Then, one day, he got a call asking if he wanted to take part in a little world-building project. One based around a Steven Spielberg movie. 

That movie was A.I. and that project would become known as "The Beast," the first Alternate Reality Game. Now Sean works for Magic Leap, the secretive company in Florida that is working on augmented reality. But we're not here to talk about that. We're here to talk about making participatory stories.

Sean plays Jedi Master to Noah's padawan learner. This is a very, very good episode.

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Jonathan Josephson, Paul Millet and Jeff Rack are the creators of the perennially popular WICKED LIT in Altadena--a triptych of literary adaptations that provide an immersive twist on Halloween fun. The team, best known as Unbound Productions, sits down with host Noah Nelson in the Think Tank Podcast Studio to talk about this year's Wicked Lit, the history of the company, and the non-Spooky Season shenanigans they get up to.

All that plus the News & Notes, and Noah makes the case for why you should be backing No Pro on Patreon. (Hint: because we need you to!)

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Screenshot Productions' Nicholas Sherwin & Meghan McHale-Sherwin join host Noah Nelson to talk about the all-new version of Screenshot's Fear Is What We Learned Here that they are bringing to SF. They also chat about adjusting to life in the Bay Area, the ART side of immersive, and more.

All THAT plus a RAFT of news & notes from around the country.

Brought to you by PATREON backers like you!

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Zay Amsbury, our man in New Amsterdam--that's New York City, if you're not into Dutch Colonial American History--come through with a short and sweet one with BBQ Films' Gabriel Rhoads. These purveyors of immersive cinema are gearing up for the BLADE RAVE--an immersive showing of BLADE complete with a recreation of the iconic, bloody vampire rave. That will be going down on October 9th as part of New York's Super Week,  presented by New York Comic Con.

 

Find out more at bbqfilms.com

Find more on Twitter: @bbqfilms, @zayamsbury, @noproscenium

 

 

Next week: a brief hiatus. 

 

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This week we turn to YOU, the NoPro audience (and our team), to find out what you're looking forward to in the coming year.

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Writer and director Edward Robles of Here Be Dragons drops by to talk about Dispatch, his episodic VR narrative for Oculus that debuted at Sundance. 

Well that and a wide ranging conversation about how he landed in the business, writing, and more. 

That plus a #NoProGoesPro campaign update.

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In the summer of last year Marike Splint, an incoming theatre professor at UCLA, reached out to us to talk about LA immersive theatre community. Now we visit Marike at her office on campus to talk about her experiences creating immersive performance and what the scene is like in The Netherlands, where she hails from.

It's a fun talk. All that plus a blast of News Notes. (The fastest in ages... the coffee is working!)

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Liz Rosenthal, co-curator of Venice VR at the Venice International Film Festival with Michel Reilhac, joins host Noah Nelson to talk about the 2020 edition. This year's event is Venice VR Expanded, a hybrid digital/physical exposition of over 40 works in VR -- from 360 film to live theatrical performances -- across a host of venues virtual and physical. 

And the best news: if you own a VR headset of just about any stripe, you can experience some of the programming at home as the festival unfolds.

On top of all that: this is just a great conversation.

Venice VR Expanded runs Wed, Sep 2, 2020 — Sat, Sep 12, 2020. Get bonus content on Patreon

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Ricky Brigante and Sarah A.S. Elger, authors of the 2020 Immersive Entertainment Industry Annual Report, join us to talk about some of the big takeaways from this year's edition -- which is four times the size of the 2019 Report.

Show Notes

The 2020 Immersive Entertainment Industry Annual Report

Pseudonym Productions (Brigante and Elger's production company)

Everything Immersive - our new, searchable event website, now in PUBLIC BETA

Identifying airborne transmission as the dominant route for the spread of COVID-19 (Research Article - Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America)

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Sean Stewart has been a lot of things in his storied career in telling stories. Novelist, LARPwright, actor, theatre tech, and most famously of all: one of the creators of the modern Alternate Reality Game.

Now add "internationally produced playwright" to the list.

Sean and Noah talk about his upcoming interactive play Roundabout, which will be performed by students of Australia's National Institute of Dramatic Art via Twitch, and the evolving nature of theatre (yes with the "re") in the Pandemic Age.

 

Show Notes

Australia's National Institute of Dramatic Art production of Roundabout

Swings And Roundabouts: Theater Strikes Back - Sean Stewart

NoPro Episode 156 - Sean Stewart & The Birth of the ARG

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NoPro's own Anthony Robinson (Survivor: Fiji) is joined by Peih-Gee Law (Survivor: China and Survivor: Cambodia) and Room Escape Artist's David Spira to talk about the 20th anniversary of the reality show, escape games, and more.

Show Notes:

The 2020 Immersive Design Industry Survey

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Hey gang, just a few quick notes this week before we head up to the SF Bay Area. 

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Eric Gradman, CTO and Mad Inventor at LA's Two Bit Circus meets up with Noah at their DTLA headquarters to talk about the technical side of immersive and their all-new story room Dr. Botcher's Minute Medical School.

Head's up: there's cursing.

Show Notes:

This week's Picks of the Week

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Javaad Alipoor is the co-director, writer, and one of the performers of Rich Kids: A History of Shopping Malls in Tehran, an incredible multi-media theatre piece that links a constellation of Big Ideas into an incredibly human story. The docudrama starts with the real-life story of a doomed love affair between two of Iran's young rich elite, and then invites the audience to peel back the layers of the story to see the massive historical underpinnings that led to a devastating accident.

Alipoor specializes in political theatre with an emotional core, and in our interview, we dive deep into the current political and cultural moment in a wide-ranging and electric conversation.

Content Advisory: adult language

Show Notes

• Rich Kids: A History of Shopping Malls in Tehran
• The Javaad Alipoor Company
• The Colour of Our Politics (podcast)
• Call Sheet (Job listings)
• The Rundown (Weekly Reviews)
• The NoPro Patreon

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Luke and Madison Rhodes of Cross Roads Escape Games join us to talk about how these horror-loving theatre kids wound up running one of the most innovative and immersive escape game companies in Southern California. Join host Noah Nelson as we talk about their smash debut hit The Hex Room, the game-changing The Psych Ward, and the 2019's pop-up theatre piece The Seance.

Plus: some updates on the HERE Summit & Festival.

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The LA immersive renaissance is really heating up, and choreographer Sophia Stoller is bringing some stunning dance chops to the table this month with her piece 'The Other Side,' which uses some infamous experiments in social control as her inspiration.

We dive into the inspiration for the show and Stoller's craft... and you get a nice dose of news, notes, and an old fashioned Noah rant after the interview proper.

All brought to you by listeners like you.

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Survivor: China and Survivor: Cambodia — Second Chance player Peih-Gee Law joins NoPro's Anthony Robinson (Survivor: Fiji) and Room Escape Artist's David Spira for a talk about how Survivor is the ultimate immersive experience for its players, and their shared love of escape games and puzzles.

All to celebrate the premiere of Survivor: Island of the Idols.

Originally scheduled as part of our Everything Else livestream series, this bonus episode heralds the beginning of new podcast programming initiatives.

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The co-creator of Blackout Haunted House, Josh Randall, joins host Noah Nelson to talk about the storied show -- which has inspired many others in the horror genre -- and his storied career.

"Each and every conversation I've ever had with Josh has challenged how I see our field, and this is no exception. I look forward to years more of them." -Noah

Check out Blackout's Kickstarter.

 

Show Notes: VIFF: These Sleepless Nights, NYFF: Convergence, Delusion: Alt-Delete, Haus of Creep, Without Walls Festival

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A wrap up of immersive theatre news and notes from NYC to LA with a stop in one of our new haunts--Atlanta--by host Noah Nelson.

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The director of Second Skin, a site-adaptive piece currently performed on the Santa Monica beach, joins host Noah Nelson for a discussion about site-specific theatre. This one gets *philosophical*, but in a totally fun way. 

 

All this plus the usual news & notes.

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Ida Benedetto is the author of Patterns of Transformation: Designing Sex, Death and Survival in the 21st Century. That work came about thanks to years of practice as an experience designer, including being part of the legendary Night Heron speakeasy brain trust. She joins NoPro NYC curator Kathryn Yu to discuss her approach to experience design.

This is one we've been waiting for.

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Film fans know the Alamo Drafthouse, the Austin theater chain which has set the bar for transforming the experience of going to the movies.

For years Los Angeles anticipated the arrival of the Drafthouse, and it seems to have been well worth the wait. From rowdy screenings of CATS which have since swept the nation to full-on ARGs there's something special happening at the DTLA Drafthouse. Host Noah Nelson talks with Ash Minnick, who handles the programming inside the Video Vortex, which we've come to think of as "LA's neighborhood movie bar" on the eve of their immersive EMMA. tea party.

Plus: you can check out the HERE Programming Guide.

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This week on the show: a kind of psychological sequel to last week’s episode on physical safety.

We have sex-positive psych Dr. Liz Powell -- a licensed therapist and coach who specializes in LGBTQ/Poly/Kink-Friendly therapy joining us to talk about the mental side of safety and emotional risk.

Plus Elan Lee -- co-creator of Exploding Kittens and former Chief Design Officer at Xbox joins us to talk about his passion for escape rooms.

Head's up: strong language and frank discussion throughout!

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Continuing our three-part series focusing on the emerging art form of VR Theatre. 

Three panels of VR Theatre all-stars join us to talk about acting in, directing, designing, and producing live theatrical production in virtual reality. No Proscenium hosts Noah Nelson & Kathryn Yu are joined by special guest host Stephanie Riggs, with each running one of the panels as they tackle the core questions.

This week's edition looks at the special magic of LIVE.

Segment One

Hosted by Noah Nelson (@noahjnelson)

• Dasha Kittredge (@DashaKittredge)
• Brandon Powers (@bpowtweets)
• Espii Proctor (@espiistudios)

Segment Two

Hosted by Stephanie Riggs (@immersiveriggs)

• Brendan A. Bradley (@brendanAbradley)
• Tim Kashani (@TimKashani)
• Deirdre Lyons (@deirdrelyons)

Segment Three

Hosted by Kathryn Yu (@kathrynyu)

• Marinda Botha (@MarindaBotha6)
• Beth Kates (@the_play_ground)
• Riel Tarr (@raktorxr)

Show Notes

• Episode 279: XR Live — Theatre & VR Part One
• Episode 280: XR Live – Theatre & VR Part Two
• The End of Storytelling: The Future of Narrative in the Storyplex
• The NoPro Newsletter
• Call Sheet (1/28/21)

This episode is brought to you by our Patreon backers, and well-caffeinated by our friends at Yes Plz coffee.

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Shine On Collective's writer-director duo Anna Mavromati and Marlee Delia join host Noah Nelson in LA to talk about their latest work Echoes in the Dark, a 2018 update of the Frankenstein story, and how their collaboration has evolved over the last two years of work.

Plus: we touch on a bunch going on in LA right now, like the amazing Spatial Reality gallery exhibition, Delusion, CreepLA: Awake, the upcoming workshop from Tara O'Con and Marissa Neilsen-Pincus, and much much more.

Support us via Patreon!

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It's no secret that we have LARP roots here at No Proscenium, specifically VAMPIRE LARP roots. So when we heard that there's a "blockbuster" (aka bespoke) Vampire LARP coming to Texas in November -- part of the relaunch of Vampire: the Masquerade which is happening all year long -- we got very, very intrigued.

Which is how we ended up talking to Matthew Webb of Jackalope Live Action Studios, the company that is putting on this event called The Night In Question.

That's not all Jackalope is up to, as they're working on the Cyberpunk license and more, looking to introduce an emerging style of play to brand new audiences.

Break out the fangs, we're going in.

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At this year's San Diego Comic Con the most buzzed about things weren't movies: they were immersive.

Pop-up "marketing activations" for Westworld, Blade Runner 2049, and Mr. Robot drew on the talents and skills of immersive theatre makers and ARG crafters to created the biggest tentpole for immersive this side of Sleep No More.

We check in with Daphne Mir and Maxwell Robison who checked out Westworld and Blade Runner 2049, respectively, to get a connoisseur eye view of these immersive gateways into some of Hollywood's biggest properties.

Plus: our neighbor uses a garden hose throughout a very special announcement from Noah.

Plus-plus: in LA this weekend? Swing on by MIDSUMMER SCREAM and catch our "STAGE & SCREAM" panel on Sunday. Featuring Zombie Joe, Shine On Collective, The Overlook Film Fest, and Unbound Productions.

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Live from the ThinkTank Studio... well, virtually live anyway: we talk with VR Scout editor-at-large and immersonaut extraordinaire Jesse Damiani about his exploration of Sundance's New Frontier, his development of scripting tools for digital and live immersive experiences, and a whole lot more.

PLUS: so many notes you will run out of sticks to shake at them. Including details on our first unofficial Fringe Town Hall: putting two great tastes--the Hollywood Fringe and immersive--together in a formal way at last. Better than chocolate and peanut butter! (That's a damn lie and I know it. Nothing is better than chocolate and peanut butter. Unless you have an allergy.) LINK: http://hff17.com/4496

 

All this brought to you by our generous Patreon backers and the support of Think Tank LA--check out their podcast Artist Real Talk! Stalk their shows as they go mobile!

CONTENT ADVISORY: Noah says a BAD WORD!!!

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Originally scheduled as the Horizon keynote speaker for the second day of the HERE Summit, Mikhael Tara Garver is the Head of Experiential Entertainment for Category 41, a "global experience company that creates, incubates and syndicates location-based experiences."

She's also a long time friend of the show and one of the few people whose careers in immersive & experiential has stretched long and wide enough to gain true perspective on this always-changing domain.

In lieu of the speech, we took to the HERE Discord on March 28th and opened the floor up for an Ask Me Anything session. This is the result.

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It's here!

We've come to the end of our Ducktales 2017 Season One journey. 

We're mostly shocked at HOW MANY OF YOU joined us. Seriously. This was a fan favorite?

We're going to do more like this, reality pending. But before all that can begin, we have to finish what we've started.

EPISODES DISCUSSED   The Secret(s) of Castle McDuck! The Last Crash of the Sunchaser!

The Shadow War! (Parts I & II)

Your assignment for next time:

Get some rest!

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Jeff Leinenveber and Jarrett Lantz have been around the immersive scene in LA for a minute. The two Imagineers (you know what this is, right?) have worked on Delusion and helped out Third Rail Projects when they popped into town.

Now they are turning their theme park sharpened skills on their own immersive work with the newly announced The Nest, coming this April: and we're here to tell you all about it.

Well, that and the usual nonsense we get up to.

 

All that plus a massively NEWS focused News and Notes.

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Sherwood & Nottingham co-creator/director Nick Rheinwald-Jones and Supervising Creative Producer Shoshanna Green join host Noah Nelson to talk about the upcoming second season of the Robin Hood-themed alternate reality roleplaying experience.

Show Notes

• SpyBrunch
• The Rundown
• The NoPro Discord

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Zay Amsbury, our man in New York City, is setting out for some traveling. Stepping into his shoes is Kathryn Yu, our not-so-secret-weapon. 

In this AFTER DARK episode that duo join Noah to talk about, well... whatever we want to talk about. It's one of THOSE episodes. (Which are a lot of fun.)

Plus: what starts out as a media rant at the end of the show turns into something decidedly more, um, spiritual?

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It's been a minute! Noah and Kathryn are joined by Patrick McLean (NoPro Chicago) and first time on the podcast Leah Davis (NoPro New England) to talk about what's been giving us hope of late.

Show Notes The Window (Review) Into The Mist SXSW 2021 Diary Under The Freeways of Los Angeles The NoPro Discord

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From the halls of the Immersive Design Summit to your ears!

Guest hosts KJ Knies and Michaela Holland tag in to interview Fri Forjindam of Mycotoo, and we follow that up with an interview of Jenni Cook of Dreamscape Immersive by KJ.

It's the first in what will be a handful of episodes emerging from the 2019 IDS.

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There's something magical going on in Downtown Los Angeles. Something simple, and oh-so-needed in this day and age.

It's called The Silent Play Experiment, and it is exactly what it says on the tin. Host Noah Nelson sits down with its co-creator Olivia Hamilton to talk about the experience, the company that gave birth to it, and the road to embracing play.

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Surprise!

Zay Amsbury returns to talk with Caitlin Cassidy and Geoff Kanick of Lubdub Theatre Company about The Doubtful Guest.

Plus: Noah talks about the initial impact of the Immersive Design Summit.

 

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Alison S. M. Kobayashi joins Kathryn Yu to talk about Say Something Bunny, a feat of theatrical documentary that draws audiences into the lives of a New York Jewish family in the 1950s. It is quite unlike anything else on stage in NYC, and it drew the attention of our New York team.

Plus: Noah without his coffee.

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John MacInnes and Remington Scott met while making Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare, kicking off a collaboration (MacInness Scott) that is exploring the bleeding edge of photorealism. But these two are about more than brain melting tech that can turn Hollywood actors and politicians into digital humans: all that is just the groundwork for exploring the art of storytelling on the immersive digital frontier.

Host Noah Nelson talks with John and Remington about the history of their collaboration, their work for Netflix on an Altered Carbon promotion, and just where all this is headed.

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This week Zay sits down with Woodshed Collective’s Artistic Director Teddy Bergman (K-POP) to talk about the storied NYC group's approach to immersive theatre. Bergman and Woodshed's The Confidence Man was Zay's intro into the realm of immersive, so he's been looking forward to this one... and I've been looking forward to listening to it! --Noah

Plus: some rambling thoughts from our master of ceremonies.

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Innerspace VR co-founder Balthazar Auxietre and writer Rob Morgan join us to talk about Maskmaker, the new game from Innerspace published by MWM Interactive that puts players into the role of an apprentice mask maker who must unravel the mystery that haunts a magical island ruled by the master mask maker Prospero.

Show Notes

• Maskmaker 
• Innerspace VR
• Brassroots DIstrict: The Opening Act For LA's Immersive Summer (Q&A)
• The (Two Bit) Circus Is Back In Town (Q&A)
• Pop-Up Magazine Hits The Streets With the 'Sidewalk Issue (Q&A)
• LEIA

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This week, we're joined by Jackson Teeley, Sarah Galante, and Dan  Barron, the creative team behind the upcoming musical Within Earshot: Anthems For The In-Between, which is set in a New York City coffee house on "Single's Awareness Day" aka Feb. 15th. Plotted out as an immersive piece, the creative team finds themselves tackling unexpected challenges in the wake of the pandemic. This conversation begins our look at the evolution of the project.

Show Notes

Within Earshot: Anthems For The In-Between

Concept Album (Spotify)

Concept Album (Apple Music) The Supernatural Diaries Week One

The Newman Design Process Squiggle ★ Get bonus content on Patreon

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We've wanted to get Curtis Hickman, co-founder and chief creative officer of The VOID, on the podcast forever. This time out we finally get him, and we get Jake Zim -- Senior Vice President, Virtual Reality at Sony Pictures -- as part of a twofer. We talk about Sony and The Void's longstanding collaboration, the latest example of which is 'Jumanji: Reverse The Curse,' which is the most fun I've had at The VOID yet.

Plus: we tease ticket info for the HERE Summit, but you can just click here to read it. And while you're at it: check out our 'Jumanji' review and the NoPro Holiday Gift Guide.

 

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Nick Rheinwald-Jones & Katelyn Schiller are the co-writers of 'Safehouse '82,' a spy thriller that follows up on Rheinwald-Jones' 'Safehouse '77' which featured the two as actors.

Since that show Schiller has become co-artistic director of the company Rheinwald-Jones founded, with the pair collaborating on this summer's 'The Pod' at the Hollywood Fringe Festival.

We talked with the co-writers on the eve of the opening of the new show, at the safehouse itself in an undisclosed location in the shadow of Griffith Park.

Note: there be cursing ahead.

Plus: a note about how tickets to next year's HERE Summit are going to work.

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We've wanted David Mack, the strategic director for Heidi Duckler Dance Theatre and a consultant and producer in his own right, on the show for ages. David is a fellow traveler in the LA arts scene and knows more than almost anybody here about what's what. 

So naturally we start talking about the Big Picture: how the real estate market and the demographics of LA impact and influence the art that is made here. This one works as a solid compass point for producers of *any* kind of performance art here in LA. And for fans: it gives you a real nuts and bolts look behind the scenes that explains why things are the way they are...

 

All that plus a raft of News and Notes.

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This week Noah is joined by Jon Lawrence Rivera, founder and artistic director of LA's Playwright's Arena to talk about their 25th-anniversary show "The Hotel Play," a site-specific piece that unfolds in a series of hotel rooms at the Radisson by USC.

We get into their writing process behind telling a mosaic story with a writer's room of playwrights. (Apologies for the slightly off sound quality. SOMEBODY forgot a cable and we recorded on the laptop... but it sounds better than the pre-Yeti mic episodes somehow!)

All that plus a MEGA News&Notes (sorry, not sorry, but kinda sorry) and the announcement of EVERYTHING IMMERSIVE our new GLOBAL Facebook group for... everything immersive.

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This week Noah and Kathryn are joined by: Kent Bye of the Voices of VR Podcast; Todd Martens of The Los Angeles Times; Alexis Soloski, contributor to The New York Times; and Scott Stein, Editor-At-Large of CNET to talk about their encounters in the immersive world in 2020.

SHOW NOTES

• Todd's Games of the Year list for 2020
• The NoPro Audience Awards Nominees & Ballot
• LEIA's Draft Bylaws
• LEIA Office Hours

 

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2020 was a long year for everyone, and especially so for Paige Solomon CEO & Creative Director of DTLA's Elsewhere at the Madcap Motel. The attraction's opening night was planned for the very night that everything shut down in California, and the project remained in limbo until opening last month. We talk with Solomon and with the Motel's Director of Theatrical Experience, Claire Chapelli, from INSIDE the Motel -- our first in-person interview in over a year -- about the long(er than expected) road to Elsewhere.

Show Notes

• Elsewhere at the Madcap Motel
• Head Down to DTLA to Go Elsewhen and ‘Elsewhere at the Madcap Motel’ (Review)
• Bonus Podcast: Crafting Immersive w/Koryn Wicks & Willing Kompany
• The Rundown: The One That’s A Little Spicy (Reviews!)
• Kink Curiosity Is Rewarded At LA’s ‘Fétische’ (Review)
• Short Doc Recalls ‘Everyone Agrees It’s About to Explode’ (NEWSWIRE)
• Call Sheet (5/28/21)
• Review Crew: Ultra Guest Edition (Backer Only till 5/29)
• NoPro Patreon

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Aaron and Austin Keeling of E3W Productions join Noah to talk about their new show Bitter at the End and how their surprise debut -- the absolutely wonderful In Another Room -- came together in the first place.

Keep an eye on these guys, they're got the touch.

Plus: the first part of our NoPro Goes Pro campaign BEGINS.

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This week: we travel up to the Presidio in San Francisco to talk with Vicki Dobbs Beck, the executive in charge of ILM's xLab. That's the part of Lucasfilm--yes, that Lucasfilm--whose mandate is to explore the immersive frontier. They're working on a whole range of immersive, virtual reality powered projects, and host Noah Nelson talks with Beck about how she views the world of immersive entertainment.

Join us as we gaze into the future, and get incredibly excited about how the digital and physical realms of immersive entertainment are merging.

 

All that, and the usual News and Notes. Brought to you by Patreon backers just like YOU.

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The 49 Boxes is a singular puzzle based storytelling event, the latest incarnation of which focuses on the life of Floyd G. Thayer-- one of the most famed illusion creators of all time.

Host Noah Nelson sits down with Michael Borys, the information and story architect of The 49 Boxes to talk about the origins of the show and his career as an untraditional storyteller.

Look for announcements about the next set of experiences from The 49 Boxes this week.

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This month I had the pleasure of checking out American Contemporary Ballet's take on The Nutcracker Suite -- the perennial holiday favorite -- which they frame with an immersive twist.

Interested in what I saw, and in the company's approach to using immersive techniques for a more traditionally tuned audience, I caught up with ACB's Artistic Director and Choreographer Lincoln Jones.

Plus: word on your chance to check out ILMxLAB's Lightsaber Dojo without needing an Oculus Quest of your own.

 

 

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What happens when you make a call for comments for an Open Forum about failure?

You get a very meta-episode where no one calls in.

So instead: some news and notes from our host Noah Nelson.

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Marlee Delia and Anna Mavromati are the co-founders of Shine On Collective, the LA immersive theatre company that made its name creating intimate horror experiences with a strong audio signature. Like so many others in the pandemic, Shine On had to pivot if they wanted to keep producing, and what that landed on came as a surprise.

Their first quarantine experience was Welcome Home, a boxed mystery that came with a delivery/take-out meal in LA and is now shipping as a mystery in a box with a dessert nationwide. They followed it up with The Rouguelike Presents: The Spirits of Tillinghast, the inaugural offering from Burbank's The Roguelike Tavern, a bar owned and operated by LA immersive theatre veteran John McCormick.

We talk with Delia and Mavromati about finding new ways to tell immersive stories in the real world after all the rules changed.

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This time out Zay and Noah discuss three episodes of the 2017 DuckTales reboot. TERROR OF THE TERRA FIRMIANS, HOUSE OF THE LUCKY GANDER, and THE INFERNAL INTERNSHIP OF MARK BEAKS are all covered along with the show's views on billionaires and a side trip into Jerry Garcia's favorite movie.

It's the show about DuckTales, that's not really a show about DuckTales.

Except when it is. 

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Our man in New York, Zay Amsbury, sits down with Andrew Hoepfner--creator of Houseworld--to talk about the surrealist immersive show.

Meanwhile, in LA, Noah has the news and something like a short rant about ethical behavior regarding ticket sales. Because, you know, he gets cranky sometimes.

All this plus the usual nonsense.

Hi Abel!

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Seasons change, time passes, friends move away... or up the street.

Think Tank Gallery is moving from its home at 939 Maple, the site of many a memory for immersive LA, to a new space at the edge of the Arts District and Little Tokyo. We get together with Jacob Patterson of Think Tank in the podcast studio at the Old Tank one last time to reminisce, talk about ongoing relations with the city of LA, and what's next for Think Tank.

Content Advisory: we curse. As we often do.

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Oh, do we have a multi-layered episode for you today.

First, we turn to Jacob Patterson of Think Tank Gallery, as we drop in on the night of their media preview for their next big show Drinkin', Smokin', West Coastin'.

Then we unlock the No Pro time machine (Where do you think all that Patreon money goes to?) to enter the world of Nocturnal Fandango before The Sudden Loneliness Gift disrupted their dreams and plans. That's where we find Jason and Kevin Davidson, the couple at the heart of that company, weeks after Have You Seen Jake? ended, before a tragic fire--an uncanny echo of stories past--took Kevin away from Jason.

All that, and Noah shares his tale of a Technodelic experience.

 

Wait, what?

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From NYC: Zay Amsbury talks with Kendra Slack and Jordan Chlapecka of Linked Dance Theatre, who have been working on some exciting stuff.

Meanwhile, in LA, Noah makes some dumb jokes about Krampus and pitches us all on becoming Patreon backers. Whatever, Noah.

All that and a modicum of News.

 

Brought to you by our friends at drafty-app.com and brave, tolerant Patreon backers like you.

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One of our favorite shows of 2015 is returning to the site of its run in LA's Arts District. But what they found might surprise you... or not, if you know the Arts District.

The work to get The Day Shall Declare It back up on its feet for a May 10 bow has begun, and Wilderness founder Annie Saunders takes host Noah Nelson on a tour of the site where they talk about the future fate of the Arts District.

All that plus news, notes, and some advice on how to get in on the pre-sale for The Day Shall Declare It, which starts on April 9th.

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Kathryn Yu sits down without Ricky Brigante and Sarah Elger of Pseudonym Productions who have recently moved their immersive theatre company from Orlando to Philadelphia.    The three of them have a wide-ranging conversation about Sarah's background in architecture and theme park design and Ricky's background in theme park journalism, the forming of their immersive theatre company, creating their first show, running an immersive theatre business in a place like Orlando, their recent experience going through the Creative Startups accelerator program, the future and impact of immersive design as a field, as well as their thoughts on Disney’s influence on immersive, including the brand new Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge.    Read Interactive, Intimate, Experimental: The Impact of Immersive Design 2019 by Ricky Brigante [PDF]. Get bonus content on Patreon

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Continuing our miniseries where Zay Amsbury and Noah Nelson talk about the 2017 DuckTales, this edition covers the episodes "The Great Dime Chase" and "The Beagle Birthday Massacre," the movie Ben-Hur, Hollywood writers' obsession with subverting expectations vs. classical storytelling, and beer.

Get yourself comfy, we’re gonna be here a while…

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Last week your host, Noah Nelson, was in Qingdao, China for the Sandbox Immersive Festival. This week he's back, solo, to talk about some of what he observed there and about the emerging thinking around XR -- the term being given to all of immersive technology -- and how that relates to live immersive.

This being Noah talking into a microphone, you know that we get into a few tangents, including thoughts about what it means to become a bit jaded as a reviewer, and what incoming designers need to be thinking about when they approach immersive work for the first time.

Show Notes: Jesse Damiani's piece on XR UI design. Room Escape Artist on tariffs. Get bonus content on Patreon

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At the heart of many an immersonaut's journey is #SOMEDND, the "DND" being Dungeons & Dragons, and as it just so happens that hashtag stood for a recent livestream extravaganza called the Stream of Many Eyes. 

Now, why is NoPro talking about live-streaming D&D?

Well for one, the lead up to the stream was a multiverse hopping alternate reality game (#NoStoneUnturned) that called upon the powers of transmedia producer Emmett Furey and puzzle designer Elisa Teague, who join us on this week's episode to talk about the ARG, mixing tabletop gaming with escape room like puzzles, and the renaissance in roleplaying games.

Look: we always knew it was going to come down to Dungeons & Dragons. It's almost a surprise it took this long to get here. 

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Graham Wetterhahn, Founder of After Hours Theatre Company (One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest, The Last Five Years: A Multisensory Experience) joins host Noah Nelson to talk about the founding of the company, their immersive-adjacent work, and the first LA Immersive Invitational -- which was a total blast.

Show Notes: The 2019 Immersive Design Summit videos are here! Denver Immersive Retrospectacle highlights! Talking Spies with Nick Rheinwald-Jones. E.I. livestream on pop-ups. And bookmark next week's livestream on the stories of Star Wars Galaxy's Edge with Jeff Heimbuch (Horrorbuzz), Emmett Fuery (D&D, Ingress), and Anthony and Noah of NoPro. 

And as always: help us by reviewing the podcast, sharing the work, and pledging on Patreon (if you can).

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Our friend Mikhael Tara Garver dropped by this morning for a chat about how she integrates social impact into her work -- for entertainment, causes, and brands -- and how immersive and experiential work are uniquely suited for creating long term social change.

Here's one we wish could be longer, and it pairs well with the conversation we just had on EXP*DSN.

Mikhael Tara Garver has been directing and creating immersive work for 18 years. She is an experiential architect integrating live and technology for brands, social impact, and storytelling. 

Catch up with MTG on Instagram.

 

 

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Managing Editor Kathryn Yu goes on the road to Baltimore for a conversation with four of the folks at Submersive Productions: co-artistic directors Glenn Ricci and Ursula Marcum, as well as artistic associates Susan Stroupe and Lisi Stoessel.    Join us as we dig into topics like their devising process, making open world shows, the care and feeding of the audience, telling history “at a slant,” getting the audience to feel complicit during a piece, focusing on diversity and inclusion while making immersive work, and making their productions more accessible.    We discuss their past shows such as The Mesmeric Revelations of Edgar Allan Poe; H.T. Darling’s Incredible Musaeum Presents: The Treasures of New Galapagos, Astonishing Acquisitions from the Perisphere; their episodic series The Institute of Visionary History which included an eight-hour durational performance called A Horse By the Tail in the Night; plus their upcoming movement-based large-scale participatory piece MASS/RABBLE which is coming April 3—14 to the Baltimore War Memorial. Get bonus content on Patreon

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